2011 Moto Guzzi California Black Eagle Review
 

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2011 Moto Guzzi California Black Eagle Review

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The fenders are too valenced, and they need to ditch the floorboards and goofy handlebar. Other than that, it looks surprisingly good. Still like the old Jackal better, though.

I thought only BMW could build a cruiser that ugly. What a POS.

The inevitable result of a company losing focus and trying to fit into someone else's market space.

There are lots of cruisers that I see, look at the handlebars, and ask myself "What were they thinking?". Buckhorns, beach bars, mini-apes... I don't get it.

Yeah, but it's really easy to swap bars to a bend that suits you best. Cheap and effective.

Black Eagle
 

Not as nice as my 95 hp Le Mans.

At first glance, my thoughts are "Heck, no!" I'm not really diggin' this Guzzi.

Which is nowhere near as nice as my '07 Vee.

Other than the round, ungainly tail-light, I really don't think the bike is all that bad. Still a bit too "cruiser-ish" for my own taste, but the lines look fairly classic UJM/Standard.

Enjoy that normal looking tachometer.....
 

.....because soon it will rest at 2,500 RPM when the motor is off and give you screwy readouts all of its life.

That wouldn't keep me from buying and loving this Guzzi, I just realized that I hardly recognized the tach with its needle in the right place.

And your Le Mans & V7 are nice, but my 2000 V11 Sport? Now there's a motorcycle.

I've owned 5 Guzzi's in all. Used to be part owner in a little Moto Guzzi dealership in Marietta, GA called Zen Moto. Guzzi's can drive you crazy but they're satisfying like no other. I'm not exactly sure why, but it's true.

I had the '99 Bassa, brown two-tone with a windshield & black leather bags. The metallic paint was the color of coffee, and the inset was the color of coffee with cream. I sure wish I still had her.

Btw, if you're calling this manufacturer something goofy, you pronounce "Guzzi" like "Gootsy". The "u" rhymes with "boot" and the two zees make the same sound as they do in the word "pizza".