2004 Breva - 7K miles - $2300 - what would I be getting into?

[normzone]

GuzziPower is offering this one - I'm in my cups, so my opinion is not only careless but I'm ignorant as well. Starting a new job Monday and wondering if it's a better 15 mile one way commuter than my Bassa.

Again, in my cups, so, as they say on Reddit, roast me.

[pete roper]

Excellent little commuter. As long as the TB's haven't been monstered by a shaved ape it should be ideal.

All the usual twin TB smallblock caveats apply.

Pete

[jrt]

I'm not sure what you mean by 'in my cups'.  I'm not familiar with that phrase.
The Breva is a pretty good machine.   Has a couple of either known or perceived weaknesses, but overall I think it would be great for a short commute.  It is light, gets great gas mileage, goes fast enough, stops well.  It is just super-easy to drive.
Mine will drain its battery if not connected to a charger.  Some will relieve themselves of crankcase oil if run at high rpm.  I bet the side stand interlock is an issue on some.  Oh- and fueling is a bit lean from factory (I assume Guzzipower will have taken care of this).  And they are not as attractive as the more modern V7 range.
After that...I don't have anything.  I think these bikes are a steal at the prices they have been selling for. 

[Noguzznoglory]

I’ve had mine 3 years now. Great handling bike. Doesn’t have neck snapping power but very capable of 70-80 cruise on interstate. 15 mile commute? No sweat

[Dharma Bum]

I got a screaming deal on one a little over a year ago, (thanks MotoGeezer) albeit with higher mileage. Great little machine!  Keep an eye on oil level and keep the sidestand lubed, then just ride.

[malik]

A significantly better commuter than the 1100 Cali, but also good enough to criss cross the country. At that price a no brainer.

Maintenance is cheap & easy, although the air filter is a tad awkward to get to. Most parts are easily sourced, the engine & motive parts being the same as the injected Nevada &  2 throttle body V7s. Plenty of help & advice from the forums, particularly Moto-Guzzi-750@groups.io.

[severely]

Look closely at the lower steering bearing, they have a tendency to rust from the seal not covering the bearing, mine was at 17K miles. I drilled/tapped the steering head to grease regularly. The Startus Interuptus mod is also a good idea when time allows. Better than your Bassa? I dunno, easier to get on and off for sure, a little better mileage.

[radguzzi]

Norm old man,
Whatdaya drunk...?  Kidding.  IPA in moderation.

So is this a Baby Breva or the 1100...? 

Where is the new gig...?

Best,
Rob

[Hugh Straub]

750 Breva (2006) is my favorite bike.  Light, adequate power, good brakes, great handing, comfortable.  Mine does drain the battery when sitting up unused for an extended period while, so when I'm not using it for a few weeks, I pull the main fuses.  Not an issue with daily use.  And I think the bike is exceptionally attractive.  Certainly better than the current 750ies, at least to my taste.

Because the nylon fuel tank is prone to swelling if there is moisture in the gasoline, I never use ethanol fuel...it attracts water.  If the tank is swollen now, simply draining it, and leaving it open in a warm, dry place for a few weeks will return it to the original shape.  Using ethanol free gas thereafter prevents the issue.

When I first got the bike, it was running poorly due to a defective throttle position sensor. I replaced it with a TPS off a wrecked Harley sportster (HD uses the same part as MG for a number of their bikes).  The rough running was instantly cured with the "new" TPS.

I think you'll really like the bike.

Kind regards

[M0T0Geezer]

I got a screaming deal on one a little over a year ago, (thanks MotoGeezer) albeit with higher mileage. Great little machine!  Keep an eye on oil level and keep the sidestand lubed, then just ride.

Wish I had it back...    The 50K miles I put on it were all joyful.  Here's a secret few know about the Breva 750:

[Muzz]

Mine is a 2003 model, had it since new and it now has 27,570 enjoyable miles on it.  It is a great all-round bike, it will happily tool around town but it is great for touring our NZ roads which have lots of corners.

The motor has never missed a beat, in fact it still has the same spark plugs in it.  I take them out, colour perfect, centre electrode sharp, outer electrode unmarked.  gapped them once in all those miles and still have the spare plug that I bought when i got the bike sitting in my jacket pocket.

As Mal has said, the air cleaner can be a bear to get at.

The 2004 MAY have a faulty pre-selector fork fitted.  Mine had the later pattern one fitted, some guys in the States with theoretically later bikes had the early one fitted.  You cannot tell the difference with the naked eye.  The early ones allowed the fork to disappear in to it's housing and would sometimes jam.  On the later one Guzzi re-positioned the rivets so this could not happen.  If it happens on the road you can sometimes reach through with a steel rod and give the shaft going in to the gearbox a sharp rap and it may come loose.  Only fix is a replacement.  Nick Webb has a fantastic gearbox stripdown on the "This Old Tractor" site on how to do it.  It involves a complete gearbox strip-down and everything has to come out.  Because the later model does not fully retract you can't get it past the gears.  Two special tools are needed to start dismantling the box; I built my own but for one you will need an old clutch centre to do so.

