• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Bike India

Best Bikes in India | No.1 Two Wheeler Magazine

Pulsar NS400Z – CHALA APNI

  • Home
  • News
    • Upcoming Launches
    • Latest News
    • New Bike Launches
  • Reviews
    • First Ride
    • Road Test
    • Comparison
  • Features
  • Our Bikes
  • Videos
  • Subscribe
  • NG Auto
    • AUTO COMPONENTS INDIA
    • CAR INDIA
    • COMMERCIAL VEHICLE
  • Brands
  • AUTHORS

Classically Dynamic: Moto Guzzi 1200 Sport First Ride Review

April 3, 2015 by Aninda Sardar Leave a Comment

Moto Guzzi 1200 Sport (8)

Going over the few potholes on the road to Nandi Hills near Bengaluru, you can’t help noticing that the suspension set-up is on the softer side of life. Push it hard and the softer set-up becomes even more apparent in the way the front dives when you brake hard. While on a day out on the track you might find it bothersome, on our less than ideally surfaced and even worse maintained Indian road network, it comes across as a boon. As a result the bike doesn’t bob around as you tackle that patchy bit of tarmac, but instead goes through it, absorbing all the irregularities. To be fair, though, the softness is only in comparison to other such global big-capacity motorcycles and if your rear end is used to Indian machines, then you will still feel some of the shocks being transferred through to you. Overall, however, the ride quality is well sorted and you won’ t find yourself complaining about an achy bottom even after a long day in the well-padded saddle of the 1200 Sport.

The handling of the 1200 Sport is a bit more complex, though. The aforementioned gyroscopic effect makes the bike want to lean to the left and do exactly the opposite in a right turn. Now, the effect is inversely proportional to speed and, therefore, the faster you go, the less of a problem it is. Unfortunately, on Indian roads one can only travel that fast. So you get this overwhelming feeling of the bike toppling on its own in slow left-handers while trying to run wide on a right-hander. The biggest issue here is getting your mind to accept this phenomenon and adjust to it. Once you’re past that bit, things become very enjoyable.

On the whole, the Moto Guzzi 1200 Sport’s appeal has to be understood as a niche product that will entice a select set of enthusiasts. This is not for the speed junkie or the lazy cruiser. Nor is this motorcycle meant for the naked street brawler fan. Instead this is a bike for those looking for some classic Italian motorcycling feel. And on that count, the 1200 Sport delivers by the bucket-load.

Moto Guzzi 1200 Sport (7)

Aninda Sardar – who has written 312 posts on Bike India.


Email • Twitter

Related posts:

KTM 390 Adventure X Review - X Marks The Spot

Suzuki e-Access Review – Promising Package

Ampere Magnus Neo Review - Definitive or Derivative?

Pages: Page 1 Page 2

Filed Under: First Ride, Review Tagged With: 1200, 1200cc, 8V, bike, bike india, classic, drive, First, guzzi, India, latest, launched, Moto, naked, review, Ride, Shaft, sport, V-Twin

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

AlphaOmega Captcha Classica  –  Enter Security Code
 ⟲    ➴
 


* Copy This Password *

* Type Or Paste Password Here *

Primary Sidebar

Follow Us

LATEST ISSUE

Pulsar NS400Z – CHALA APNI

19TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL

Bike India - India's no. 1 two-wheeler magazine

Triumph Street Triple 765 R and RS Review | The Best Street Triple Yet

Ducati Diavel V4 Review | Devil of the Mountain

Royal Enfield Hunter 350 first ride | Aspi Bhathena

SPECIAL Featured Story

Yamaha FZ-S Fi Hybrid

Yamaha FZ-S Fi Hybrid Launched

The Yamaha FZ-S Fi Hybrid has been launched at Rs 1.45 lakh (ex-showroom). Yamaha claim that this is India’s first sub-150-cc hybrid motorcycle. 

More about this.

Recent Posts

  • KTM 390 Adventure X Review – X Marks The Spot
  • 2025 Kawasaki Ninja 300 Launched at Rs 3.43 Lakh
  • Suzuki e-Access Review – Promising Package
  • Oben O100 Platform Coming Soon

Car India

Car India Magazine - Get your Digital Subscription

Footer

Latest News

2025 Kawasaki Ninja 300 Launched at Rs 3.43 Lakh

Oben O100 Platform Coming Soon

Ather Energy Partner With Infineon Technologies

Honda CB750 Hornet Launched in India

Pulsar NS400Z – CHALA APNI

Pulsar NS400Z – CHALA APNI

Bike India: India’s no. 1 two-wheeler magazine

BIKE India covers the two-wheeler industry in its entirety, both from the local and the international perspective. Also delivers the most definitive verdict on machinery and performance by explaining the hows, whys, and whats on every new bike in a lucid and user-friendly manner. BIKE India is the India’s most authoritative two-wheeler publication, a magazine for people with a passion for bikes and everything to do with their history and heritage.
SiteMap

Copyright © 2025 · BIKE INDIA INDIA’S NO. 1 TWO WHEELER MAGAZINE, BY FAR! ·