Hi Adam, Sorry to hear you had problems, did it fail after the recall ? Which dealer did the work ?
[QUOTE=TonyG]
Hi Adam, Sorry to hear you had problems, did it fail after the recall ? Which dealer did the work ?  [/QUOTE]
Hi,
It did, sad to say - but then the final fix seems to have done it. Fingers crossed anyway 
The followers changed from recall to my final fix, they went from cast to machined (both with DLC) IIRC
I did it myself, I was working for Piaggio/Guzzi then so was best placed to deal with it myself (and feed back info directly to Italy).
But it’s a rarity, I was very unlucky. But I still love her (in fact, maybe I love her more, being so intimately acquainted )
What’s the story on later bikes then? Does it still occur at all? Or is it all pre-'10 models?
Adam, at what mileages did the failures occur? What oil was being used? How many miles have you covered since the last fix?As far as I knew all pre '10 wern’t affected but I believe the recall covered all 8v '08 and '09 models to the best of my knowledge.
Well, I’m having a bit of a guess here at mileages, around 3k first, recall at around 5k and then second failure at around 12 I think (my memory is shocking, I keep meaning to dig out all the records and jot it down).
I used Motrax 10/60, but since last time shifted to Mobil. And I try and make the changes more frequent.
The last failure was caught before it really let go, the coating was just beginning to show striations as the material underneath was deforming (that’s certainly how it looked anyway).
Mine’s an early one without the cam backlash shims, this may well be another factor - there seem to be a number of variables, which lead to the “may fail, probably won’t” nature of it all.
I was intimately aware of the goings on from dec '09 back (when I left) but unsure after, glad it seems to be a past issue. Should be getting rarer and rarer then. I have now done another 6k (which is very depressing, I had hoped to do a lot more riding last year and never got the chance!) since the last change if my recollections are right. I’ll be having a close look at next service (I’ll do that in the next month or so, prior to a jaunt or two planned for early summer), I may well pop the cam supports off and peer at the followers, see how they are doing. I expect to see very healthy ones.
Thanks for your reply. This cam issue is a bit bizarre. We do seem to hear far less of it now, I wonder how sales were hit by it?
Because we are hearing less of it It looks like moto guzzi have sorted the problem. I think the 8 valves have and are still selling steadly but I dont have any figures to back this up
8 Valve Eagle2013-02-19 22:14:48
I also don’t think the problem was as widespread as it may have sometimes seemed. I don’t recall seeing much hoo-har in the press (mind you, I tend not to read it), but I have a feeling the buying public new to Guzzi weren’t too affected. Which is good, don’t want newer people put off by something which is (when you aren’t stood at the roadside or staring at a handfull of shrapnel) a fairly minor glitch in the Guzzi story.
All the large Guzzis are now 8 valve, and sales continue, though the V7 range seems to be outselling the larger models. No the problem was not so widespread, specialist forums tend to only get posts about the problems, so the issue always looks worse than it is.
Brian UK2013-02-20 12:15:46
Yep - problems generate a lot more noise than smooth running bikes, mechanically and on the internet! 
Hello all. My first post. I joined the club early Feb, and incredibly within a week of doing so my bike had suffered cam/tappet failure. Its a 2009 1200 Sport, with 13,000 miles, owned from new. Original cam and tappet recall was done (preventative) at just 200 miles. Bike has full service history and as a result, Moto Guzzi have honoured the repair even though the bike is now well out of warranty, probably due in no small part to the efforts that have clearly happened here in the club. So for that I thank you all. Pleased to report that she is running sweetly again. Following some research on my part I am able to advise that a Mk3 tappet has been produced and it is these that have been installed. On inspection they clearly look of improved quality showing obvious signs of improved and deeper hardening due to the tell tale heat markings extending much deeper along their length. So fingers crossed this has sorted it for good because as a first time Guzzi owner I really like the bike, so much so I had seen it as a ‘keeper’.
Gasser2013-03-10 21:48:46
Reading other forums too, it does seem that they have now solved the problem. Newer bikes have roller followers, so won’t have the problem anyway.
I am also paranoid. I got rid of my Stelvio BEFORE the cams failed. I should have done more research before I bought it.
And they may well not have failed ever. Countless of these bikes have never had a problem.
Well I got the club survey today and it makes grim reading, but at least Piaggio seem to be doing the right thing. However, if you don’t do many miles a year I wonder how long they will honour it ? What’s this about a mark 3 tappet, presume a 2011 bike would already have them ? I also would like to keep this bike for a long time. Was out on it today and if it stays running like this it is a keeper.
My 15000 mile Stelvio has just been diagnosed with this problem. The dealers has said that MG may pay for this as a good will gesture. I hope so! They did not mention any recall. I have only had the bike since November.
I also asked about a side stand recall. As someone told me that there was one. The dealers said there was a centre stand recall and this had been done.
I am booked to go to Holland next week. I don’t feel much like taking the bike now.Horton9162013-06-20 07:50:06
The Mk 3 cam followers which will now be fitted have not given any problems as far as I am aware, looking on other forums.Guzzi will honour the warranty on this according to the letter printed in that issue of Gambalunga.
I know it will not help if you have one of these bikes BUT folks I know have succesfully had the bikes fixed and have had NO subsequent problems.
Just about every vehicle manufacturer out there has issues, some get sorted others don’t.
To get rid of an almost new bike because it MAY have a problem just does not seem right, to me.
It would be like me telling every one the rear bearing carrier failed on the V1000 after ONLY 38 yrs and 250+,ooo miles use, so hey anyone with a V1000 should sell it NOW, at a cut down price due to THIS issue. Oh yeah and the clutch is likely to fail after between 50,000-120,000 miles also an issue.
By the way …did I mention the tyres and wheel bearings, in fact they are awful and SO bad you should GIVE me your old 76 bikes as they are a total worry… NO! oh well can’t blame a guy for trying.
Horton916, how old is your bike? Have you had it from new? How often was the oil changed and what oil was used? Has it often been used for short journies?I’m curious about this failure issue, as are a few others. I’m wondering if there’s any pattern to it. It seems failure is more common on the european bikes than elsewhere.
I bought the bike secondhand so dont know how it was used. However, It had covered 13,500 miles when I bought it and had a full service history at a Moto Guzzi Dealer (Motostrada) so 2009 to 2012 it had averaged 4,500 miles per year which is fairly respectable. I have covered 2000 miles since November and generally use the bike for weekend runs and an occasional ride to work.
I think Motostrada use Motul oils of the reccomended viscosity.Horton9162013-06-21 15:25:10
There is a theory, mainly held by an ex pat Australian rubber chicken lover, that these failures are caused by not allowing the engine to warm up properly, thus getting condensation in the oil. Ie. short journeys and cold weather.However, Guzzi have not come up with any cause, apart from improving the case hardening on the product. The first version was shown to be too soft.I gather there has not been a single incidence of this problem in Australia, in spite of much higher mileages.And as I said earlier, Guzzi will fix it, and the latest version cam followers will be fitted, and to date none of these have failed, so why worry.