• Highly desirable 'Telaio Rosso' model
• The 137th of only 150 built
• Delivered new in Italy
• Partial, conservative restoration in 2022

Moto Guzzi's venerable 90-degree v-twin engine first appeared in a motorcycle in December 1965 when the 703cc V7 was displayed at the International Milan Show. The work of Ing. Giulio Carcano, the man who had masterminded Guzzi's spectacular V8-engined Grand Prix racer, it was the biggest and fastest roadster ever to come out of the Mandello del Lario factory. The Guzzi v-twin would undergo a seemingly never-ending series of enlargements, the first of which, to 757cc, occurred in 1969 on the Ambassador/Special. By this time Carcano had retired, leaving his successor, Lino Tonti, to create the first true sports version - the V7S (Sport) - in 1971. In creating the V7 Sport Tonti did away with the electrical generator mounted atop the crankcase, opting instead for an alternator carried on the crankshaft nose, thus enabling a much lower frame to be used. In marque expert Mick Walker's words, the result was 'an amazing transformation of a formerly staid, overweight package.' Together with its new 'Telaio Rosso' (red frame), the V7S featured a 749cc engine to qualify for 750cc-class racing, a five-speed gearbox and large-diameter drum brakes, the front a double-sided, twin-leading-shoe unit. With 52bhp available at the rear wheel, the magnificent V7 Sport was good for 120mph. Today these Telaio Rosso V7 Sports are among the most collectible of post-war Moto Guzzis.

One of only 150 Telaio Rosso models built, the V7 Sport offered here comes with its Certificato di Origine from Moto Guzzi confirming that it was produced in 1971 and delivered new by the Moto Guzzi dealership Albani in Monza, Italy on 29th October '71. The machine also comes with its owner's manual, original tool kit, and the Italian 'cronologico' listing its seven different owners. It is still on its original Milan plate: 'MI501781'.

In 2022 the Guzzi underwent a partial, conservative restoration carried out by Maison Meccanica in Tuscany, whose proprietor is its owner. The mechanicals and bodywork have been completely overhauled while preserving total originality (see work-in-progress photographs on file); all the chrome plating is the original of the period, as is the saddle, rubber parts, electrical system, etc; all perfectly preserved, we are told.