March 25, 2008 - Roland Brown

The Stelvio is Moto Guzzi's latest attempt to drag itself into this century. It's a big handsome bike, but looks aren't everything, right? ... Scroll down for the full story

Moto Guzzi is revamping its image. The old firm's bosses have decided to make the brand younger and more innovative; to move away from Harley's market sector into Ducati territory. To illustrate this they have been showing photos of a traditional Guzzi owner — an old guy with a bushy moustache and open-face helmet — and a new owner : a younger, clean-cut Jason Bourne lookalike.

The ideal bike for a tough, all-action hero like Jason would be a big adventure sport machine with macho looks, lots of power, and the ability to handle any situation. So it's no coincidence that the first new Guzzi since this change of direction is the Stelvio. Named after the famously twisty pass in the Italian Alps, it has a suitably rugged, go-anywhere image and is powered by Guzzi's latest eight-valve V-twin engine, introduced six months ago in the Griso 8v.

Assuming you've seen the first Bourne movie you'll know that Jason is a secret agent who, after being rescued from the sea, didn't know who the hell he was. The Stelvio seems unsure of its identity, too, though the same could be said of most big adventure sport bikes. Like others of its breed it combines vaguely desert-race styling and yards of suspension travel with a conventional front mudguard and road-biased rubber. Guzzi says the bike can “devour off-road surfaces” but on anything rougher than a gravel track, it might be the surface that was doing the devouring.

Like Jason the Stelvio's a handsome devil, though. As always with a Guzzi, its appeal is based on that hunky air cooled 1151cc V-twin engine, whose pots stick out in the breeze and benefit from air diverted by panels at each side of the half-fairing. There's also a useful compartment, just about big enough for a pair of thin gloves, that opens at the touch of a button on the handlebar. The screen is height-adjustable by hand after loosening a couple of nuts.

In keeping with the launch's identity-crisis theme, the bike's full name is the Stelvio 1200 4V although the bike whose engine it shares is the Griso 8v. Naturally we didn't get to ride it over the Stelvio Pass, instead being led on a route through Tuscany that soon revealed a couple of surprises, one good and the other not. Having thrown a leg over the broad seat I was glad to find the Guzzi feeling more manageable than I'd expected (though short riders will inevitably have trouble at low speed). It was roomy without being vast, and the new-generation engine felt smoother and more refined than the old pushrod lump, pulling away relatively smoothly and quietly yet retaining some big V-twin character.

Less clever was the Stelvio's performance at low revs, which became clear as I followed Guzzi's lead rider on a mazy route through the hills near Siena. The eight-valve unit is mechanically identical to the Griso's but has been modified with a reworked Marelli injection system and a new two-into-one exhaust. According to Guzzi the changes boost midrange while knocking 5bhp off the peak output, bringing it to 105bhp at 7500rpm.

That's not how it seemed though as I wound the throttle back to find the Stelvio feeling a bit flat at low and medium revs, before breathing harder at about 5500rpm. This wasn't too much of a pain, partly because the six-speed gearbox worked well. But nor was it the effortless, addictive stomp I'd expected from a big Moto Guzzi. I couldn't help thinking they should have used an old two-valve motor instead.

At least the Stelvio's injection was sweet, and the bike stayed smooth when revved towards its eight-grand redline. It had enough power to sit at an effortless 90mph, with plenty in hand to a top speed of maybe 135mph. Although the screen is quite small, it has a useful range of movement and when on its tallest setting did a good job of diverting the breeze off my chest, without too much turbulence.

Handling was pretty reasonable by adventure sport standards, doubtless helped by hefty looking, multi-adjustable Marzocchi forks that coped respectably well with their 170mm of travel. There's a similarly excessive 155mm of rear wheel travel, too, controlled by a Boge shock that has a handy remote preload adjuster. Inevitably both ends moved around a bit under hard braking or acceleration, but at least the Stelvio never felt like getting out of control.

At a claimed 214kg dry the Guzzi's respectably light, and it steered effortlessly given a gentle heave on its wide bars, especially when the front end was compressed under braking. There was certainly no lack of stopping power thanks to Brembo 320mm discs and four-pot radial front calipers. On occasionally damp roads I was glad of the decent grip from Pirelli's Scorpion Sync rubber, the rear of which is a nice fat 180-section job.

