2015 Moto Guzzi V7 II merged threadfest

[Chuck in Indiana]

More like comparing a home brewer to Anheuser Busch.

 

What these guys are saying. It's horrifically expensive to "do" the show circuit.. probably more than the profit to the US operation.  :beat_horse That said, I don't go to the show any more, either. As has been mentioned several times, it has sucked for years. I don't need a doo rag.

[blackcat]

I don't need a doo rag.

In case anyone does, its cheaper to order from Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Motorcycle-Biker-Skull-Caps-Bandanas/dp/B002TW7582/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1417274367&sr=8-2&keywords=motorcycle+doo+rag

Good reviews too.

[bad Chad]

Redge, I really wonder if you are for real?   You seem to get stuck in on things, and that then prevents you from soaking in what others are trying to tell you.

My advice as stated before, is go get the Duc and stop complaining that Guzzi won't play ball with you.  When all is said and done you where never going to by the v7 anyway.

[Cage Free]

Isn't the scrambler being built in India? Not that it really matters that much but I prefer my Italian bikes to be built in Italy. I wouldn't be interested in a KTM, Triumph, or Honda built outside its home country strictly for the cheap labor.

[Perazzimx14]

Isn't the scrambler being built in India? Not that it really matters that much but I prefer my Italian bikes to be built in Italy. I wouldn't be interested in a KTM, Triumph, or Honda built outside its home country strictly for the cheap labor.

Yep and here's an inside look at the high tech pin striping department:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsTIMxeO_ng















Thailand is where the Scramblers are being assembled. Soon they will start making small parts in Thailand then shortly after that they will be producing all the parts in Thailand and maybe sending parts to Italy for assembly. Ingersol Rand road machinery division did this in the 90's when they opened their "assembly only" plant in China.

[rocker59]

Isn't the scrambler being built in India? Not that it really matters that much but I prefer my Italian bikes to be built in Italy. I wouldn't be interested in a KTM, Triumph, or Honda built outside its home country strictly for the cheap labor.

Thailand.  Ducati has a new plant there.

For quite a few years, now, all the Triumph Bonnevilles have been assembled there.  Triumph has a manufacturing facility and an assembly plant in Thailand.  Lots of their parts are made there.

I, too, prefer my Guzzis made in Italy.  I hope V7 production stays there.

[fotoguzzi]

Yep and here's an inside look at the high tech pin striping department:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsTIMxeO_ng

that guy is smooth!

[jas67]

Thailand.  Ducati has a new plant there.

For quite a few years, now, all the Triumph Bonnevilles have been assembled there.  Triumph has a manufacturing facility and an assembly plant in Thailand.  Lots of their parts are made there.

Honda also has a plant in Thailand.    The CBR300, and other lower priced models are built there.

IIRC, KTM is building the RC390 and Duke 390 in India.

It's a global economy folks, get used it.

Yes, it sucks, esp. for those of us who's jobs are threatened by it.     Tech and manufacturing jobs are being lost to low-cost labor markets at an alarming rate......... OK, I'll stop now before I get too political (H1B hi-tech worker VISA's anyone?).    OK, I'm stopping.    ;-T

[bad Chad]

Why should I we get used to it?  It sucks, and we do have the ability to change what we consume.   Buy American made products whenever possible, even if it means spending a bit more.   

Don't buy from Harbor Freight and the like, if you care about American workers.

Ok that's all I'm going to say too.

[bad Chad]

I know, but to every rule there is an exception! :D

[Tazturtle]

Although the Duc puts out 50% more HP it is only 17% up on max torque - and puts that out at literally double the rpm. Much revvier.

So while both Italian scramblers will be a hoot I am sure, they will be quite different in character.

Owning a Guzzi can be a character building experience. The release date issue doesn't even rate on the scale in that department.

Buy the Duc. Or a Honda.

[Lannis]

I know, but to every rule there is an exception! :D

In our little town, a Chinese company is buying the old furniture plant that opened in 1975 and closed in 2011 (competition from China!), and bringing 350 jobs here ... raw materials manufactured into high-tech power-conditioning equipment in the USA by a Chinese company and shipped to China!   USA quality control and higher Chinese wages drove it back over here.

Really is global now - hard to tell when it's bad or good sometimes.

Lannis

[Demar]

I'm still planning on buying a V7II Scrambler next year, a red one, hopefully. Saving the funds now, 2/3 of the way there.  ;-T

My 2010 T100 Bonneville was built in Thailand and it's a beautiful bike. There was/is nothing sub-standard about it, except it's not a Guzzi. I was told the tanks are still hand painted in England.

[Kev m]

Although the Duc puts out 50% more HP it is only 17% up on max torque - and puts that out at literally double the rpm. Much revvier.

So while both Italian scramblers will be a hoot I am sure, they will be quite different in character.

Owning a Guzzi can be a character building experience. The release date issue doesn't even rate on the scale in that department.

Buy the Duc. Or a Honda.

This, though I don't typically run around anywhere double the rpm on the 696... It works out to be able about 1k rpm higher most of the time.

