New Moto Guzzi dealer

[Lee Davis]

I recently bought 2 new Moto Guzzis, and living just south of Albuquerque, it was a toss up as to which dealer to go to... There are dealers in Arizona, Texas, Colorado and Oklahoma that were within range, but I lucked out when I decided to contact the El Paso dealer... little did I know, it is a brand new startup. I bought a new V9 and had the pleasure of sitting on this beauty while waiting for my bike to be rolled out...


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    I rode the V9 home and thought about it overnight and then called Tracy, the owner and told him I would take the Stelvio. (he made me a great deal!)  It is a new 2016 1200 NTX. So, I again flew down a week later and rode the Stelvio home. I am delighted with it, of course, and I shall take it to Alaska this summer, I suspect. But, I have some other bikes in mind to maybe buy also... My first motorcycle ever was a 1970 BSA Victor 441, and I have owned quite a few old vintage British bikes (Ariel (2), Velocette (3), AJS and even a John Bull), and so, seeing that Tracy is also a dealer for Royal Enfield was just too much for me. Yeah, Yeah... I know, it is just a clone of a trouble prone old British design, But there is still something about a 500 British thumper that gets me interested. And, the new Fuel Injected engines have become very reliable, finally. They had 8 0r 10 of them in all models. I was quite taken with the fact that they have kick starters in addition to electric. That appeals to me!  But, back to the Guzzis...  There were at least a dozen new Guzzis on the floor, and it was quite a treat to see them and sit on all of them in person.
    I guess that the reason for this post is to tell everyone about Moto El Paso... one of the newest Moto Guzzi dealers. Nice folks...
http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/tracy-mcintyre-opens-moto-el-paso-dealership-in-el-paso-texas/

[blackcat]

Pretty bike, good luck with your new rides.

[dcardo021]

I agree with Lee, Moto El Paso is awesome and the owner is fantastic, very much a customers dream. He listens, works with you and tries very hard to meet your needs. Besides anyone who can ride a scooter from the Atlantic to the Pacific is alright in my book! Promise you he has a great collection of bikes and scooters!  Moto El Paso 2 thumbs up!

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[Lee Davis]

I have always enjoyed the pleasure of flying out somewhere and driving a vehicle home. Done it numerous times. But I have even done a Motorcycle run... I once bought a '92 Chevy Suburban from a dealer in Orem, Utah (to pull a boat and trailer). From New Mexico, I got my riding buddy, Doug, to double up with me on my BMW R1150RT and we took a trip up to pick up the Chevy. He LOVED riding my bike back home. The Ultimate was the time I bought a 1925 Hupmobile Model E touring car. I flew to upstate NY, took a train to the seller, and spent 12 days driving it home to New Mexico, at 40 mph, tops. What an adventure. I just wish Moto Guzzi dealers were farther away.

[fotoguzzi]

The Ultimate was the time I bought a 1925 Hupmobile Model E touring car. I flew to upstate NY, took a train to the seller, and spent 12 days driving it home to New Mexico, at 40 mph, tops. What an adventure.

If you took any pics please post them..

[ozziguzzi]

Quote Lee " I know, it is just a clone of a trouble prone old British design, But there is still something about a 500 British thumper that gets me interested. And, the new Fuel Injected engines have become very reliable, finally"

I think you need to talk to owners(or rather people who have become EX owners) of R Es. I make a point of talking to riders of these to find out what their experience has been and in many cases it hasn't been good. The local dealer here ONGMAC, bailed out of stocking them because they had just too many warranty issues.

Two years ago I went on a Himalayan ride on a two year old R E Classic (fuel injected). By the time I got to Manali (alt 1000m) it was delivering a poor throttle response. Because i was going over the Khardung La (18500'), this was the very reason I insisted on a fuel injection bike. It didn't run well throughout the whole trip. Unit was supposed to be BOSCH but it must have been the crappiest they could source because i have a 34 year old K100 with Jtronic F. E. and it goes better.

