The Miles are adding up... Three weeks in!

[Godfrey]

It's hard to believe that the V7III Racer has been in my hands just three weeks. Three weeks of extreme busyness as well. But it's true, and I'm already up to 650 miles on it. Coming home from dinner last evening on the freeway, after wiggling through a ton of surface streets to get to the restaurant two hours before, it struck me again how similar this bike is to my LeMans V and 850T.

Like both of those, it can bimble and dawdle along on crappy streets in crappy traffic without any problems. Excellent balance, a very forgiving engine, and a beautiful, clean, consistent clutch make it happen. But where it really shines is when I get on the freeway, or a fast wiggly road with lots of corners, and let it roll along: the engine bounces up into its real power range and the gears are perfectly spaced for aggressive charging as well as steady, relaxed, high-speed cruising. There's just enough room for legs, arms, and butt that I can move around comfortably and securely. The seat doesn't hurt me, the wind pressure seems to disappear, and the engine just talks back saying, "Go! Let me GO!" Crappy pavement barely perturbs the stability, the ride is firm—well-controlled without harshness, the brakes are sure and effective, and it turns easily with no drama or twitchiness.

How do those folks at Moto Guzzi get the balance of their machines so right? I don't know, but I'm glad they do.

 

[Trout]

I'm so sorry you don't like that bike at all, sad so sad.

 

[Godfrey]

Update: Fill up #4 @ 679 miles ... 190 miles traveled, 4.104 USgallons fuel. That’s about 46.5 MPG ... I guess the hour and more I spent in traffic creeping along on Saturday, the hour and some spent in traffic on Tuesday evening, and the other hour and some doing the same in traffic yesterday chews up the gas mileage a bit.

 

[John Backlund]

I'm getting a consistent 50-55 mpg out of my 2017 V7 III Special. Today's fill-up was 4.2 gallons for 223 miles. The low fuel light came on at 218 miles, but at a 5.5 gallon capacity, there should still be about 1.3 gallons sloshing around in there.

Nothing I would call 'city riding' involved however, but a typical local mix of 55-70 mph two-lanes, and 75 mph interstate.

No problems so far, 5,100 miles.

 

[Godfrey]

Sounds about right.

That said, I count on a full tank being really about 5 gallons: some air space is needed even when full, and it's not a good idea to run a fuel injection fuel pump down to absolutely dry. So I figure 4 gallons main, 1 gallon reserve.

 

[Vagrant]

so if you were riding the Triumph Bobber with a 2 gallon tank you could go 50 miles before having to stop.

 

[Godfrey]

so if you were riding the Triumph Bobber with a 2 gallon tank you could go 50 miles before having to stop.

The Ducati Scrambler I had was like that. 3.5g tank, reserve light turned on at 85-90 miles. Irritated the crap out of me.

I'll never buy a bike with less than a 5 gallon tank again. Period.

 

[Godfrey]

I fitted the Agostini mufflers yesterday. I didn’t have time to install the updated GTrx ECU map yet, but I fired up the engine to check for exhaust leaks.

Oh my ... what a beautiful sound they make!
Racer’s got his singing voice...

 

[JACoH]

So, if I remember correctly, if one uses the "db killers", the GTRx map is the same as for a stock engine? Only if not using the killers, a new map is required?

 

[GTM®]

So, if I remember correctly, if one uses the "db killers", the GTRx map is the same as for a stock engine? Only if not using the killers, a new map is required?

No, there is a map for every step/mod.

 

[Godfrey]

I did the ECU reflash with the map that GT provided for the Agostini mufflers. What I was told is that the Agostini mufflers generally work fine with just the one map, regardless whether you have the dB-killer in or out, but that it is a different map from even the custom map for the stock mufflers.

That makes sense to me. Conjecturing: The Agos are a different tuned length compared to the stock mufflers and are a straight-through design with about a 1.75" internal diameter. The dB-killer is a short solid pipe that necks down the last 6-8 inches of the muffler volume to about 1.5" ... The overall length of the pipes is the same, and that neck at the exit of the pipe will likely damp primarily the outbound sound waves rather than cut flow by very much except at the highest flow rate limits. So the need for a new map is mostly driven by the different pipe length and the dB-Killer influence is small.

