September

Year: 2003

Month: September

‘Stealth’ R1 exhaust gets your vote

23 September 2003

We showed you a sneak peek of the new aftermarket Yamaha R1 underseat exhaust system from Race Taylor-Made, and asked if you thought it was a winner. The answer was a resounding Yes. 93 per cent of...

British-based team return to Dakar

23 September 2003

Britsh-based BMW team riders Simon Pavey and Nick Plumb will compete in the Telefonica-Dakar rally for the second consecutive year. Plumb and Pavey are both instructors on BMW’S Off-Road Skills course...

English couple claim biking world record

23 September 2003

Kevin and Julia Sanders, have successfully claimed a new unofficial record for riding the Trans Americas, completing their journey in 35 days. The couple rode from Prudhoe Bay on the Northern tip of...

Indian motorcycles closes

23 September 2003

Indian motorcycles has closed after new investment fell through and creditors pulled the plug. The news came as a shock to those at the firm, including executive vice president Frank O’Hagan, who had...

Bikes reunited

23 September 2003

MCN reader Paul Hands is starting a search to find some of the bikes he’s owned over the years and you might be able to help. The bikes are: Honda CB750-F2, reg VPV550S, originally Honda maroon. Honda...

Speed cameras catch on-duty cops

23 September 2003

A scheme set up by North Wales police to help reduce the number of speeding motorists causing accidents has been so successful it’s even caught and prosecuted 12 police officers! The scheme was...

Safe haven for town centre bikes

23 September 2003

Bikers in Barnstaple in North Devon now have secure parking in the centre of town. North Devon District Council has added 18specific motorcycle spaces at its car parks near the centre of town. Each...

New GSX-Rs for 2004

16 September 2003

Suzuki has launched the latest version of its GSX-R600 at the Milan motorcycle show and surprised many by launching an all-new GSX-R750. The company is now the only Japanese manufacturer to continue...

Win a Triumph Bonneville

16 September 2003

Win a brand new Triumph Bonneville with the Discovery Home & Leisure channel. Just watch the channel’s Turbo Tuesday theme night every Tuesday in September or go to www.homeandleisure.co.uk/mechanics/...

KTM unveils Duke 990

16 September 2003

KTM has unveiled the finished pre-production version of its all-new V-twin powered Duke 990. The bike has been seen before in a prototype form but the version unveiled at the International Motorcycle...

Firms reveal new ranges in Milan

16 September 2003

The international motorcycle show in Milan kicked off on Tuesday with almost every motorcycle manufacturer turning up to show their latest bikes. Ducati turned out with a multitude of new and special...

Biking beats space travel

16 September 2003

More people dream of riding a motorcycle than going in to space according to a recent survey conducted for the BBC. The pole asked 20,000 people the one thing they most wanted to do before they died...

See Honda’s electronic steering damper in action

16 September 2003

Honda’s new 2004 Fireblade is awash with the latest technology from the GP circuit but the most unexpected development is the inclusion of an electronic rotary steering damper. And we can show you how...

Triumph unveils new café racer

16 September 2003

Triumph has officially unveiled the new Triumph Thruxton 900 café racer at the Milan motorcycle show. The bike was first seen in MCN’s spy shots (see link on the right), but now the details have been...

Fire destroys National Motorcycle Museum

16 September 2003

A fire ripped through the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham on Tuesday night, gutting most of the building and destroying hundreds of irreplaceable bikes. The blaze was reported to the West...

Pro-hunting bikers rally

16 September 2003

The Countryside Alliance is appealing for support for its ‘Bikers for Hunting’ rally to protest against the Government’s ban on hunting. The protest will take place on Sunday September 28 in...

Journalist Norrie Whyte dies

16 September 2003

The legendary racing journalist who snubbed The Beatles and pinched Joey Dunlop’s pints has died. Norrie Whyte – former MCN GP editor passed away in Scarborough General Hospital on Tuesday September 16. He was 61. He was in North Yorkshire to cover the weekend’s Gold Cup races, but was taken into hospital on September 8 after collapsing. He’d recently been on the Isle of Man covering the Manx...

New bikes dominate Milan show

16 September 2003

The international motorcycle show in Milan continues today with more manufacturers unveiling their new line-ups for 2004. Yamaha’s new R1, Honda’s Fireblade and the Kawasaki ZX-10R, as revealed in MCN...