It drank oil and i had to keep topping it up every day (usually a liter for 250kms).  The clutch started showing signs of slipping but because R E now do unit construction, you can't  just pull the primary chain case off and put new plates in.

It was the nastiest bike I have ever done a long ride on and it's only virtue was that it could cope with being dropped into 3 zillion potholes without the frame cracking.

I'm going on another Himalayan ride but have booked a new model R E HIMALAYAN which has a different 440cc engine.
Reports say that it starts to sound stressed if taken over 55mph. It weighs 187KG which is very heavy for a dual sport.
I'm not expecting anything very impressive. My 250cc Kawasaki Sherpa is probably much much better.

I think that Indian engineering is poor, probably a result of what has been up until recently a closed market. The exception would be anything Honda based.

Difficult to understand why buyers outside the country would buy what is essentially 1953 engineering. Contrasts very much with the Indian scout which has lots of retro cred but has a superb engine and design (apart from the shocks)

If you want to experience what a 'British 500 thumper feels like (or should feel like) get your self a ride on a HONDA GB500. Light years of difference between this and the "trabbi" R E stuff.

[youngzrxer]

As a former "Trabbi" owner and one who just sold a 2015 Royal Enfield, I disagree.

The new ones are decent. They aren't japanese bikes in terms of quality....Or character which is why you buy one.

If i could afford two bikes at the same time I'd get another RE in a heartbeat. I'd buy used though, as they absolutely tank in value.

[pete roper]

Given that Guzzi have stopped building anything I'm interested in and my next bike will be a downsize the RE Himalaya/n looks very attractive. It's engine is a clean sheet design reminiscent of the old DR Suzukis or XT Yamahas, power output is modest so it shouldn't be stressed and reports are they are fun and reliable.

Pete

[Yeahoo Whoyah]

the reason for this post is to tell everyone about Moto El Paso... one of the newest Moto Guzzi dealers.

Quite a diverse lineup of two and four wheel toys, but not models with high sales volume, at least around here. Maybe El Paso is different?  I hope they make it. 

[Huzo]

Given that Guzzi have stopped building anything I'm interested in and my next bike will be a downsize the RE Himalaya/n looks very attractive. It's engine is a clean sheet design reminiscent of the old DR Suzukis or XT Yamahas, power output is modest so it shouldn't be stressed and reports are they are fun and reliable.

Pete

The red Continentals look (and sound) good with a decent pipe...

[ozziguzzi]

, as they absolutely tank in value.

 
wonder why (and trabbis)

[youngzrxer]

 
wonder why (and trabbis)

Trabis have become quite collectible last few years. A clean example here in the states can fetch $7k or more. I loved mine, but can't keep everything unfortunately

[Lee Davis]

I guess I am showing my ignorance, but what is a 'Trabbi"? 

[ozziguzzi]

Hmmm.
Lee, there are some things in life that you should not know about but since you asked.

A 600cc two stroke, about the size of a Fiat Punto with a body made of Duroplast ( a sort of plastic reinforced with cotton fibres).

Has transverse leaf springs _ just like a model T.

Has no emission control gear on it so I'm very surprised that it's even allowed into the US given that two stroke bikes were killed off.

you can have a look at this very fine example of a convertible here - https://www.classic-trader.com/au/cars/listing/trabant/601-kuebel/601-a/1967/90229. Can check and see if it comes with $24,000 worth of therapy vouchers as part of purchase price.

A clip from JALOPNIK

What�s it like to drive?

Okay, this is the fun part. I really liked driving a Trabant, but my criteria for enjoyment is a lot different than most people. For example, I count �complete bewilderment� as a plus. And by far the most bewildering part of driving a Trabi is the shifter.


The shifter is that strange 90� angled handle coming out of the dash. If you haven�t driven a Trabi before, it�s insanely difficult to wrap your head around the shift pattern � even more so than on something with an unusual shifter, like a Citro�n 2CV. At least a 2CV is still basically a normally-oriented H-pattern. The Trabant is an H-pattern, but it�s backwards and rotated 90� and vertical.

