The Italian motorcycle industry has been kicking things up into high gear for several years now; even the Great Recession has not slowed the pace in that market. True, some great companies have crashed and been buried to the disappointment of gear-heads everywhere, but some are almost flourishing. Moto Guzzi has weathered the storm acceptably well overall, but the Italian concern is wise to be looking to the future. Thus comes the news that the Italian marque will be sending two more models across the ocean to North America. Both are new versions of existing models, but both will also be very interesting to buyers on this continent.
Moto Guzzi fans have loved the Norge GT 8V as a capable sport touring mount since its 2005 inception. Last year Guzzi put four-valve heads on the transverse-mounted 1151cc four-stroke 90° V-twin heart of the beast and updated its suspension, added more efficient exhaust and completed several other minor updates in order to capture a larger market share – reviewers praised it and it sold well. For the 2011 edition, an entire host of engine improvements have again been engineered into the Norge. Updates were applied to the engine which include a more integrated ignition, updated electronic controls, updated timing and cooling systems, and a new fuel-injection ECU for superior throttle response and control. The fairing has been redesigned to integrate better with the fuel tank and they have added an electronically adjustable windscreen. The Norge also gains a wider and more padded seat with handlebars lowered and pulled back and a revised instrument panel location – all of which adds even more comfort to an already sweet long-distance mount. The 2011 Norge GT 8V now has even more of a good thing and is certainly an exciting machine for those who chew up miles and miles of roads for fun.
Next we have the Stelvio NTX, which is Moto Guzzi’s entry into the hard-core large-scale adventure-tourer market
and is a new version of the Stelvio platform. The base-model Stelvio was introduced rather recently in 2008, but that has not stopped Guzzi from doing more work to this beast in order to make it an even better choice for world-travelers. Since the two model lines – Norge and Stelvio - share a powerplant, the same engine upgrades have been applied to the Stelvio’s transverse-mounted 1151cc four-stroke 90° V-twin giving it even more power and torque. A new and larger fuel tank has been added giving this machine 8.4 gallons of petrol and increasing range significantly. Guzzi also increased the windscreen size and reshaped and re-padded the saddle and improved suspension settings, each change providing more long-distance comfort for pilot and passenger. This NTX version - which Moto Guzzi refers to as “No Limits” - has additional guards for the oil sump, engine and even the cylinders, along with full-coverage hand guards. Wheels are Ber rims with Alpina spokes and are slowed using Continental ABS (featured on the base Stelvio as well). And, for those who travel long and hard, new-spec panniers will keep everything you bring along secure and dry.
Moto Guzzi has given its motorcycles a serious engineering update which will surely lure some customers away from their competition. Their products are certainly distinctive and will set you apart from the crowd, but these new machines may also allow you to stay ahead of them on the long road to wherever you are going.
The 2011 Moto Guzzi Norge GT 8V should be in dealerships in the first half of 2011. The Moto Guzzi Stelvio NTX will likely be arriving near the end of next year as a 2012 model. For more information, please go here: www.motoguzzi-us.com.
