Haggerty Current Estimate Value $12,700

This motorcycle has been kept in perfect condition. Painted and chromed surfaces are mirror-like. Excellent sheet metal and good original paint and tires. Carefully stored since 1976 by senior citizen. Only two owners. Call for more information.       (419) 810-0561    MotoGuzzi@ohiomedia.com

History Of The Moto Guzzi

Similar to other storied motorcycle manufacturers that have survived for decades, Moto Guzzi has experienced a series of business cycles and a series of ownership arrangements—some complex, some brief, some that have endured.

1921–1966 – Origins

Moto Guzzi was conceived by two aircraft pilots and their mechanic serving in the Corpo Aeronautico Militare (the Italian Air Corp, CAM) during World War I: Giorgio Parodi, Giovanni Ravelli and Carlo Guzzi. Assigned to the same Miraglia Squadron based outside Venice, the three became close, despite coming from different socio-economic backgrounds. They envisaged creating a motorcycle company after the war. Parodi (the son of wealthy Genovese ship-owners) would finance the venture, Ravelli (already a famous pilot and motorcycle racer) would promote the bikes with his racing prowess and Guzzi would engineer the motorcycles. Ravelli died just days after the war's end in an aircraft crash and is commemorated by the eagle's wings that form the Moto Guzzi logo.

Giorgio Parodi, his brother Angelo,and Carlo Guzzi created a privately held silent partnership "Società Anonima Moto Guzzi" on 15 March 1921, for the purpose of (according to the original articles of incorporation) "the manufacture and the sale of motor cycles and any other activity in relation to or connected to metallurgical and mechanical industry".

The company was legally based in Genoa, Italy, with its headquarters in Mandello. The very earliest motorcycles bore the name G.P. (Guzzi-Parodi), though the marque quickly changed to Moto Guzzi. As the only shareholders, the Parodi's wanted to shield their shipping fortunes by avoiding confusion of the name G.P. with Giorgio Parodi's initials. Carlo Guzzi initially received royalties for each motorcycle produced, holding no ownership in the company that bore his name. In 1946 Moto Guzzi formally incorporated as Moto Guzzi S.p.A. with Giorgio Parodi as chairman.

Carlo Guzzi's first engine design was a horizontal single-cylinder engine that dominated the first 45 years of the company's history in various configurations. Through 1934, each engine bore the signature of the mechanic who built it. As originally envisioned, the company used racing to promote the brand. In the 1935 Isle of Man TT, Moto Guzzi factory rider Stanley Woods scored an impressive double victory with wins in the Lightweight TT as well as the Senior TT.

Until the mid-1940s, the traditional horizontal four-stroke single-cylinder 500 cc engines were fitted with one overhead and one side valve but contrary to the usual practice of having inlet over exhaust (IOE), this employed the side valve for induction and the overhead valve for exhaust. Also unusual was the adoption of only one hairspring (type of valve spring) to close the exhaust valve. These were the highest performance engines Moto Guzzi sold to the general public. By contrast, the company supplied the official racing team and private racers with higher performance racing machines with varying overhead cam, multi-valve configurations and cylinder designs.

In the 1950s, Moto Guzzi, along with the Italian factories of Gilera and Mondial, led the world of Grand Prix motorcycle racing. With durable and lightweight 250 cc and 350 cc bikes designed by Giulio Carcano, the firm dominated the middleweight classes. The factory won five consecutive 350 cc world championships between 1953 and 1957. Realizing that low weight alone might not continue to win races for the company, Carcano designed the V8 500 cc GP race bike: its engine was one of the most complex of its time. Despite leading many races and frequently posting the fastest lap time, the V8 often failed to complete races because of mechanical problems. Its development ended when Moto Guzzi (together with its main competitors Gilera and Mondial) withdrew from racing after the 1957 season citing rising costs and falling motorcycle sales. By the time of its pull out from Grand Prix racing, Moto Guzzi had won 3,329 official races, 8 World Championships, 6 Constructor's Championships and 11 Isle of Man TT victories.

