A personal opinion – Owen Howells

As a long-term owner of BMW airheads, I’ve also always liked the Moto Guzzi. They seem to retain the solid, simple and purposeful feel of a BMW without the po-faced seriousness that characterises some of the Bavarian machines. For me the V50 achieves the difficult feat of scaling down the iconic big-block V-twin while maintaining visceral Moto Guzzi experience, albeit in smaller, slightly less dramatic form. Only yesterday I hopped off an 850 Le Mans straight on to a V50 and didn’t lose any of my grin. Was the Le Mans better? Of course! But the entertainment value was nearly all there, and that’s comparing it with one of the pinnacles of late 70s sports bikes.