Laverda 250 Chott
With Phil Aynsley
While Laverda did produce a number of ‘off-road’ models in the ’50s, these were essentially 75 cc road bikes with minor modifications. The mid-60s saw the 125 cc Regolarita – a four-stroke with a bit of off-road credit.
The company decided to get a lot more serious in the ’70s when they showed off a 250 cc Chott (named after an area in northern Africa where the bike was tested), at the 1973 Milan Show. The bike went into production the following year.
Chott is powered by an all-new 246 cc two-stroke engine, designed in-house. Dual ignition with twin spark plugs installed. Very evident is the use of magnesium alloy for the engine housing, brake hub and chain cover.
The steering head angle can be adjusted to three angles – 25, 27.5 and 30 degrees. The Chott has a power output of 26 hp at 7600 rpm and has a dry weight of 108 kg. The bike seen here is in completely original condition.
Due to its sophistication and price, the Chott didn’t sell for much, so it was replaced by the more basic 250 TR2 in 1976. It was similar to the Chott but without the magnesium parts; There is no speedo and the body is used plastic instead of metal, resulting in lighter weight. It was discontinued the following year with less than 5000 models produced.
Instead of giving up on dirt bikes and focusing on their 1000 cc, the company decided to double down on their next model – but I’ll dive into that in the next column.
Laverda-PA-Laverda250TR-015