The period after World War II was as difficult in Mandello del Lario as it was elsewhere in post-war Europe. The solution was production of inexpensive, lighter cycles. The 1946 "Motoleggera", a 65 cc lightweight motorcycle became very popular in post-war Italy. A four-stroke 175 cc scooter known as the "Galletto" also sold well. Though modest cycles for the company, the lighter cycles continue to feature Guzzi's innovation and commitment to quality. The step-through Galletto initially featured a manual, foot-shifted three-speed (160 cc) configuration then later a four-speed (175 cc) set-up by the end of 1952. The displacement was increased to 192 cc in 1954 and electric start was added in 1961.

Moto Guzzi was limited in its endeavors to penetrate the important scooter market as motorcycle popularity waned after WWII. Italian scooter competitors would not tolerate an incursion from Moto Guzzi. By innovating the first large-wheeled scooter, Guzzi competed less directly with manufacturers of small-wheeled scooters such as Piaggio (Vespa) and Lambretta. To illustrate the delicate balance within the Italian post-war motorcycle and scooter markets, when Guzzi developed their own prototype for a small-wheeled scooter, Lambretta retaliated with a prototype for a small V-twin motorcycle threatening to directly compete on Moto Guzzi's turf. The two companies compromised: Guzzi never produced their small-wheeled scooter and Lambretta never manufactured the motorcycle. The drive train that Lambretta made in their 1953 motorcycle prototype remarkably resembles the V-twin + drive shaft arrangement that Guzzi developed more than ten years later, ultimately to become iconic of the company.

By 1964, the company was in full financial crisis. Emanuele Parodi and his son Giorgio had died, Carlo Guzzi had retired to private life, and direction passed to Enrico Parodi, Giorgio's brother. Carlo Guzzi died on 3 November 1964, in Mandello, after a brief hospital stay in Davos.

 

Key people

The following is a list of key people associated with Moto Guzzi since its launch.

Founders:

• Carlo Guzzi (1889–1964): conceived the marque with Giovani Ravelli and Giorgio Parodi – each members of the mechanics Italian Air Corp. He died in November 1964 aged 75.
• Giorgio Parodi (1897–1955): aircraft pilot, whose father financed the original company.
• Giovanni Ravelli (d. 1918): one of the original three friends who envisioned a company that would engineer and sell motorcycles—what was later to become Moto Guzzi—was not present at the formal birth of Moto Guzzi in 1921, having perished in a 1918 air crash. At the time he met Guzzi and Parodi, he had already established himself as an accomplished motorcycle racer, having raced in the 1913 Tourist Trophy on a Premier 500.

Engineers:

• Giulio Cesare Carcano: engineer with Guzzi from 1936 to 1966, inventor of the DOHC V8 engine and the air-cooled V-twin that became synonymous with Moto Guzzi. He died in September 2005 after a second career as a Naval Architect but remained in service to Moto Guzzi into his retirement.
• Umberto Todero: Joining Moto Guzzi in 1939, his career spanned from the days of the original founders, through the SEIMM, de Tomaso, and Aprilia years, into the ownership of Piaggio. He died while still in service to the company in February 2005.
• Lino Tonti: engineer, joined the company in 1967 to replace Carcano, developed the V7 Sport, the small block V50, and the Tonti Frame.

Racers:

• Giuseppe Guzzi (14 August 1882 – 6 June 1962): Carlo's brother, rode the famed GT Norge on the 1928 Arctic Circle raid to test the first motorcycle rear swingarm suspension.
• Stanley Woods: esteemed motorcycle racer who captained Moto Guzzi's to numerable Isle of Man TT wins.
• Omobono Tenni: celebrated 47 victories racing for Moto Guzzi in the period between 1933 and 1948.
• Bill Lomas: won the 1955 and 1956 350 cc world championship for Moto Guzzi, defeating multi-cylinder machines on his and aerodynamic single-cylinder bike. The Mandello Guzzi Museum has a section devoted to Lomas' two world title wins and also his outings on the legendary Moto Guzzi Grand Prix 500 cc V8.
• John Wittner: American dentist, highly skilled pilot and mechanic, craftsman of the 1000 Daytona, with engineer Umberto Todero.