1981 Laverda Jota “Cico”

The old saying "racing improves the breed" holds for this small Breganze motorcycle manufacturer

By Robert Smith
Updated on June 8, 2022
article image
by Christian Smith

Racing improves the breed, goes the old saying. And though well overused, it certainly applied to a small motorcycle manufacturer from Breganze in the foothills of the Italian alps.

It was Massimo Laverda’s visit to the U.S. in 1964 that determined a change of direction for the eponymous company. Until then, Laverda had produced mostly commuter bikes of 100cc or less. Massimo’s father, Francesco, started offering motorcycles alongside the company’s line of agricultural machinery in 1949. But the arrival of the Fiat 500 in 1957 provided a cheap four-wheeled alternative. Commuter motorcycle sales tanked.

Massimo understood that, to survive, Laverda needed to embrace the U.S. market. And that meant bigger-engine bikes to meet those customers’ demands. Laverda’s first U.S. offering was a 650 SOHC twin, the engine of which borrowed its general layout and appearance from the contemporary 305 Superhawk. It’s said that Massimo did this deliberately to imbue the new twin with a perception of Honda quality.

Underneath, though, the powertrain — and indeed the whole motorcycle — was designed and constructed for strength and durability. In 1968 the 650 was introduced into the U.S. by Jack McCormack under the American Eagle brand. A 750cc version quickly replaced it.

closeup image of the Cico Jota's Marzocchi shocksMeanwhile, Massimo and designer Luciano Zen had produced a prototype 1000cc SOHC triple, which created much excitement at the 1969 Geneva and Milan shows. But the arrival of the Honda 750 in 1969 spurred the factory to leapfrog the 4-cylinder SOHC bike with a double-overhead cam layout. Massimo’s goal for the new machine was that it be both lighter and with a narrower engine than the new Honda 750’s 471 pounds and 22 inches. These were ambitious targets, which the 1000cc triple eventually achieved — at the expense of extra development time. It was not until the 1971 Milan show that the finished triple was revealed. It was the first big street bike to feature dual overhead camshafts.

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