Italian Alternative: 1980 Moto Morini 500 Sport
No, the average guy looking for a Ducati 1098 is not going to also consider a 31 year old Moto Morini. A connoisseur of Italian motorcycles might take more than a casual glance. I must be getting old because it used a take a full fairing and the latest and greatest to get my attention. Now, the more unique the better.
I honestly can’t put my finger on what I like about this bike. Maybe it is just its’ simplicity and maybe that is what Moto Morini was after. After doing some reading about Moto Morini the word “simplicity” came up a lot. Features include a 72 degree tandem V twin, electric and kick starting, alloy wheels and discs all around.
Who the hell put that cheesy sticker on the bike? Turns out it is a pretty cool sticker.
From the seller:
Very rare decal of a Witch on rear cowl. The story is it’s the blond-haired daughter of the company’s original owner. I’m telling you this because I almost took it off, thinking at first that the bike’s first owner had put it on there.
The “Sport” badge is another indicator that this is the real deal and not a modified 500. Makes sense to me. In her 31 years she has only covered 13,200 miles.
The rest of the details:
1980 Moto Morini 500 Sport, as seen in Cycle World two years ago. (I don’t mean generally seen in CW, I mean this actual bike.) I love this bike, but I need some eggs. All original, 13k+ miles, three owners, maybe four, but me since 1989 with an interruption for a few years. (Sold it, bought it back.) Unrestored. Normal wear and some paint chips on frame, battery acid stains on frame under battery, exhaust canister on right side is a little flattened and scraped near the end by the original owner. He’s okay. Somewhat uneven pin-striping from the factory, giving it that special 1980s Italian flavor. Herm Baver (sp) actually saw this bike with me on it. For those who don’t know, he was the MM importer located in the hills of Central Southern PA (Port Clinton. I think Hermy’s (Herdan Motors) shop is still there, don’t know if Herm is. They still have parts, as does some guy in Canada whose name fails me right now.) So Herm imported this bike too. You can tell this is an authentic Sport, not converted 500, from Witch decal on rear and plaque on triple clamp. So clip-ons are factory. I bought it from a guy in Ithaca, New York.
New battery as of this week. New tires with six miles on them. Last registered in 2008. It runs. It has an electric and kick start. But it’s also 31-years old, so don’t make this your only bike and sole transportation to work. I haven’t ridden it for two years so it could use general oiling and prep, and brake fluid change if I don’t get to it. I think I have an extra oil filter or two. No promises. It’s surprisingly light steering for having heavy wheels. The bike is very rare, but nobody seems to care. You gotta be a Moto Morini lover to want this bike. I am and I hate that I’m selling it. I’ll probably buy it back in a few years. All stock, all there, nothing missing. And pretty damn clean. The bike has always been stored in doors, which is pretty cool for a bike this age to be so well taken care of its entire life
The red frame makes the bike. Without the red frame, some of the bikes I saw looked kind of dumpy. I caught this one late so if you are interested you better figure out your bid strategy. The seller has a BIN price of $6,200. I imagine that is quite optimistic unless he finds that one Moto Morini enthusiast that just has to have it at any cost. Lets hope the reserve isn’t set too high and someone can give it a little TLC and get it back out on the road. Here she is.
It is obviously not a 500 Sport but it sounded too good not to post.
Ian
