Review by Olaf Wolff
[This Givi T450 Trolley Motorcycle Bag Review was originally published in the January 2008 issue of Rider magazine]
I’m OK that my perception of things continually changes as I get older. I prefer it that way, in fact. Once I viewed motorcycles with top boxes as bikes with big butts. Now when my Givi Monokey box is off my bike, it looks incomplete, and only reminds me I don’t have a place for my stuff. Givi’s nifty, highly functional box designs helped me with that development. It must be contagious, too, because I’m seeing more bikes with top boxes these days.
It appears to me that Givi has come up with another winner and a logical link in our commuting evolution. The T450 Trolley motorcycle Bag is ingenious in its simplistic, straight-forward approach to purpose, and for filling a niche we formerly didn’t realize even existed.
The T450 is a stylishly designed trolley-type travel bag, equipped with wheels and an ergonomic telescopic handle for convenient walkabout use when off the bike. This new soft bag is made of a tough Cordura textile and features three separate storage compartments–a medium-sized outer one, a padded sleeve to fit a 15-inch laptop and a main storage section that’s expandable enough to hold a couple of helmets. It also has a side-mounted water bottle compartment (bottle not included) that’s a lot more useful than it appears on paper. The top of the bag is trimmed with silver reflective piping, and the supplied rain cover slips over the entire bag in a few simple seconds.
What really works for me with the T450, though, is how easily it clicks directly onto a Givi Monolock or Monokey mounting bracket. There’s a small plate located on the bottom of the bag secured by two Phillips-head screws–loosen them and slide the plate up for Monolock, down for Monokey and you’re good to go–with one key and the push of a button. Mounting brackets are sold separately if you don’t already have one.
I don’t see the T450 Trolley Bag so much as a replacement or alternative for hard-shell top boxes, but more as a brilliant addition and complement to a box. Although the T450 locks securely to the mounting bracket, everything inside is vulnerable as only zippers protect my stuff from the rest of the world. Point is I might feel the need to take the bag along with me when off the bike.
But, when it comes to acting as a briefcase, a weekender bag or a piece of airport carry-on luggage, the $259.99 T450 is pretty darn close to motorcycle-commuting perfect. And I’m pretty sure there will be times when I’ll use the bag for journeys that don’t involve my motorcycle at all.
For more information contact Givi USA, 9309 Forsyth Park Drive, Charlotte, North Carolina 28273; (877) 679-4484; www.giviusa.com
