Thoughts on W800

[Indypikes_imp]

Here's my visually offensive / disruptive Moto Guzzi Eldorado. She makes a great stablemate for the CB1100! Like the W800, you can find previous year leftovers at very reasonable prices these days....

[Gone in 60]

We had an exhibit in the Petersen prior to the shutdown called “Disruptors”, basically describing vehicles that didn’t fit the norm. When you look at a bike like the Eldorado, you see an engine cutting into the space that our mind is trained to recognize as an unbroken teardrop. A longer expanse between the engine and rear wheel than we are used to.

I remember the first time I saw an Eldorado and its sibling models. They were parked together in Malibu, being ridden by a group of moto journalists when the bikes came out. The things about them that visually didn’t instantly compute in my mind as “cruiser” are what caught my attention and made me feel compelled to stop and study them, where I’d just glance and keep moving if they were Harleys or traditional cruisers.

[Cormanus]

Wisedrum, ‘gutless’ has the meaning you found. Additionally, when used about a vehicle, it means ‘lacking power’.

[GoldOxide_imp]

I like them., but the w series and the triumphs Bonneville's (at least as of a few yrs ago) look great, but lack of performance was always the deal breaker for me. Nice looking bikes though.

Somewhat like the Moto Guzzi V7.

Good looks (to many), quality build, classic soul, but overall gutless.

Somewhat like the Moto Guzzi V7.

....but overall gutless.
Never heard the word "gutless" before. I translated it into German and found "feige", which paraphrased means: to be too afraid to do something. Something like that.

So I can't see, why a W is gutless. Maybe I don't understand this comparison and it can be descibed in a way I can get it.

Lack of power is a matter of eyesight. For 48HP the W800 has enough power in my eyes. I like the torquey layout of the engine right from down under. It feels good and pulls everywhere like the CB. Some think that even 90HP of the CB isn't enough. So what. For me the way an engine communicates its power is my fountain of joy while riding it. I like to cruise on a wide plateau of torque without peaks. So I choosed motorbikes with this character. The W has definitely such a character. One can find it boring. I don't do it.

Somewhat like the Moto Guzzi V7.

....but overall gutless.
Never heard the word "gutless" before. I translated it into German and found "feige", which paraphrased means: to be too afraid to do something. Something like that.

So I can't see, why a W is gutless. Maybe I don't understand this comparison and it can be descibed in a way I can get it.

Lack of power is a matter of eyesight. For 48HP the W800 has enough power in my eyes. I like the torquey layout of the engine right from down under. It feels good and pulls everywhere like the CB. Some think that even 90HP of the CB isn't enough. So what. For me the way an engine communicates its power is my fountain of joy while riding it. I like to cruise on a wide plateau of torque without peaks. So I choosed motorbikes with this character. The W has definitely such a character. One can find it boring. I don't do it.
Hey Wisedrum - "gutless" I was referring to the Guzzi V7 since I have ridden that bike a few times. Otherwise a beautiful motorcycle.

I have not ridden a W800, so I cannot call it "gutless".

[Wisedrum]

Wisedrum, ‘gutless’ has the meaning you found. Additionally, when used about a vehicle, it means ‘lacking power’.

Thanks for your explanation. Now I got the intended meaning concerning vehicles. The mystery of languages and their interna only native speakers will know.

[GoldOxide_imp]

Wisedrum, ‘gutless’ has the meaning you found. Additionally, when used about a vehicle, it means ‘lacking power’.

Thanks for your explanation. Now I got the intended meaning concerning vehicles. The mystery of languages and their interna only native speakers will know.

Thanks for your explanation. Now I got the intended meaning concerning vehicles. The mystery of languages and their interna only native speakers will know.


Regardless of power or lack thereof, owners may choose a bike because it resonates with their heart. I think this is more true for more senior riders. I like the Guzzi V7, but it is too small for me. Otherwise, I could have been an owner - almost was of the Guzzi Griso. I like the looks of the W800, would ride one for sure to experience it.

[Roper_imp]

Here's my visually offensive / disruptive Moto Guzzi Eldorado. She makes a great stablemate for the CB1100! Like the W800, you can find previous year leftovers at very reasonable prices these days....

I think it's a beautiful motorcycle, Indy. I'm one of those who really like Guzzi styling. It's like going to a classic car show: I admire the rugged power of American muscle cars. I appreciate the refined efficiency of Japanese automobiles. And then I see a Ferrari. It doesn't really matter which model it is, my eyes are just drawn to it. I don't care how fast it will do in a quarter mile. I don't care how many miles per gallon it gets. To me, the car blends form and function and excitement all into one beautiful automobile. That's also what I see in Moto Guzzi.

[Wisedrum]

Wisedrum, ‘gutless’ has the meaning you found. Additionally, when used about a vehicle, it means ‘lacking power’.

Thanks for your explanation. Now I got the intended meaning concerning vehicles. The mystery of languages and their interna only native speakers will know.

Thanks for your explanation. Now I got the intended meaning concerning vehicles. The mystery of languages and their interna only native speakers will know.


Regardless of power or lack thereof, owners may choose a bike because it resonates with their heart. I think this is more true for more senior riders. I like the Guzzi V7, but it is too small for me. Otherwise, I could have been an owner - almost was of the Guzzi Griso. I like the looks of the W800, would ride one for sure to experience it.

I think this is true. At least for me. The heart has its own reasons of which the brain doesn't know. Besides some logical aspects like, can I afford the bike and its fuel consumption, will it be reliable, it is the heart, that chooses the bike. Will it make my heart resonate by the emotions it evokes or not? Riding motorbikes is a very emotional thing for me. I don't have to do it, but it's a strong desire carried by emotions to ride motorbikes. The bikes should strongly support these feelings by the way they look and are build.

[Gone in 60]

Going back to visual elements, something that's visually disruptive is usually polarizing. You have a reason for liking it or not liking it.

I like the Eldorado - that engine cutting into the tank reminds me of a modified muscle car, with an engine cutting through the line of the hood. When I stood there staring in that parking lot, I dug it.

I'd argue that the W800 Cafe has some disrupting elements as well. As the owner of a CB1100 and a Bonneville, classically styled bikes are very appealing to me. I like the standard W800, with it's chrome, glossy paint, and old-school charm. The W800 Cafe takes that bike, and gives it matte metallic paint, more modern graphics in place of the classic badging, and blacked out trim. It took away many of the elements that made me like it.

Maybe others feel the same way, since the Cafe models at the showrooms around me have orange discount tags hanging from their blacked out bars, while the standard models do not.

[GoldOxide_imp]

(+1) on the Moto Guzzi Eldorado.