Moto Guzzi California 1400

^Interesting review (and comments, as you said). Thanx!
One commenter (Mario C), at the end, said the fenders were plastic?
Izzat so?

Well, I have been looking forward to seeing one in the flesh, and swinging a leg over to try one out.

Local dealer had one in that went straight out. One more coming in 'soon', but they called me today and said it wont be in until the end of August, and thats one is already sold plus another white one.

They must have got something right.

That said it doesn't look like I will get to ride one until late fall at the earliest.

When they first hit the dealer, there was supposed to be a 90 day hold on selling the demo so that as many folks a possible would get a chance to test ride one.

I know my local dealer has held to that and is keeping one as a demo since it has been such a drawing card to get folks into a Moto Guzzi dealership.

Check around, another dealer may still have a demo in stock.

jdg

Thanks, and good idea I will try that.

my Australian friend Pete Roper bought one in Texas (I think) last month. If you spend anytime on the Wild Guzzi board or the AF1 Aprilia board, you know who Pete is.

He and his lovely wife rode it to Michigan and down the east coast. They are supposed to visit us Friday. I can't wait to see it and get a full report. Pete knows Guzzi's unlike anyone I've ever met.

Stopped by Moto International in Seattle today. They have a black Custom available as a demo. They also have a gray custom, and the black and white tourings. I think the touring model looks much better - somehow more refined and polished. I think it's the pin-striping, but I also think the bike looks a bit thick (top to bottom) towards the rear of the bike. There's no blank air-space between the engine and the frame, or between the tail and the rear tire. The saddlebags on the touring disguise this bulk.

My wife and I took the demo Custom for a spin. I own a Bandit 1250 and a Burgman 650, so that is our yard-stick.

The Goose is definitely more roomy 2-up than the Bandit, and about the same as the Burgman. My wife complained that she feels insecure on the Goose because there's no backrest, and the bike is very torquey. We run a Givi top case on our own bikes, and it might be something we can fix on the Goose. She was fine with the seat, and said there was no vibration through the seat pan or foot pegs, unlike the Bandit. I thought my Burgman was pretty vibration-free, but it's now noticeable through the floorboards compared to how smooth the floorboards on the Goose are. My left palm got tired on the Goose, but I'm not sure if it's vibration, grip material, or angle.

2-up on the Goose, my wife's feet were in the way when I put my feet down at a stop. It's a minor annoyance because it doesn't occur on the Burgman/Bandit.

The bars are pretty wide and tall. Noticeably wider than the Burgman. But we did a few miles on the freeway and the windblast wasn't bad. Riding this bike one-handed felt very stable and secure.

Power was good. Very smooth, and unphased by hills. First gear seems like it's tall enough to be useful, and vibration is minimal enough to actually use it on residential streets. But I found second gear so torquey most of the time that I thought I was in first, which led to a little more clutch slipping turning at intersections than I would have thought - though that was very smooth; no grabbing or driveline lash. We did some brisk roll-ons on the on-ramps and the feeling of acceleration was satisfying. It's not superbike fast, but between the sound and the riding position you sense the effect of acceleration in a pleasing way. I test rode a couple of Victory cruisers the weekend before, and the Guzzi seems to pull harder and more controllably.

Throttle on/off was much better than the Burgman/Suzuki. There's a surprising amount of helmet bumping on the Burgman at slow speeds; and I find the Bandit a little tricky if I'm not being extra cautious at slow-speed small throttle changes. I think the Goose has a heavy-enough flywheel to mitigate slight throttle movements.

The dealer was cool enough to swap us to the touring's seat. The touring seat and the custom seat appear to be the same length, and are interchangeable. The difference appears to be the shape of the passenger portion on the touring. The seat is soft and cushy, but soft usually doesn't work out on longer rides. It's wide enough to be supportive, and there seems to be enough room for the rider to move forwards and backwards. But with a passenger, I was kind of pushed towards the front of the seat. And where the front of the seat slopes slightly upward to follow the line of the gastank, my family jewels would sometime's get viced in there during moderate braking efforts.

I didn't do enough turns to really feel confident with the handling, but it seemed like a bike that would turn easily. The small wheels on my Burgman allow very low-effort turn-ins, and this Guzzi was close to that but felt much more stable mid-corner. Slow speed balance seemed as good as the few cruisers I've ridden.

The Goose brakes much MUCH better than the two Victories and a Suzuki M109R that I tried the week before. This can be a front-brake only kind of bike, but the rear brake pedal also seemed both sensitive and effective. My Bandit has decent brakes but little feel. The Goose has better feel, but not quite the bite and sensitivity of a Triumph 1050 (if you've ridden that). Still, above-average brakes compared to all the bikes I've ridden, coupled with solid forks that don't collapse into the ground immediately with a little stopping force. 2-up, it's better to use the rear brake most of the time, as with a front-brake application first there was some helmet slapping.

This bike is the only one on the market that I'm genuinely interested in now. I thought I wanted a Harley Ultra Classic until I test drove the Victory equivalent (Cross Country Tour). The Victory is supposed to be functionally superior to the Harley, but fell well below my expectation of what a FUN motorcycle should be. I think this bike will have the romance I assume Harleys to have, while also being a fun motorcycle (aside from the cruiser aspect) to ride.