New Harleys on show at birthday bash

09 September 2003

HARLEY revealed its full 2004 model range at the weekend’s 100th anniversary celebrations in Milwaukee – but there were no great birthday surprises. The biggest change was to the Sportsters, which get...

Hizzy memorial track day

09 September 2003

Stamford Superbikes will be holding a Steve Hislop memorial track day next week at Cadwell Park, with top superbike riders on hand to give on-track tuition. Hislop was a regular instructor on the...

Tiger roars on for another year

09 September 2003

TRIUMPH was rumoured to be ditching the Tiger from its line-up – but this prototype shows there’s life in the big trailie yet. Insiders claim an all-new replacement Tiger has been put on hold but that hasn’t stopped Triumph giving the current model a revamp. The biggest change is clearly the wheels. Triumph has chosen an all-new alloy design, that appears to extremely lightweight, in place of the...

Yamaha’s new R1 for 2004

09 September 2003

These are the first pictures of Yamaha’s new R1, the first production bike to burst through the 1bhp per kg barrier. As revealed in MCN last month the 2004 R1 has been influenced by the styling of the...

The 2004 Fireblade

09 September 2003

The 2004 Fireblade will be revealed over six full pages in MCN, out September 10. So don’t make judgements on blurry images and rumours floating around the internet, read the six full pages of...

Cannondale parts back in stock

09 September 2003

ATK Motorcycles, the second-oldest U.S. bike firm, has bought the parts inventory of bankrupt off-road firm Cannondale Motorsports, meaning owners and dealers can now order spares again. Cannondale...

Cafe racer Bonnie spied

09 September 2003

TRIUMPH’S new line-up doesn’t end with the Daytona 1300 revealed on page two – as this spy shot of the new cafe racer version of the Bonneville proves. MCN’s snappers caught it in action at...

200mph secret is out

09 September 2003

THESE are the exclusive first pictures of the 200mph bike Triumph is building to rival the Hayabusa and the ZX-12R. Triumph has continually denied the existence of a new 1300cc, four-cylinder...

Simple first aid could save lives

09 September 2003

A new training scheme has been set up by Lancashire Ambulance Service to train bikers in the basic first aid that could make the difference between life and death in a road traffic accident. With many...

Long term test September 03: Ducati 999

09 September 2003

The Ducati 999S is not a bike for the shy and retiring. It attracts attention from bikers and non-bikers alike wherever it goes. Related: full expert Ducati 999 review on MCN The combination of...

Cops delay motorcycle funeral

09 September 2003

Police almost stopped a biker from attending his own funeral after pulling over Britain’s only motorcycle hearse. The funeral cortege was brought to a halt in a lay-by on the A303, after police...

Win a KRC track day: First winner

09 September 2003

The winner of the Donington Park Kawasaki Riders Club trackday has been chosen, but remember you can still win a place on the Cadwell park event a week later. Dylan Kimber from Bradford will be going...

Trans America: South of the Equator

09 September 2003

Kevin and Julia Sanders have reached Peru in their attempt to claim the world record for riding the Trans America route from Alaska in North America to the tip of Argentina. At present they are half a...

ZX-12R updated for ’04

09 September 2003

Kawasaki’S high velocity ZX-12R has been updated with upside down forks and radially-mounted brakes for 2004. The changes bring the bike into line with the ZX-6R and ZX-10R (revealed in MCN last...

Trans Americas: Roadblocks and repairs

09 September 2003

Despite Foreign Office warnings, Kevin and Julia Sanders have travelled successfully through Columbia and into Ecuador in their attempt on the Trans-Americas record. The biggest drama so far has been...

Government pledges road improvements

09 September 2003

The Government has announced a £3.5m plan to help fix the often neglected A and B roads that motorcyclists love. Despite an increase in the overall standard of British roads, smaller out of town A and...

KRC track days: Cadwell winner announced

09 September 2003

The winner of a place on a Kawasaki Riders Club track day at Cadwell Park on Wednesday, September 17, is Chris Nelson from Derby. He’ll get to enjoy the full Cadwell circuit, with a choice of three...

Reborn in the USA

09 September 2003

NORTON has promised it’ll be back more times than Arnie – but this latest attempt to revive the name looks like it might actually stand a chance of success. Kenny Dreer, who owns Norton America and...