Sold for ... $13,750

[SLDMRossi]

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1987-moto-guzzi-lemans-1000-se/

Steven Rossi

[guzziart]

I just looked at the pics...very nice!  The seller is in my neck of the woods, whoda thunk.

[steven c]

Guess I should have kept the one I got from Phil.

[Scout63]

It was a low mileage bike and a very pretty color scheme.  I don’t get $13k though. Bikes are either rare and collectible, or not rare and not, right?  Bring a Trailer is throwing some very funky psychological juju into the mix.

[s1120]

Thats some good money for that era LM!! Your in V7 sport/LM I/ 1000S world right there. Seems whatever classic sporting Guzzi you want these days you nen to bring 13K with you got get it.

[80CX100]

Usually I love red bikes, may have just been the photos, but that pinkish shade really doesn't hit the right buttons for me, jmo.

Altho I am certain that'll be one sweet bike to own and ride, "mint" 

That was an extremely interesting auction, it was obvious he wanted it bad, glad he shared his history and the reason. 

Very happy for the buyer, well done Sir.

Wishing you many safe happy miles and smiles.

 

[chuck peterson]

Guess I should have kept the one I got from Phil.

Are you kidding me? Doesn’t Sebbie (sp?) have one?..

[steven c]

Yup I sold it to him.

[sdcr]

I was bidding on this, and had a $8 K limit in mind. It soared right past that in the last day.
With the new - economy, I need to recalculate my motorcycle money.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1987-moto-guzzi-lemans-1000-se/

Steven Rossi

[Groover]

It's a good one all around. I've bought two for much much cheaper that that, but I will need to spend quite a bit to get them to be even close to that, and will never be like that.


Seems it still has the original tires (for reference). In 2020 a crated one sold for 22K and Mecum.

[Tom]

Amazing!

[SLDMRossi]

Does everyone/anyone remember (I guess you have to have been around long enough) that 1/2 of those SE's imported were submerged under water when the ship flooded on its way over the Ocean? So you need to be careful which one you get...

Steven Rossi

[JohninPA]

Does everyone/anyone remember (I guess you have to have been around long enough) that 1/2 of those SE's imported were submerged under water when the ship flooded on its way over the Ocean? So you need to be careful which one you get...

Steven Rossi

Having been around long enough not only to remember, but to purchase, one of these salt water damaged SE's .... here's the story. Yes, two containers of these Special Edition models were imported to the US, each container holding 50 bikes. I don't know if both containers were on the same ship or not, but however it happened, one of the containers was flooded or partially flooded with sea water, soaking the bikes within with salt water. Some were more heavily affected than others.

Moto Guzzi offered these flood damaged examples to select dealers at a heavily discounted price - one dealer in Pennsylvania (now defunct BP Motors) purchased somewhere around 25 of them. BP motors was owned by Blaine Paulus, a Guzzi enthusiast and good guy with a shop near Harrisburg, PA. I found out about the bikes and I and two other friends, purchased three of them. I paid $4400 for mine as did my two buddies. Nothing at all wrong with the bikes other than some corroded fasteners which I replaced with stainless steel fasteners. No water entered any internal engine parts, carbs, etc. Purely superficial.

Sadly, I crashed the bike heavily a couple of years later, my one and only crash in over 50 years of riding ... so far. The bike was written off and I used the insurance money to purchase my next Guzzi, a 1989 LeMans.

Pics of mine:

[Groover]

Thank you JohninPA, good to hear a real story on the container bikes.

[guzziart]

FWIW, if it turned out that my bike happened to be one of these "saltwater" bikes it would not matter to me.  I've had the thing for about 12 years now and enjoy riding it.




dice 1

[Tusayan]

I remember seeing one of the salt water ‘damaged’ bikes for sale at Pro Italia in Los Angeles area for what I remember as the same price reported by JohninPA, about $4K.  That was a really good deal and I pondered trying to raise the cash and replace my older LeMans… but at that time and at that age, it wasn’t going to happen.

[Turin]

From what I understand, corrosion on some was minor - fuzzy fastners etc. A couple were bad and parted out. - heard that from the cat from BP cycles. I think mine was a saltwater bike.  Does not matter one bit to me.