Whatever, I will certainly leave the dB-Killers installed. The Agos make a beautiful, melodious aria as Racer is revved that is quite loud enough with them in anyway. And I can feel that the combination of these mufflers and the revised map allow the engine to pull cleanly all the way from idle to redline while beefing up the mid-range by a good bit primarily. Their lighter weight is immediately noticeable to me in the handling ... there's much less of the "heavy tail that wants to wag" feeling on undulating pavement or when I toss the bike into a corner briskly. The suspension feel even more compliant and less prone to bottoming with a heavy beast like me on board. (Yes, I have the sag set correctly for my weight... )

So Racer is now a young adult with a beautiful singing voice. He still urges me to rev, rev, rev, but he's taken on the timbre of the LeMans V's LaFranconi Competezione bellow when I twist the loud grip.

Well ... I'm off for more of a ride now.

 

[Maj Steve Trevor]

Video please! Love to hear those pipes..

 

[Godfrey]

Perhaps soon... I need to take Racer out for a quick photo shoot.

 

[Maj Steve Trevor]

You’re tilting me toward a Racer! I am still trying to decide between it and the Anniversario..

 

[Godfrey]

Well, I love this bike. It works exactly the way I was hoping it would. Now it sounds the way I wanted too.

I bought a Guzzi Gel Comfort Seat for traveling with. Not because I need the gel seat for the comfort, but because with a full passenger perch I can fit a good sized travel bag on the passenger section of the seat. I tested it on the bike today .. it's comfortable and gives me the space I need for the bag.



Racer will be at about 850 miles tomorrow morning when I get to the dealer for his break-in service.

 

[Maj Steve Trevor]

Hmm, looks good with that seat- almost a different bike. Each has its appeal. Do you find any difference in seating position?

Well, I love this bike. It works exactly the way I was hoping it would. Now it sounds the way I wanted too.

I bought a Guzzi Gel Comfort Seat for traveling with. Not because I need the gel seat for the comfort, but because with a full passenger perch I can fit a good sized travel bag on the passenger section of the seat. I tested it on the bike today .. it's comfortable and gives me the space I need for the bag.

View attachment 13763

Racer will be at about 850 miles tomorrow morning when I get to the dealer for his break-in service.

 

[Godfrey]

Hmm, looks good with that seat- almost a different bike. Each has its appeal. Do you find any difference in seating position?

Yeah; add one of the grab rails from the Anniversario (finished in flat black, of course) or an accessory rack and you've got a sporty two-up ride, along with more places to tie things to.

The gel seat is ever so slightly thinner and firmer than the stock Racer seat. Its shape is slightly more beveled at the sides too. The net result is that you're sitting at about the same position but it's slightly easier to put your legs down close to the bike. It feels like it will conform to the shape of one's butt and thighs nicely and give good support without hot spots.

 

[Godfrey]

First service done Tuesday at 765 miles. I'd booked it a couple of weeks back because my time is pretty crowded from now 'til New Years and I figured I would get close to the nominal 900 miles. Close enough. I arrived home from the service with 799 miles on the odometer. The mechanic at the dealership (Don) did a lovely job and told me everything he had found: Nothing unusual. Life is good!

I took the bike to breakfast in Mountain View this morning. It was a pretty chilly ride there (48°F). The weather had warmed up a little by the end of breakfast so I took a "short loop" up the mountain wiggle to Skyline Blvd and then back home. Still pretty cold ... didn't feel like going further.

My bicycle came up with a slow flat rear tire yesterday... So I took off the wheel, tossed it in the car, and did some errands including having a new tube installed. Then it was time for lunch, so I came home, refitted the wheel, and rode the bicycle to lunch about 4 miles away—and for another 9 miles around my usual loop. Tire good, rest of the bike was recently serviced and it runs like new now.

After I returned home, I recalled that I needed some other little widget at the bike shop, so I took Racer there. By the time I finished yakking with the mechanics, I realized it was time for coffee ... So I rode Racer over to another favorite cafe on the other side of San Jose. Traffic was pretty crappy on the way there; took a different route back and avoided most of it then.

All that bimbling around means I've added about 90 more miles to the odometer; Racer is now up to 890 miles and I'm revving him into the real power band, where he sings beautifully. A happy boy he is indeed!

Just think: I'll have been riding Racer for just one month as of Saturday. It feels like a long time already, I'm so comfortable with this bike. I'd go anywhere on it...