New Moto Guzzi Door Mats Available Now
I feel the same way. Although I really respect Miguel Galluzzi as a designer, so far his work at Guzzi has left me wanting. The rear fender and tail light on the Cal 14 just doesn't appeal to me at all. Don't really care for the headlight, either. I do like that they are going back to a round headlight on the Audace version of the Cal 14. This is hard for me to say, but I almost long for Luciano Marabese's hand and the Bassa/Special/Late EV fender and tail light design.
If by any stretch of the imagination anyone can come away and think the California 1400 is not a superior bike to a Harley they have never owned a Harley.
I suppose a definition of "superior" is in order. From a Harley owner's point of view. I think you will find that he does not use a spec sheet or the performance numbers listed at the back of Motorcyclist Magazine.
I for one wish they had built a bike for the loyal Guzzi crowd. the old saying still holds true. "do what you do do well"
Why can't we ever just factually examine the strengths and weaknesses of different bikes without someone taking it personally and getting all wadded up on some level.
But in that case, Nokia would still be making galoshes and Nintendo would still be making playing cards. You go where the market--ie, the customers and their money--takes you.
PS this is the internet; we're all supposed to be thoughtless, grouchy, pedantic, and self-absorbed. Not that anyone here is ever that way, including me.(See, I dared to use an Oxford Comma in violation of AP journalism standards, which will start another thread...)
The loyal Guzzi crowd, by and large, is old and dying off. Better to try and attract a newer younger crowd, perhaps one that does not make a nickel scream so much when squeezed.If we want Guzzi to be around a bit longer, they need to go for a larger demographic. I happen to like the looks of the 1400, but that does not really matter, there are lots of machines out there much more popular that younger folks find attractive and I think was hit, very hard, with an ugly stick. It's very subjective and I see no reason why we should all be attracted to the same thing. Where is the fun in that? :)
The loyal Guzzi crowd, by and large, is old and dying off. Better to try and attract a newer younger crowd, perhaps one that does not make a nickel scream so much when squeezed.If we want Guzzi to be around a bit longer, they need to go for a larger demographic.
"they built the current Calli to go after Harley and forgot everybody else is thinking the same thing and doing poorly at it. I for one wish they had built a bike for the loyal Guzzi crowd. the old saying still holds true. "do what you do do well""They built it to go after the cruiser market, which is the largest segment by far. If they were going after Harley specifically they would would have targeted the fairing wearing HDs which are their best sellers by far. I believe the street glide is no. UNO.
Vasco and some others may get a kick out of some adventures from Rollin. This one link gets you an idea of what can be done on a big heavy "touring" bike.http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?p=24864342#post24864342Where there's a will, there's a way. Regardless of what the engineers and designers originally had in mind. Rollin has many Iron Butt awards and most of them involved dirt roads better suited for a much different bike.Could these rides be done on the California 1400? I don't see why not. When I was watching Long Way Round I kept wondering why they didn't choose the Guzzi Stelvio instead of the BMW.
Since you're asking, yes, I would buy my '04 Stone again over any newer Cali. :BEER:Still waiting here for that 8V Cali 1200 at about the same weight as my older one and standard pegs. Yeah, I know. Shut yr complaining.
I love my '04 Stone, and have no plans to part with it. That said, the seat is too short to comfortably fit both the missus and I. (My custom 'flat' seat is built on an OEM pan, because I found the original seat-to-footpeg angle too acute, and I was too close to the tank - it felt as if the family jewels were resting on the tank.) So, it's a solo bike.We want one so's I can take her with me. We both fit, comfortably, on the 1400; the problem is accessories. So far they've not been available. so my dealer says, here in Rhode Island. I saw a picture on-line of the new 2015 Tourer, and in the pictures it has a sissy-bar. My dealer, again, says that that is just a picture, the sissy bar is not available. I understand they want to move the 2014 model they have in the showroom, but I'm not averse to ordering new and waiting for it.So - accessories. Are they available,and from whom?I also like the tail-light assembly and spokes of the new Eldo, and hate the "alien eye" of the Cali - so, I, too, want the headlight of the Audace with the tail-light and wheels of the Eldo. Why can't we mix and match the parts we want to create the looks we want?
