By the time the new millennium had rolled around and the Y2K bug had been nothing but an anti-climax, the management at Moto Guzzi knew they had a problem. The company had largely been relying on late ’70s technology and designs, and they needed a motorcycle that would prove the company could still be a maker of beautiful machines for years to come. They turned to Marabese Design who had drawn up the Speed Triple for Triumph who were in a similar position a decade earlier and come the big shows of Intermot and EICMA, the all-new Griso did its thing and won over the crowds. Still a stunning machine to this day, the talented team at Side Rock Cycles in Bournemouth have taken this 2007 Griso and done all the right things to arrive at this gorgeous Guzzi.
When the Griso had been conceived, Aprilia owned Moto Guzzi, but by 2004 Italian giant Piaggio had bought the big A, so Guzzi had a new owner. Thankfully for the faithful Moto Guzzi staff, the bean counters saw fit to continue with the development of the big twin naked and its all-new chassis. A year later and the bike was gracing magazine covers and a cult following was almost immediately born. Following a ten-year run production ended, but the second-hand market has plenty of good examples on offer, with engines ranging from the 850 to 1100 and the big daddy, the 1200 8v.
Down in Bournemouth at Side Rock Cycles, boss Pete Hodson had this 2007 1100 on the bench, and it’s one of the picks of the bunch with the least problems in the driveline. “Sometimes less is more with custom bike builds and with this one, it certainly was the case. We weren’t going to reinvent the wheel with this Griso as it’s such a good looking bike as standard with its unique frame and sunken tank that only this model has. It just needed to be a bit leaner and meaner with a colour change too,” Pete explains.
The Guzzi was torn down and to show off that unique frame a striking colour was chosen for the job. Cobalt blue might not be from the Italian firm’s colour book, but it really is a stunning hue and highlights the beefy frame rails to perfection. The same bold colour was sprayed onto the centre sections of the three-spoke mag wheels, with the outer rims finished in a gloss black to really make them pop. Having gone with the blue and black theme, the silver top yoke that comes as standard, and the red fork adjusters were all anodized in black.
One of the strong points of the Griso straight from the factory was the handling, with the excellent chassis being joined by quality suspension front and rear. But a good thing can always be improved upon, “so the guys at YSS were called and a custom built, slightly longer, top spec rear shock was ordered and with a few tweaks to the fully adjustable forks made, the bike is now more agile with a really plush ride.” Throw in big Brembo brakes front and rear from the factory, and the roller is a brilliant piece of kit.
For full visual appeal, the blue and black theme was continued onto the tank with subtle striping and a Guzzi logo airbrushed in a modern Italian font. The unique design of the Griso means you see more of the seat than the tank, so it would have to be done perfectly. “As standard. the rear of it doesn’t follow the line of the tailpiece so that needed addressing. Another seat was sourced and reshaped to flow with the line of the tailpiece then expertly covered in black two-tone leather with a hexagon blue stitch pattern by our go-to upholsterer Glenn Moger. He also added 20mm extra foam to give a bit more comfort and legroom,” Pete tells us.
One of the big changes to the bike is around the cockpit and here Pete cleaned up the bike brilliantly. “A Highsider super slim LED headlamp with custom bottom mount was fitted and sits closer to the forks for a more aggressive look and a smaller Acewell multifunction gauge mounted in place of the original bulky unit.”
One issue test riders had with the bike were the bars and so black LSL tapered items and Rizoma risers were fitted. These wear Motone push button switches, Motogadget LED bar end indicators and then out the back, a pair of tiny LED M-blaze pin indicators get tucked in tight to the tail unit.
The whole lot is controlled by Motogadget’s brilliant m-unit blue, so any concerns about Italian wiring are long gone. To strip some weight from the bike a new carbon fibre front guard and CNC’d alloy heel guards join the party. And then it’s a little more carbon for that glorious V-Twin engine in the form of a Termignoni muffler that sits at the end of black cerakoted headers. The engine and transmission were in great condition, so a service and spray job for the inlet and rocker covers finish out a quality build.
The final product shows that Side Rock was spot on with their minimalist approach and this glorious Guzzi looks just as good standing still as it does carving up the side roads.
[ Side Rock Cycles ]