[pocphil]

Regarding motorcycle shows:

Not many dealers can justify spending over $1000 per 10'x10' Square on the show floor.

Don't want to be mixed in with the dream catchers, fake arm tattoos and Sons of Anakin T-shirts? You'll need to get a 30x20 "island".

Bringing in a dozen bikes? You'll pay $75 (or more) per bike for "union handling charges".

Have stuff like t-shirts or displays that you want to set up in your booth. That's $75/hour for a union laborer to literally sit on a golf cart and watch you set up your booth.

Pay for tickets for your booth workers (they don't get in for free).

Pay for parking every day for every worker ($10+ including your delivery trucks).

Feed everyone (if you're not a jerk) and the food in those halls is ridiculous.

And spend around $1200 on Fliers and pamphlets people are going to hoard from your booth and put on ebay later.

If you're doing it right you'll spend around $12,000 to attend one 3 day show.  If you don't have 24 sales that you can attribute only to that show (not people who would have bought anyway) you're wasting your money and time.

For manufacturers the costs go up dramatically, they have big, complicated booths that take a team of union laborers to assemble, they have big rigs that transport these booths and bikes from show to show ( I think there are 28 IMS shows this year). Most companies simply can't swing the expense. Especially if they think they're not going to pick up an adequate number of sales in that region to make it happen.

I can remember many years where Triumph, BMW, Ural, KTM and others weren't represented at all.

In the years that there was a PUSA booth that contained Vespa, Piaggio, Aprilia and Guzzi I still had my own shop booth, because corporate booths have representatives in the booth from ALL of the dealers in a region, and things can get a little competitive and bitchy in the booth.

As usual (15 years now) we will have a big-ass booth at the Cleveland IMS show. And sometimes I will work the booths for dealers in other cities. These shows do bring in a Ton of prospective customers, unfortunately the quality of the information being given to the folks in the booth may be suspect. I'd rather have Guzzi telling us we don't have an exact date for the importation of the V7II, than to give us a made-up date that people can whinge about. My logic is usually figure a year after it comes out in Italy (to satisfy our EPA testing). Anything earlier is pure optimism.

BTW, I think the Thai made Scrambled Duck looks like crap on a cracker. I'll be very happy when this scrambler fad is over (again). Let's save the knobbies for the actual dirt bikes, and keep those thigh burners down where they belong. Putting on a speedo won't make me an olympic swimmer, it just makes me looks silly. 

[Joliet Jim]

now a Sons of Anakin tshirt in a nerdy way appreciate i could .

[pyoungbl]

Phil hits the nail on the head...The IMS show is not worth what it cost for a small volume marque.  Guzzi would have to add $500 to every bike sold in the USA just to recoup the cost of one year's worth of shows.  That's dumb.


Peter Y.

[Demar]

I like the show because it's a good excuse to meet my buddies, have a nice fish-n-chips lunch at a local pub and drink beer while looking at a bunch of bikes.  Long live the IMS.  ;-T

[Perazzimx14]

Phil hits the nail on the head...The IMS show is not worth what it cost for a small volume marque.  Guzzi would have to add $500 to every bike sold in the USA just to recoup the cost of one year's worth of shows.  That's dumb.


Peter Y.

Wonder if dealers would list the "show" fees under prep and freight?

[redge]

Isn't the scrambler being built in India? Not that it really matters that much but I prefer my Italian bikes to be built in Italy. I wouldn't be interested in a KTM, Triumph, or Honda built outside its home country strictly for the cheap labor.

Thailand.  Ducati has a new plant there.

For quite a few years, now, all the Triumph Bonnevilles have been assembled there.  Triumph has a manufacturing facility and an assembly plant in Thailand.  Lots of their parts are made there.

I, too, prefer my Guzzis made in Italy.  I hope V7 production stays there.

BTW, I think the Thai made Scrambled Duck looks like crap on a cracker.

Ducati says that the engine is made in Italy, that it is a re-tuned version of the air-cooled engine used in the 796 Monster (Miguel Galuzzi anyone?) and that the bike will be assembled in Thailand.

But I agree. I would prefer that Caucasians assemble my bike rather than Asians because, you know, white people, especially Italians, are just better at putting bits and bobs together.

[NorthRider]

I like the show because it's a good excuse to meet my buddies, have a nice fish-n-chips lunch at a local pub and drink beer while looking at a bunch of bikes.  Long live the IMS.  ;-T

Have been going to the IMS show in Novi, Michigan for many years now. In fact, the first show I attended actually had a Guzzi dealer there an a beautiful Cal Vin I was able to sit on! This sparked my interest in Moto Guzzi.
As I attended future shows, there was never as much of a Guzzi presence as that first (I think it was 2007 or 08) show. And the show seemed to get smaller and smaller each year as well. Now I have just heard that the Michigan IMS show is No-More.
Sad for us snow bound people as the show provided some Moto-Stimulation in the dead of winter.

