Moto Guzzi Daytona
With Ian Falloon
In the mid-1980s, Moto Guzzi had no official factory racing program, but in the United States, former dentist Dr John Wittner competed in a modified Le Mans race in endurance races with success. amazing work. In 1984 and 1985 Dr. John’s Moto Guzzi Team won the AMA/CCS US Endurance Road Race Series championship, proving survival in the venerable Moto Guzzi V-twin.
Wittner had plans for a new frame and approached Moto Guzzi North America with a proposal to build a sprinter for the Battle of the Twins series. In December 1986, Guzzi’s boss, Alejandro De Tomaso, flew Wittner to Italy.
De Tomaso was interested in a new chassis for the Moto Guzzi twin and was impressed with Wittner’s chassis concept. Wittner then returned to America with enough money to allow him to build a new frame and swingarm with a floating final drive.
The new frame is heavily influenced by Tony Foale’s design for Dick Wood of Motomecca, itself inspired by the later Aermacchi Ala d’Oro. Instead of Foale’s rounded spine, Dr. John used a strong rectangular spine that runs between the “V”s of the cylinders. Rigidity is ensured by connecting the drive shaft perpendicular to the backbone.
The backbone, which is also part of the engine’s breathing system, connects the steering head to a circular steel tube mounted horizontally on the swingarm shaft. This tube is bolted to 13mm panels cut from aluminum sheet on each side, where the swingarm and gearbox are also located.
The swingarm uses a cantilever rear suspension with a Koni F1 single shock absorber. Torque backlash is virtually eliminated with a floating final drive unit rotating on the shaft. As a result, the drive shaft is no longer incorporated in the swingarm and has an additional, exposed U-joint.
To transmit the torque jet from the floating final transmission to a fixed part of the frame is an arm that runs parallel to the swingarm. This system of parallel arms operating during compression is no different from the versions of Arturo Magni and Fritz Egli.
The two-valve motor acts as a load-bearing unit and is bolted in front by two triangular steel tube structures which are then bolted to the backbone. These triangular structures use an upper engine rack on the timing box, the bottom crankcase being connected by a pair of aluminum plates.
For the 1987 line-up, a modified two-valve Le Mans engine was fitted to the new chassis and Doug Brauneck won the 1987 Pro-Twins Championship. Dr. John’s Guzzi is now a racing Moto Guzzi most successful since the 1950s. In early 1988, Wittner brought the 1987 bike to Italy, where it was analyzed by factory mechanics for the possibility of fitting a four-valve engine into a new chassis.
The four-valve engine is the brainchild of Umberto Todero. Todero, joined the company in 1939, a loyal student of Carcano and the final link to the great racing era of the 1950s. In 1986, 63-year-old Todero designed a shaft motor. dual cam four-valve overhead, but this engine was considered too tall by de Tomaso.
Next was the four-valve engine with the camshaft at the top, but not over the valve, and by 1987 this engine was being tested on the bench. Further development of the Dr.John racer continued in 1988 and 1989 but as race success proved Wittner retired to move to work full time in Italy in the Daytona manufacture.
Daytona production was finally shown at the 1989 Milan Show but it was not until 1992 that regular production began. It was an unfortunate delay. By the time Daytona was widely available, it was already outmatched by the competition. By 1992, most potential buyers were tired of waiting. As a result, the Daytona never received the accolades it deserved, and remains one of Moto Guzzi’s most underrated models.
The four-valve engine is similar to Todero’s 1986 design with dimensions of 90 x 78 mm and a compression ratio of 10:1. When it was first shown, the company intended to produce the Daytona in two versions, the carburetor. air and fuel injectors, but the prototype had two Dell’Orto PHM 40 carburetors. The carburetor version produced 91 hp at 7,800 rpm, with the Weber Marelli fuel injected version (with butterfly body). throttle 50 mm) delivers 94 hp.
The chassis follows the racer’s contours. The backbone and swingarm are identical but the aluminum engine mounting plates are now molded with fabric inside. The front suspension was Marzocchi M1R, and later White Power, with Koni rear shock absorbers.
The wheels measure 3.5 x 17 inches at the front and 4.5 x 18 inches at the rear. Braking is a pair of 300 mm discs up front with four-piston Brembo brake calipers and a 260 mm disc at the rear. Painted red and white to mimic Dr. John’s bike, the first Daytona weighed 205 kg.
In the style of Modena, it has a racing shop, handcrafted, looks. When it comes to performance and handling, the Daytona sets brand new standards for Moto Guzzi. The final drive-positioning parallel arm has been particularly successful in reducing the four-valve and shaft drive response, while making only 93hp at 8,000rpm, producing comparable performance. 851 by Ducati.
However, despite the excellent performance, the Daytona somehow failed to win the acceptance of Moto Guzzi enthusiasts. Undoubtedly, the introduction of the cheaper and simpler 1100 Sport took a toll on the Daytona, and production numbers were only around 1,000 units between 1992 and 1995.
