99 Years of Moto Guzzi

 

Already for the second time a small but fine motorcycle exhibition will be installed in the foyer of the Kempinksi Grand Hotel des Bains in St. Moritz Bad. After last year’s focus on racing motorcycles of the various decades, only Moto Guzzi motorcycles will be exhibited from 14 to 22 September 2019.

The legendary motorcycles from Mandello del Lario in Italy have been built for almost 100 years (the company was founded on 15 March 1921) and are known for their active racing participation. The first series model, the Moto Guzzi “Normale” with 498 ccm and 9 HP was produced from 1921 to 1924. Already in 1924 Guido Mentasti won the first 500 ccm European Championship and already in 1925 they built a total of 1.200 motorcycles with 300 employees. 1934 Moto Guzzi was the biggest motorcycle manufacturer in Italy and 1935 Stanley Wood from Ireland won the Senior TT on the Isle of Man with a 500 ccm “Bicilindra” as the first pilot on a foreign machine.

 

The post-war period was marked by models such as the Airone (250 cc), the Astore and the famous Falcone (both 500 cc). Even a racing machine with a V8 engine - rather atypical for motorcycles - was built in 1955. Eventually, 1967 the V7 was introduced, which was motorized first with 700, then with 750 and finally 850 ccm in the legendary 90 degrees V2, which - combined with cardan-shaft drive – was also used in the Moto Guzzi touring machine “California” and the sporty “Le Mans”. Since than, the V2 engine became the characteristic feature of the marque.