Readers’ Letters

CZ ownership memories

I’ve enjoyed Roy Poynting’s recent articles about Jawa/CZ motorcycles, so I thought I’d share my memories of CZ ownership.

I paid £273 for a new CZ Model 477 (the 175cc roadster) in 1976. I passed my test on it, used it for a daily round trip commute of 20 miles, and made several long journeys to the north of England and Scotland. In the year I owned it, I clocked up 10,000 mostly reliable miles, and it revealed the pleasures and possibilities of motorcycling to me.

I first saw it in the showroom of Perce Small motorcycles in Southampton; just down the road (and even further downmarket…) from Alec Bennett’s emporium. Sadly, both businesses are long gone.

CZ was a popular brand in the 1970s; their endorsement by motocross legend Dave Bickers meant that your cheap CZ roadster had something of the glamour of international sporting success about it. And they were a common sight.

CZ had updated their range in the early 1970s. Gone was the slab-sided styling, replaced by teardrop tanks, with art-deco-esq coach lining, two-tone colour schemes and stripped down suspension, although they wisely kept the full chain enclosure.

The 172cc engine