Is this the bike Laverda should have built instead of the Zane 650/668/750?

Andy J

Andy J

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Isle of Man
As a bit of a birthday treat I took Paul Dedman's RS660 demo bike for a blast around the island today. Light, comfortable seat for a sports bike, easy operation clutch - although apparently you don't need to use it for gear changes at all except from start - doh! - carries much faster speed into corners than you think you're going, sounds pretty good when wound up etc etc.
The only downsides - the colour, but fortunately other options are available, and it's a bit flighty - so it would definitely benefit from a steering damper. Clearly it doesn't have the outright stomp of it's bigger 1000 V twin brothers or the Benelli Tre but it's probably still more than quick enough for most people. Hmm, I wonder if the engine will fit in one of my spare rolling chassis. :unsure:
 

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More to the point. Neither Laverda nor Zane built Aprilias.

Sorry Andy. Perhaps I'm missing your point (not unusual for me). But I can't see the point of the question. It's a bit like asking whether Kawasaki should have built Hondas. Or should Leonardo da Vinci have scrapped his stupid wing designs and gone straight to building a working aircraft.
 
Perhaps his point is that if Zane had built this 650cc twin they would still be in business today? Always assuming decent build quality…..
 
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I'm also struggling a bit with the title of your post.
At the time that bikes were built in Zane under the Laverda brand, of course nobody was able to build something with the attributes of the 660.
In my opinion, the Zane Laverdas, especially the Formulas, were a kind of bike that the Aprilia with the 660 is now taking up again. Unfortunately, the Zanes were pushed onto the market too immature - with all the resulting problems which have been sufficiently discussed here.

Paul Dedman helped me btw in 2014 when my RSV had an issue with the (hydraulic) clutch operation.
 
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We are 20 plus years down the road - quality has improved no end with modern manufacturing processes - the team at Zane inherited I guess some old machine tools and an engine design that really was at its best earlier in its lifecycle - sadly the weakest part of the Zane is the engine unit but as a package the RS660 mimics it’s original quest to be a lightweight fine handling bike

Many of the same products are made in different factories worldwide - take combine harvesters - the latest from Breganze could be built in The US and Brasil with the same quality standards
 
Leaving aside some of the electronics on the 660 the point is to entice some discussion, albeit hypothetical, on if a bike like the 660, if it had been built in the factory in Zane, do we believe Laverda (even in name only) would still be in business today. In fact Aprilia could even badge engineer a version now as a Laverda if they want, and it could perhaps even be considered as an evolution of the 650/668/750, although accepting the purists would still not accept it was a 'real' Laverda. By all accounts it does have some Zane Laverda traits as a crank went on one of the race bikes....
 
Just read the Motorcycle news review. Looks like a decent bike. Seat height especially relevent for a shortarse like me, plenty of ponies and 60kg lighter than either the Laverda or the Sprint. Could be a fun bike to ride.

Mind you the Triumph Street Triple RS is a couple of grand cheaper on the road in Oz, is 15kg lighter and has 20+ more horses. Just no fairing.
 
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The various KTM 890 Dukes are all cheaper in Oz. As with the Street Triple they are unfaired. I can vouch for the 790 being a hoot.

cheers,

bazzee
 
The 765 triple, or even the older 675 Daytona, are a clearly options if you are looking for a middleweights sports bike (I was seriously considering the limited edition Moto2 bike) but it’s not really what this discussion is about. The Zane Laverda concern built a flawed twin cylinder bike, albeit throw some money at it and you can probably build yourself a bike That competes with the 660 even though it’s 20 odd years old. Aprilia has built a modern version of the 668 which some of us wish Laverda had been in a position to build and which may have kept the brand alive.
I’m just disappointed Aprilia didn’t brand the bike as a Laverda.
 
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