Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

FIRST RIDE bar lever excep t in em ergencies, th rowing out the ancho rs on the Gu zzi is bo th fool proof a nd effo rtless. Ju st tap on the br ake pedal, and it... stops. Apart fro m revamped ro cker covers for a cleane r look , the Sp ecial' s 1064cc pushrod two-val ve mot or is uncha nged from the EV's, fitte d wit h the latest generat io n of Mare ll i-Weber mult ip oint sequential EFI. The first bike I rod e with this sys tem surged alarmi ng ly at constant throttle between 2200-3000 rp m (w hich, co ns idering 2800 rpm in fifth / top gear equa ls 50 mph; is a pretty normal pa ce for a bike like thi s) befo re occasionally spitting back fiercely for no apparen t reason. O n returning to ba se, it turned out that this bike's ECU had overhea ted the d ay before when a cer tain other journo wa s so d etermin ed to light up the rear tire for his phot ogr apher that the clutch cover exp loded and his bike we nt up in smoke. Well - guess that' s show business (Right) The riding position is laid back, but this is one of the bette rhandling cruis er chas sis available. (Left)The 1064cc 90degree twin is fuel inject ed and de livers abo ut 60 bhp at the rear whee l. (Right) Big 320mm Brembos grace the front of the California, and are fitted with a s imple frontto-rear linked system. (Below) Wide bars provide a lot of leverage and a sp acious and comfortable riding pos ition. B EJ ~ 26 (as op pose d to test riding), bu t after trying out tw o othe r bikes, it was appare nt this was a one-off glitch. ' The revised mappin g Guzzi is now using on bo th Cali models su its the bike's cru iser heritage, w ith po wer available to drive away off id le, 72 bhp on tap at the crank a t 6400 rpm (eq uating to 60 bhp at th e re ar wheel) , and a huge spread of torqu e plu s an ultra flat power curve that make for a really relaxed ride. There is quite spi ri ted accelera tio n if yo u reall y want to twist th at wris t, thou gh, and long-haul high-speed cruising at 90 mph along fou r-l an e h igh wa y s, wi th th e engine chugging a little ha rd er at 4500 rp m, is a serious option. This is a capable cruiser - and one with a pl ea sin g note exiting throu gh th e exhausts at hig her revs, when the meaty rumble from the stainless-steel silencers delivers a mu scular sense of purpose. The long-life exhausts are one reason Gu zz i fee ls a b le to offer a t h re e- yea r unlimited -mileage gua ra ntee on the California , in tande m wi th a Europe-wide roa dside breakdown-and-recovery ass istance. That's faith in the product for you. In spite of the lower, laid-back rid ing stance, it takes so me serio us scratching for yo u to touch d own the footpegs even in a fast, sweepi ng turn, wh er e the Guzzi's capable handling will hu stle you throu gh at a pac e most ot her cruiser s would balk at, allowing you to explore the good grip of the Metzeler rubber. The se are tub eless tires fitted to the BBS wire wheels thanks to a patent ed process the Germ an wheelw righ ts have inve nted , which allows The Loo k to be achieved wi tho u t sacrificing The Grip. , Wheel di ameters are very sane, with an l 8-inch front and a l7-inch rear - one reason the Cali feels so manageable in city str eets and tight turns, in spite of the kickedout 28-degree fork rak e and 61.4-inch wheelbase . And the wide-spread handlebars d o d eliver good leverage, plus the cable-opera ted dry clutch is very progr essive on pickup. It' s a pity that the shiftin g is as harsh and clu nky as eve r - be prepared for the sou nd of the next ratio go ing in to echo off the wa lls of an y build ing s you' re passing, and don 't tru st the neutral light on the d ash when you come to a traffic light, because it lies straigh tfaced to you, same as always: Some thin gs never cha nge . . On eac h o f th e three bike s I rod e none of them with more than 300 miles on the clock - the shifting was p retty stiff and agri cu lt u ra l, perhaps because it hadn ' t loosened up in use yet. Be glad for the heel-In-roe lever so you can then kick it into the next-high er gear. Or , better still, just take ad va n tage o f th e w aves o f torque fr om th e fl e xibl e , if cla t te ry, pu shrod motor to jus t s tick it in top as soon as you can, and leave it there. That wa y, you won't risk scra tching the toe of your left boot on the d esign er -esqu e fluted ru bber-and-ch rome shift lever. While I couldn't care les s abo u t roughing up a black raci ng boot befor e the tarmac ge ts to it, I' m not sure a Gu z zi cu s to m er would feel so rela xed about carv ing a new pattern in the toe of his megabucks, hand -tooled cowboy boot.,.. And that's the kind of gu y who'll buy this b ike: Someone who apprecia tes the show as well as the go, but doesn't want a n overwrough t fu ll-d resser V-twin to cru ise the canyons aboard en rou te to his favori te bar or gal - or bo th. The California Special delivers glitz wi tho ut garishness, wi th the restyled rear end stripping ou t the appea ra nce, giv ing a graceful line to the fende r and taillight gro u p, where the EV'is mor e heavy and butch-loo king. There 's extra chrome here and there, especially aro u nd the headlight and the back of the instru ments, which are now the same as on the Centauro. (Idiot lights on the dash are a bit dim to see in sunlight, but are othe rwise good-looking and readable.) And the w ide range of op tions includes both Sport and Custom w inds hields as well as leather side bags and a chrome luggage rack with backrest - all you need to complete the Am erican Look, bu t the European way. By co mbin ing the sp irite d performance of th e two-v al ve motor with its wid e sp read of pow er, the conveni ence of the shaft dri ve, and the ass ured, capa ble hand ling of wh at is now a well-ho ned chassis package, Guzzi has bu ilt on the EV's plaudi ts, and delivered a go od -looking cru iser that 's d istinctive and d istinguish ed . Will it sell in L.A.? At an exp ected pri ce of around $11,000 on the road - more tha n a match for the equivalent Harl ey - it well might. (:\

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