Even if you�re comfortable with a 3-on-the-tree, which I am, I found this thing to be like what MC Escher would have designed if he had enough shrooms handy. Here�s what the owner�s manual diagram helpfully shows:


Even once you accept that 0 is N, this thing is still like giving a Rubik�s cube to your dog. There�s also not much feel through the shifter at all, so, it�s hard to tell if you�re pushed in far enough for 1st, but not too far so you�re in R, but far enough so you�re not in 3rd.

The shifting motions are strange and unexpected to someone used to a floor shifter. I had a blast trying to figure it out, but this would take some serious getting used to.

Getting the right gear is important, too, because the acceleration in this thing is probably best measured by watching biscuits rise. It doesn�t necessarily feel all that slow, likely because it�s so light, but I did get passed once by a guy on a Chinese- Vespa knockoff scooter. Some of that was because of my amateurish shifting, but not all of it.

The car has that distinctive two-stroke sound and accompanying clouds of blue exhaust. You�re very aware you�re in a loud, filthy machine the whole time.


It�s so light, though, that it feels nimble to drive, and despite the archaic setup, it�s not a terrible handler � a Trabant passed that famous moose test that did in the Mercedes-Benz A-class, for example. Despite everything, it�s really pretty fun, in a go-cart way, to drive around. I�m sure you may think differently if this was your only option, but in my very different context, I enjoyed it.

Overall tone and character


I�m not going to shit on the overall build quality of the car too much because the one I drove was in such rough shape, I really can�t tell. But what I can tell is this: that little car was still going, and that thing had never been babied or coddled in its entire life.


The military version was called a Kubelwagen. The civilian version of this was called the Tramp, because I guess �Hobo� was taken.
Sure, maybe the panel gaps were big on a Trabant. Maybe the dash knobs disintegrated in your hands, maybe the rear hatch falls off, maybe years and years of use wears right through the pot metal of the spoon-like accelerator pedal. Maybe all that is true. But it doesn�t matter, because these cars don�t seem to quit.


When the wall fell and Germans could finally get newer and better cars, running Trabants were abandoned in mass numbers. Trabants didn�t wear out and die off, they were deliberately abandoned. That�s because I�m not entirely sure they can die off.

The one I drove needed a distributor swap, which is accessed from behind the front right wheel, where it resides right on the end of the crank. The repair took minutes and only used a screwdriver. The whole car is designed like this.


A Trabant may be a slow, filthy, noisy, sorry excuse for a car, but it�s not going to stop running just because you�re too big a candy-ass to deal with its flaws. It�s going to start and run sorta-shittily every single time you twist that key (improbably mounted under the steering column) because f*** you. Trabi doesn�t quit.

[youngzrxer]

The western auto media's response to these is more dramatic. It's no more crude in design than an early VW beetle and was almost as capable...The East Germans just never improved it and kept building them up to 1990.

I had a lot of fun with mine. I will get another. Plus, they don't rust..The under shell can, and the manual actually had instructions how to replace rusted panels in the maintenance manual.

Felt cool to own a 500cc 28hp Royal Enfield and 29hp 600cc Trabant

Felt like a movie star driving it, never had so many pictures and women approach me in my life. That alone was almost reason to keep it 

[PJPR01]

Ozzi....that was the funniest write up I have seen in ages...I'm in stitches laughing...only because I can distinctly remember driving one time from Vienna to Prague and seeing 1 Trabant with Czech tags trying to pass another with Polish tags, and it was like watching two snails drag race down the sidewalk at roughly 0.0002 mph of difference between the two.

The Polish driver looks over in slow motion to the Czech and taps his head three times, as in "Are you f***ing crazy passing me with that POS you're driving?   

We were howling with laughter all the time watching this scene unfold!