Talk of dirt riding brings to mind the Stelvio's off-road performance, which I confirmed was outstanding by putting in some hot laps of a muddy local motocross circuit, where the Guzzi's power and agility made the bike very fast as well as safe, especially on the bigger jumps.
Er, actually that's nonsense, obviously. In fact with some knobblier tyres fitted the Stelvio might make a decent trans-global adventurer, but our “off-road” evaluation was limited to a brief bimble along a potholed country lane, where that suspension travel finally came in slightly useful.

When we got back to the launch base I'd enjoyed the Stelvio but couldn't help feeling it could have been better. A more flexible motor and less suspension travel could have made it a faster, more entertaining roadster, as well as more manageable for shorter pilots. Neither change would have meant increasing its price from the current £8704, which puts the Guzzi on par with KTM's Adventure and a bit cheaper than BMW's revamped R1200GS.

But having a tough off-road image and the long legs to match hasn't done those bikes any harm, after all; and there are doubtless some riders who will make good use of the Stelvio's ability to ford rivers while keeping their feet dry. Perhaps Guzzi's adventurer could use a few refinements to make it better suited to its likely role. But as it stands, the Stelvio is a stylish character with the toughness and all-round ability to make a lasting impact. Just like You Know Who.

STYLING
Guzzi's designers have done some great work of late — think MGS-01 and Griso — and the Stelvio's another classy effort. Its shape is practical, too. The fairing diverts cooling air onto the cylinder heads, and holds a screen that can be adjusted for height by hand. A glove compartment springs open at the press of a button on the left bar. The instrument panel combines analogue tacho with digital display for speed and other info. At the rear end, two round tail lights each hold five LEDs, and sit below a hefty luggage rack. Colour options are red, white or black.
ENGINE
Guzzi held a press conference in a lovely old building in central Siena to brag about the Stelvio's “revolutionary” engine, which they said is 75 per cent new and contains 563 new components. Unfortunately that's cobblers, as it's the same motor that was introduced last year in the Griso 8v. (No doubt the smart-suited Italian bankers present were impressed, though.) Revised Weber Marelli injection settings and a new two-into-one exhaust system with large, angular silencer on the left combine to boost midrange torque, allegedly. Claimed power is down by 5bhp to 105bhp at 7500rpm, matching the BMW R1200GS's max.
CHASSIS
The motor acts as a stressed member of the tubular steel frame. Marzocchi provides the 50mm diameter, leading-axle usd forks, which are multi-adjustable, with compression damping on one leg and rebound on the other. The Boge shock has a remote hydraulic preload adjuster and can also be tuned for rebound damping. Front brake is an upmarket Brembo blend of 320mm discs and four-pot radial calipers. Wire-spoked wheels come in 19-inch front, 17-inch rear diameters, the rear wearing a wide 180/55 Pirelli Scorpion Sync.


Specifications
Price: £8704
NU Ins group:
Engine:
Type: A/c 8-valve 90-degree transverse V-twin
Displacement: 1151cc
Bore x stroke: 95 x 81.2mm
Compression: 11:1
Power: 105bhp @ 7500rpm
Torque: 80lb.ft @ 6400rpm
Cycle Parts
Chassis: Steel tube frame
Suspension: (F) 50mm inverted telescopic Marzocchi, 170mm wheel travel, adjustments for preload, compression and rebound damping
(R) One Boge damper, 155mm wheel travel, adjustments for preload and rebound damping
Brakes: (F) 320mm discs, four-piston Brembo radial calipers
(R) 282mm disc, twin-piston Brembo caliper,
Wheels/tyres: Pirelli Scorpion Sync (F) 110/80-19, (R) 180/55-17
Rake and steering angle: 27 degrees/125mm
Wheelbase: 1535mm
Fuel capacity: 18 litres (4 gal)
Dry weight: 214kg (471lb) claimed
Contact Moto Guzzi UK 01293 823890, http://uk.motoguzzi.it