Milan Motor Show

MILAN MOTOR SHOW

A Great, Teeming, Typically Italian Marathon, Marked by the Debut of the MV Agusta 750 Four...Maybe.

CARLO PERELLI

PREVIOUS motor shows in Italy were timid enterprises compared to the 1969 pageant at Milan. More than 200,000 visitors shuffled past exhibits from Austria, Germany, Great Britain, Portugal, Spain, France, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Holland and the United States. To view everything, you had to follow a 4.5-mile itinerary through the 35,000-sq. yd. fairground, a rather delightful pilgrimage for the dedicated enthusiast.

Because of licensing and registration practices here in Italy, the market for 50-cc machines is booming stronger than ever. Tiddler production for the first half of 1969 is up 17.5 percent while exports have gained 70 percent! So show spectators were treated to a truly grand display of 50s: minis, racers, utilitarian machines and scramblers. Most of the utilitarian bikes featured automatic clutches and shifting mechanisms, while the majority of minis were of the folding variety. The racing, sport and scrambling models have been given extra zest with the addition of fiveand six-speed gearboxes rather than the more common four-speed units. Water cooling has also come into vogue following the racing successes of the watercooled GP machines. Not only has this system appeared on the more spirited street and racing bikes but on lightweight motocrossers also. There was, however, one little screamer that attracted most of the attention in the 50 department: the Moto Guzzi “Ghez.” Conceived especially for foreign markets, the Ghez features a twin-cylinder engine and a five-speed transmission, it has already been tested in prototype form early this year by visiting American Moto Guzzi dealers. Such a powerplant obviously has great potential in modified form; wait and see.

In the 51-125-cc class the Italian industry for the most part has remained faithful to the four-stroke configuration, although many models have been updated with five-speed gearboxes. But as time goes on, the two-stroke’s simplicity is more and more alluring. Gilera, for example, has finally launched its rotary valve scrambler, the first twostroke built by the Arcore factory in 60 years.

This wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment move, however. It is a direct result of Gilera’s takeover by Piaggio, manufacturer of Vespa motorscooters. Piaggio had long desired to enter the motorcycle field and apparently seized the opportunity when Gilera was foundering in financial difficulties.

Now, Innocenti, maker of the ubiquitous Lambretta, has voiced similar feelings. They want a piece of the motorcycling action, too. No bikes were featured in the Innocenti display but don’t assume that they were making idle talk. Just give them time. The only other Lambretta highlight was one of their 200-cc scooters fitted with a new electronic ignition.

The heavyweight machines were there in full force, represented by the Benelli 6 5 0, the Ital-Jet/Triumph 650, the Gilera 500, the Moto Guzzi 700 and 750, the MV 600 Four and the Laverda 750 Three. But none of these attracted spectators as did the new MV 750 Four. It sports none of that chunkily bulbous styling of its predecessor, the 600 roadster; not by a long shot. The new MV Sport 750, as it is called, boasts rather racy styling throughout. Four leading shoe iront brake, megaphone exhausts, four 24-mm Dellorto carburetors and clip-on handlebars all contribute to what might be the ultimate cafe racer. It isn’t known if this exquisite beast will ever see regular production-maybe Count Agusta is fiendishly teasing us.

The Laverda 1000-cc Three (described elsewhere in this issue) was always surrounded by admirers, but then, this is no teaser although it will be a while before dealers get them.

Taken in perspective, the Milan show demonstrates a rather interesting point. Until recently, no one ever suspected the Italian motorcycling public to be capable of supporting as many big bikes as there are now on the market. The Italian scene is by nature utilitarian rather than sporting, inclined more to scooters and economical lightweights rather than big bore fire breathers. But now a fine array of high powered, large displacement machines is available from Italian factories. Just a few years ago, who could’ve predicted this rapid rise?