[redge]

Oh , thought we were talking about MG , not the current owners of said company . Of course , mention the name Piaggio to the average American , pay close attention now , because you are gonna get a brief flicker of recognition , followed by , "hell , don't they make them fancy coffee pots"  ::) Sorry dude , if you want to best  someone in  general motorbike knowledge , I might not be the one to start with  :D

  Dusty

You aren't showing it.

By the way, the coffee pot is called a Bialetti.

[Perazzimx14]

But I agree. I would prefer that Caucasians assemble my bike rather than Asians because, you know, white people, especially Italians, are just better at putting bits and bobs together.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKjxFJfcrcA

[oldbike54]

You aren't showing it.

By the way, the coffee pot is called a Bialetti.

Don't mistake my silliness for a lack of knowledge , some of us just don't need to brag  ;D However , if you are throwing down the gauntlet , where would you like to start ? Airhead beemers , old British bangers , Harley Davidson, GP race bikes , old GP race bikes , Scottish trials from the 60s , Supercross , Motocross , AMA flat track , modern or historic  , Walter Kaaden and the development of the high performance 2 stroke ? I was making a joke about how Americans wouldn't know what Piaggio builds, sorry you missed it , actually pretty funny  ::) Oh , how about we discuss Chiang Jiangs , or Fantics , or Saroleas ?  ;)

  Dusty

[redge]

...if you are throwing down the gauntlet , where would you like to start ?

What gauntlet?

I raised an issue about Moto Guzzi's failure to say when the V7 II will be available in Canada and the U.S., and expressed the view that that failure will have an impact on 2015 V7 sales in North America, and that this will be exacerbated by Ducati's introduction of its Scrambler, and all hell breaks loose.

I get attacked. Ducati gets attacked. Thailand gets attacked. The New York Motorcycle Show gets attacked.

Do you really not see the problem?

Meanwhile, today a guy vents on ADVrider about Moto Guzzi and this forum, and what happens? ADVRider quickly relegates the thread to its basement, but it becomes an issue here that has now resulted in over 30 posts, all of them about you all congratulating yourselves on how wonderful you are. But there are certain posts in that relegated thread that you are all steadfastly ignoring; specifically the ones that suggest that this forum is a hangout for a bunch of cliquey, knowledgeable but snobbish old men. True? Because it's kind of how it comes across. And if it's true, Moto Guzzi is in serious need of a more open, less stuffy, less geriatric forum.

[oldbike54]

What gauntlet?

I raised an issue about Moto Guzzi's failure to say when the V7 II will be available in Canada and the U.S., and expressed the view that that failure will have an impact on 2015 V7 sales in North America, and that this will be exacerbated by Ducati's introduction of its Scrambler, and all hell breaks loose.

I get attacked. Ducati gets attacked. Thailand gets attacked. The New York Motorcycle Show gets attacked.

Do you really not see the problem?

Meanwhile, a guy vents on ADVrider about Moto Guzzi and this forum, and what happens? ADVRider quickly relegates the thread to its basement, but it becomes an issue here that has now resulted in over 30 posts, all of them about you all congratulating yourselves on how wonderful you are.

Yeah , but it wasn't me attacking you , just trying to inject some humor . The coffee pot joke was a poke at the general ignorance of American MC owners , not a jab at you . We all get it , Piaggio dropped the ball , so what's new ? Geez , if you're gonna insult Americans in general , and me in particular , make sure we aren't agreeing with you before doing so . This isn't Italy , or even England , maybe this is just a failure to communicate  ::)

  Dusty

[redge]

Yeah , but it wasn't me attacking you , just trying to inject some humor . The coffee pot joke was a poke at the general ignorance of American MC owners , not a jab at you . We all get it , Piaggio dropped the ball , so what's new ? Geez , if you're gonna insult Americans in general , and me in particular , make sure we aren't agreeing with you before doing so . This isn't Italy , or even England , maybe this is just a failure to communicate  ::)

  Dusty

I have not said a single thing that is insulting toward Americans.

Don't know where you live, but if you're in the New York City area, come on over and we'll share a Bialetti pot of coffee :)

[oldbike54]

I have not said a single thing that is insulting toward Americans.

Don't know where you live, but if you're in the New York City area, come on over and we'll share a Bialetti pot of coffee :)

Once again , humor  :D Actually , we would probably get along fine face to face , and I love Italian coffee . Unfortunately ,the 1350 miles from Muskogee OK to NYC would make that one expensive pot  :D
Oh , just ask anyone that knows me , I'm really pretty easy to get along with , and if they don't agree  , there is gonna be trouble  ;D How long have you resided in the City ? What a vibrant place  ;-T

  Dusty

[Kev m]

But I agree. I would prefer that Caucasians assemble my bike rather than Asians because, you know, white people, especially Italians, are just better at putting bits and bobs together.

I'm assuming this was sarcasm, but it reminded me of an old Michael Keaton movie The Dream Team, specifically a half advertisement they come up with at the end.

[Rich A]

Buy the Ducati Scrambler, ride it a few years, and wait to see when the V7 III will debut. I think the V7 II will be modest improvement over the V7, but the V7 III should be even better.

Rich A