Lancia Laverda connection

[RobD]

Having just got back from a road trip to Italy I thought I'd share an interesting snippet which might not be common knowledge in the Fulvisti community. I dropped in to see Piero Laverda during the trip to pick up some bits and pieces for one of my bikes and we started talking about Lancias in general and Fulvias in particular. I knew Piero had owned a Sport and a 1.3s back in the day but I was very surprised when he came out with the following revelation, " You know Bob, I am very familiar with the Lancia V4 engine, we [Moto Laverda] produced a lot of engine castings for Lancia in our foundry"

I was aware Moto Laverda acquired the Flamm foundry in the early but had no idea they did sub-contract work for Lancia .

On the way back from Italy I called in at the Laverda museum in Lisse, near Rotterdam and this gave me the opportunity to include a gratuitous bike picture. The museum owner Cor Dees, has painstakingly assembled a working Laverda V6 after acquiring an incomplete  example . There are only two complete V6s in existence and the detective work, not to mention the engineering skill required to bring the second bike to fruition is an incredible achievement.

[stanley sweet]

Sounds like a great trip. That bike is stunning. Does he dare to run it now or purely for exhibiting?

[RobD]

Hi Stanley,
The bike is a runner [Cor fired it up for me when I was there] and it will be used for parades and such like. It's now too valuable to race but knowing Cor he will make sure it gets regular airings. He acquired all the drawings and parts for the V6 when the factory closed down and will soon start work on completing work on a third V6. The factory only made two V6s and Cor has worked tremendously hard to bring the  remaining bike back to life. He has acquired and produced enough parts to complete a third bike.
The full story is here; http://www.laverdamuseum.nl/v6/v6_uk.html

[DavidLaver]

I don't think you need any excuse for a photo like that...

Aside from the engine that trailing arm is a work of art on its own.  I like the sight gauge on the oil tank.  Saddle seems weirdly deep and narrow.

That huge tank is mostly hollow:

http://www.laverdamuseum.nl/v6/v6_uk_5.html

[RobD]

Having ridden the original works racer, which I think I mentioned in a thread some months ago, I can confirm that whilst the saddle is very comfy, the riding position is very peculiar, in particular the footrests . You can see the Honda 50 style rocker style gear lever, a common feature on Laverda endurance racers. On the V6 this is a must because it's very difficult to get a toe under the gear lever. Once under way the compromised ergonomics soon get forgotten and the engine tends to dominate the proceedings. It's an extraordinary device with prodigious torque and massive top end power. It's impressive today, imagine what it would have been like in the 70s...