That right there summarizes the HD vs Victory argument as well as I've ever seen.

I rode Pete Roper's Cal 14 Touring today. Nice bike! Impressive effort from Mandello!

Any of you guys who are considering a touring cruiser ought to give the Cal 14 a try. It's really something!

I was able to ride Pete's bike when he was in Michigan. It's a great effort and really gets nimble for a big bike once underway. The brakes are amazing and everything gets really smooth off idle. Wish I could have put a half-day on it.

How about a comprehensive review from my favorite resident Advrider Guzzisti

The heat, man. For God's sake, don't forget to mention the heat off the cylinders!

^ wot he said, AND the legroom.

Here's what I wrote on WildGuzzi:

Rocker59 reviews a Cal 14:

WOW! Well, I had an opportunity today to ride a California 1400 Touring. Our friend Pete Roper pitched me the keys to his loaded-for-touring Cal 1400 Touring model and suggested I take it for a spin. Well, really, he asked me to run it to the gas station and fill it up while he and Jude enjoyed air-conditioning and Red's company. Regardless, it was my opportunity to check out Guzzi's new flagship touring cruiser, and I was happy to have it! I took the long way back home.

Wow! What a machine. Throbbing, loping engine at idle turns glass-smooth at 2000 rpm. And, what a tractable engine it is! Pulls hard from 2 thou, and unlike many cruisers (but very much like a Guzzi) it will pull hard to redline. Nice little rush at 5k. This engine is really something.

Wow! The chassis is really something, too. It is definitely a heavy touring cruiser, but it is very composed. The bike carries its weight down low. The engineers have done their homework and the chassis geometry makes the bike's weight disappear at anything above walking speed. Nice turn-in and feel in the turns. Brakes? Oh, yeah! It's got brakes. One or two fingers is plenty on the front brake. Rear didn't have the same great feel, but seemed perfectly adequate. Windshield was nice. I was riding in a light rain and didn't get wet.

I can see anyone who is looking at something like a Star Stratoliner, Victory Cross Country, or HD Road King really going nuts for the California 1400. It was an admittedly short outing, but this is a very comfortable, capable machine, on par with anything out there in the class.

Now, all Piaggio has to do is actually build enough of them so people can see them and buy them.

I really, really like the bike!

In addition, the fly by wire throttle was as flawless as HD's is on its touring models. The Cal 14 has electronic cruise control, though I didn't get to test it. Pete said it worked great.

There are something like four settings for the map/throttle. Sport/Tour/Rain/etc. I didn't have time to test them out, but Pete said they work through a combination of adjusting ignition maps and throttle response. Similar to what Piaggio has done on the RSV sportsbikes.

I was surprised by the bike's handling feel, despite the fashionable wide rear wheel/tire. It just felt solid/planted, yet had nice/easy turn-in. Pete noted that he could detect some fork flex in certain situations. He's been touring 2-up and loaded for a month's vacation. I didn't notice any issue on the curvy secondary road I was on. Admittedly, I was watching my pace because of the light rain.

Typical for all bikes, it looks better/different in person than it does in photos. It's long and low and edgy, yet it retains some historic Guzzi styling cues.

Hopping on my Nero Corsa to show them around town, it became quite obvious how much improved/refined the newest Guzzis are.

I walked away quite impressed with the bike. I've ridden the Star Stratoliner and late model FLHs, and I do think this bike compares favorably to them.

Heat does emanate from the cylinders. They are right in front of your legs, after all. I've never had a problem with heat on my 1000 and 1100 cc Guzzis, but they have a much different (sporty) riding position from the Cal 14. It was in the 80s and VERY humid the day I rode it. I had on jeans and SIDI boots. It wasn't any big deal, and much better than most liquid-cooled bikes I've ridden. I wouldn't doubt that the windshield also has something to do with how the heat is directed. I'd really have to ride it some more to determine if it is "a problem". First impressions are that if you're wearing gear, it's no big deal. If you're wearing shorts and flip-flops, it may feel toasty.

If you've sat on a late model Road King, then you'll know what the seat/board position feels like. The Guzzi bar is a little different from the FLH, but the seating was comfy. It's stretched-out touring cruiser, for sure. Ankles are well ahead of knees. Seat has a nice bump at the back that added some support to my lower back. Pete complained that it wasn't great for long days. he was using an AirHawk and a sheep skin. But, he's been riding everyday for like five weeks.

Everyone responds differently to motorcycle heat. Some don't notice while others are roasting.

BMW boxers have essentially no heat on me. Quite comfortable. While a Stelvio I've ridden felt uncomfortably warm, even though temps were in the 80's F.

I suppose I need to ride one to figure this out for me.

Thanks for the write up Guzzi Mike!



Excellent!

Yup. But here is the challenge...

Yup.

Frustrating, and no way I will order one until I can ride the damn thing.

Saw the new 1400 cali yesterday for the first time and took a short test ride of 6 miles. WOW. Not enough miles to really check it out but I liked it a LOT.

My local dealer finally has two in - both colors.

Of course they didn't call me as they promised (even though I have been calling them every couple of weeks 'of course we will call you when one comes in').

A local buddy told me today.

Idiots!



Will check them out on Tuesday, assuming they haven't sent them out yet....

If they don't care enough to call you....they don't care enough.