45°54′55″N 9°19′13″E / 45.9153669°N 9.32041°E
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 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry |
|
| Founded | 15 March 1921 as Società Anonima Moto Guzzi, Genoa, Italy |
| Founder | |
| Headquarters | Via Parodi 57, Mandello del Lario , Italy |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | |
| Products |
|
| Parent | Piaggio Group |
| Website | www |
Moto Guzzi (Italian pronunciation: [ˈmɔːto ˈɡuttsi]) is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer and the oldest European manufacturer in continuous motorcycle production.[1][2][3][4]
Established in 1921 in Mandello del Lario, Italy, the company is noted for its historic role in Italy's motorcycling manufacture, its prominence worldwide in motorcycle racing, and industry innovations—including the first motorcycle centre stand, wind tunnel and eight-cylinder engine.[5]
Since 2004, Moto Guzzi has been an unico azionista, a wholly owned subsidiary, and one of seven brands owned by Piaggio Group,[6][7] Europe's largest motorcycle manufacturer and the world's fourth largest motorcycle manufacturer by unit sales.[7]
The company's motorcycles are noted for their air-cooled 90° V-twin engines with a longitudinal crankshaft orientation where the engines' transverse cylinder heads project prominently on either side of the motorcycle.[8][9]
- ^ Ian, Ian (11 July 2017). The Complete Book of Moto Guzzi. Motorbooks. p. 257. ISBN 978-0-7603-5221-2. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
- ^ "Moto Guzzi — a century of Italian innovation - Bikesure". Bikesure Blog. 8 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ de Burton, Simon (4 April 2014). "Legend of Lombardy: The Moto Guzzi story". Classic Driver. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
- ^ Closen, Uli (March 2013). Italian Custom Motorcycles. Veloce Publishing Ltd. p. 70. ISBN 978-1-845843-94-6. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
- ^ "Moto Guzzi Celebrates 90th Anniversary". Motorcycle.com. Vertical Scope. 15 March 2011. Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
- ^ "Moto Guzzi Norge 1200 Cruises Into U.S. Market". prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 7 September 2007.
- ^ a b "Piaggio Group Launches Market Expansion Plans". Rider Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2007.
- ^ "Moto Guzzi California: Ponch, Your Ride Is Here". The Wall Street Journal, Dan Neil.
As engineering products, Moto Guzzis are handcuffed to the brand's distinctive—and distinctly questionable—transverse 90-degree V-twin engine, a configuration that reaches back to the 1960s. The V of the cylinder heads sticks out the sides of the motorcycle, and the crankshaft runs lengthwise, longitudinal to the bike.
- ^ "A Family of Italian Twins That Took a Different Approach". The New York Times, NORMAN MAYERSOHN and DANIEL McDERMON, 28 October 2011. 28 October 2011.
What ties the models together is a common architecture of 90-degree V-twin engines with a literal twist: the cylinders jut left and right, with the crankshaft in line with the bike's frame rather than across it. This makes it logical and simple to engineer a shaft-drive system, a brand hallmark that Guzzi's current models use.