I had massive problems with the box in mine.  From what I can ascertain it is not endemic to the model.  Maria evidently fed Luigi garlic in his salami sandwiches on a Friday afternoon 1/2 an hour before siesta.   I think the two shafts have been drilled out of alignment.  I have since fitted a second hand box.  I love the bike so much I couldn't bring myself to part with it.

As I said, other than the box the bike has been faultless.  It will sit at 5000 rpm all day if you want to, which is about 80 mph, but will happily go quicker.   Trust me, I know!

[severely]

I just had my 04 jump into gear while idling roadside. Is this the issue's effect? Is there a way to see if recalls have been done on your bikes? Thanks

[Muzz]

I just had my 04 jump into gear while idling roadside. Is this the issue's effect? Is there a way to see if recalls have been done on your bikes? Thanks

I suspect that you didn't have the detente fully engaged in the neutral position.

As far as recalls went, it wasn't.  Guzzi just quietly changed the design without telling anyone.  It will work right up until the time that it doesn't.

The only reason that those of us on WG knew anything about it was that three all had the no-select-gear problem all at the same time.  I had my gearbox apart at the same time because it shredded 5th gear.  You can get the older pattern out no problems, you have to take all the gears and shafts out to get the newer pattern in.  The how-to that Guzzi put out used the older pattern in all their pretty pictures; the pictures do not show how you need to strip all the guts out to put the newer pattern one in.

[Tom]

Good bike for commuting, shorter and narrower for lane splitting.  More than enough power for a commute.   

[rocker59]

I'm not sure what you mean by 'in my cups'.  I'm not familiar with that phrase.
 

If you're "in your cups", you've been drinking, or are drunk...

[Muzz]

I just had my 04 jump into gear while idling roadside. Is this the issue's effect? Is there a way to see if recalls have been done on your bikes? Thanks

Just a thought on this.  What could cause it, but I think highly unlikely, is the little coil would spring that holds the locating arm on to the positioning cam is broken.  If it has only happened once I wouldn't worry about it.  I would also think that you would have iffy gear selection across the whole range if that was the problem.

Just a thought on that arm.  It sits on a shaft attached to a base plate, which is threaded on one end and the nut holds the arm/lever assembly together.  When I first had to take the gearbox apart with the 5th gear problem, that threaded part was actually snapped off; the only thing stopping it from going in to the works was a small overhang on the bearing retainer plate that holds the mainshaft bearing in place.  I bought a new one, and when Steamdriven and myself were re-assembling the box and did up that nut the threaded end actually snapped off before the nut had even been tightened!  Steamdriven, being an aircraft techie and all, modified it it and replaced the threaded part with a 10.9 rated cap screw.  This gave no further problems.

[severely]

Just a thought on this.  What could cause it, but I think highly unlikely, is the little coil would spring that holds the locating arm on to the positioning cam is broken.  If it has only happened once I wouldn't worry about it.  I would also think that you would have iffy gear selection across the whole range if that was the problem.

Just a thought on that arm.  It sits on a shaft attached to a base plate, which is threaded on one end and the nut holds the arm/lever assembly together.  When I first had to take the gearbox apart with the 5th gear problem, that threaded part was actually snapped off; the only thing stopping it from going in to the works was a small overhang on the bearing retainer plate that holds the mainshaft bearing in place.  I bought a new one, and when Steamdriven and myself were re-assembling the box and did up that nut the threaded end actually snapped off before the nut had even been tightened!  Steamdriven, being an aircraft techie and all, modified it it and replaced the threaded part with a 10.9 rated cap screw.  This gave no further problems.

  I saw the neutral light lit, maybe not all the way to detent, have the same occasional issue with my Ambassador. My 5th gear is whining also. What were the replacement parts cost? I've seen V-7 tranny for sale on e-bay, less than$400. Hate the jump the gun, but wonder about it. Thanks

[Muzz]

The Ambo box is different from the smallblock ones.

Being straightcut gears, they can whine.  Steamdriven took his gearbox apart because of a loud whine, had quite a few thousand miles on it.  Nothing wrong so threw it back together. <shrug>

The whine in mine got louder over about 1000 miles, ended up sounding like a cop siren.  5th had chunks coming off (12,500 miles)  Replaced a lot in the box but it did the same thing another 12,500 miles later.  Shaft damage seems to indicate the gear was trying to run sideways.  First lot of damage (two gears, one shaft, detent mounting plate, all bearings and seals) came to over $1000NZ.  Didn't bother to fix after it did the same thing a second time.

Currently have a 2nd hand one out of the States in it; a wee bit noisy but have done 3,000 miles on it and it has not got any louder.  Oil changes due in another 200 miles so will check the colour of the oil then.

[severely]

Sorry for the lack of clarity. I meant my Breva's gearbox. I already have 22k already so I think I'll let it go until more issues arise.

[SmithSwede]

Again, in my cups, so, as they say on Reddit, roast me.

It’s a classy way to say drunk. 

King James, early 1600s.

“And when they are in their cups, they forget their love both to friends and brethren, and a little after draw out swords.”

[Tom]

Sounds better than being in the bottle.😁