Moto Guzzi Stornello: History and the Sport and Regolarità Versions

The Stornello was Moto Guzzi's answer to the motorcycle market crisis of the late 1950s, when the spread of small cars put the whole sector in difficulty. Conceived as an economical, reliable bike accessible even to sixteen-year-old novices, it became over the years one of the best-loved Italian small-capacity motorcycles, able to stand out in competition too.

Designed by engineer Giulio Cesare Carcano, previously head of Guzzi's racing department, the Stornello was presented at the Milan Fair in December 1959 and went on sale in 1960, at a time when the only segments of the Italian motorcycle market still alive were mopeds and 125 cc machines. The choice of capacity was no accident: it allowed use by sixteen-year-olds, considerably widening the pool of potential buyers at a moment of great uncertainty for the entire sector.

From 1961 the base version was joined by the Sport, with a hemispherical combustion chamber head and inclined valves. In 1962 the off-road Regolarità (regularity trial) variant debuted, also used by the official racing department, while a road version of the Regolarità with lighting was sold in Europe and, as the Scrambler America, in the United States. At the end of 1967 the Stornello 160 arrived, with larger displacement. The deepest renewal came in 1969, with a second series with boxy styling and a new 5-speed gearbox, also built in a military version for the Italian Army. Production ended in 1974.

In 1963 the official Guzzi team, made up of ten bikes between Stornello 125 and Lodola 175/235 in Regolarità trim, won the International Silver Vase and second place in the International Trophy at the International Six Days Trial, before the factory's last year of direct support for competition; the Regolarità versions nevertheless remained protagonists among private riders throughout the following decade.

The Stornello remains today one of the most appreciated small Guzzis among enthusiasts, thanks to a purchase and restoration cost that is generally more affordable than the marque's big twins. The Sport and Regolarità versions, for their sporting history and relative rarity, are the most sought-after and valued on the collector market.