2015

Year: 2015

Month: ALL

MCN Awards 2015: Best Tourer (open class)

19 October 2015 by MCN Staff

For the second year running, the BMW R1200RT has won the MCN award for Best Tourer, and it’s not hard to understand why. Able to effortlessly cruise along or hold its own in the twisties, if you’re...

My life in bikes: Neil Hodgson

19 October 2015 by MCN

Ex-WSB champ and BT Sport frontman bares his biking soul to MCN ‘I don’t care if I look stupid I love my Confederate Wraith’ What’s your first memory of bikes? My brother is a couple of years older...

MCN Awards 2015: Best Sub-500

18 October 2015 by MCN Staff

The winner of the sub 500 category was the sporty little Yamaha R3, proving that you don’t need an all-out sportsbike to be able to have fun on the road. It provides enough to leave you happy without...

Everything you wanted to know about suspension set-up

17 October 2015 by John Robinson

Written in 1985 by Performance Bikes technical editor John Robinson, this feature on suspension set-up is the definitive article on the subject. As relevant now as it was 30 years ago. volution is a...

MCN Awards 2015: Best Naked (middleweight)

17 October 2015 by MCN Staff

Yamaha’s MT-07 came like a bolt from the blue in 2014. We didn’t have big expectations before it arrived – surely it was just a budget, lower-spec version of the MT-09? But it ended up blowing our...

Seven past MCN Machines of the year

16 October 2015 by MCN

All seven of these have won MCN’s overall Bike of the Year award in the past. BMW R1200GS (2013) Many secretly suspected BMW would be hard-pushed to continue the GS’s dominance when the German marque...

MCN Awards 2015: Best Naked (unlimited)

16 October 2015 by MCN Staff

MCN’s best big naked accolade has been awarded to big, brash, performance-laden machines, such as the Triumph Speed Triple and Aprilia Tuono in recent years. But for 2015 BMW’s new R1200R roadster is...

MCN Awards 2015: Best Adventure Sport

15 October 2015 by MCN Staff

Adventure sports bikes are for riders who crave that potent concoction of speed, adventure styling and practicality. But most of these bikes are all about giving you sportsbike kicks in comfort – and...

Ultimate Zed Head

15 October 2015 by Practical Sportsbikes

“I just love Zeds, always have. My idea of a cracking afternoon is to sit down with Dave Marsden of Z Power and look at all the old parts microfiches” o says Dave Orrit, Kawasaki Zed collector,...

MV Agusta teams up with Lewis Hamilton

15 October 2015 by Andy Downes

Iconic Italian firm MV Agusta has teamed up with reigning World Formula One championLewis Hamilton to release a new version of the Dragster 800 RR. Hamilton is said to have worked with the MV Agusta...

MCN Awards 2015: Best Middleweight Sportsbike

15 October 2015 by MCN Staff

This has been one of the busiest years for the MCN road test team in recent memory, and it’s been a long time since we’ve seen the thick and fast introduction of so many exciting new bikes. 2015 has...

Is the 2016 Kawasaki ZX-10R enough?

15 October 2015 by MCN News

Kawasaki revealed the completely revamped 2016 ZX-10R last week, as they aim to capitalise on their domination of World Superbikes with Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes in 2015. Changes include; more low to...

Eight ways to get your brain in its best biking state

15 October 2015 by MCN

Speed’s all in the head, isn’t it? Coach to the racing stars Lee Spelzini shares secrets that’ll make you faster and safer 1. Anchor yourself An old trick used by many athletes: prepare a pre-ride...

How to buy a £2000 sportsbike

14 October 2015 by Ride

The £2000 sportsbike. It’s not a rare beast but it’s a complex sector nowadays because you’re nipped in a pincer movement by older bikes such as the Kawasaki ZXR750 rising in price as they become...

Aprilia RSV1000 Mille: Yours for under £2k

14 October 2015 by Practical Sportsbikes

Gunning for both the Ducati 916 and WSB glory, the RSV Mille fell short on both counts. But it’s still a fantastic chunk of Italian exotica that can be yours for under £2000. ith three WSB titles in...

Top five waterproof gloves under £40

14 October 2015 by MCN News

As quickly as it arrived, the great British summer has already passed, days are noticeably longer and, sadly, wetter. But that doesn’t mean you have to stop riding. Here are our picks of the...

The Buyer: ‘Forgotten heroes still pack a punch’

14 October 2015 by MCN

It’s an interesting exercise, this: racking one’s brain for the sort of ‘forgotten hero’ type of bike. Something that was a pretty good machine in its own right, but was aced by the opposition. ake...

Can you help us with your future classic?

14 October 2015 by MCN News

MCN is on the lookout for a selection of bikes that we consider to be future classics, and if you own one of these models, we need your help. We’re in need of the bikes listed below on Wednesday 21...

Video: Pirelli launch Diablo Rosso III with Kawasaki WSB stars

14 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Pirelli have recruited the assistance of 2015 World Superbike champion Jonathan Rea and his Kawasaki teammate Tom Sykes to launch their new and improved Diablo Rosso III tyre. A road-going supersport...

Suter build two-stroke V4 machines for the modern era

14 October 2015

This stunning creation is Suter’s new MMX500, a completely updated V4 500cc two-stroke GP bike reborn for the modern era. The bike is the work of bike builder and chassis expert Eskil Suter, who has...

The real A2 test: Living with under 47bhp

14 October 2015 by MCN

There’s more to learner bikes than you might think and riders with A2 licences now have their pick of some amazing bikes. But when it comes to making the investment, which one will turn two years of...

Triumph officially teases new Bonneville

13 October 2015 by Andy Downes

Triumph has released this official video which teases the all-new water-cooled Bonneville range which we now know will be launched on October 28. There’s no information to go with the video which...

MCN Live! 2016, book your place now!

13 October 2015 by MCN News

Save the date and book now, April 15-18 2016 will see Butlins Skegness taken over by thousands of bikers for MCN Live! There’s something for everyone! More live acts than ever before! MCNLive! has...

Man & Machine: ‘At first I thought I’d bought a bloody barge…’

13 October 2015 by MCN

John Smith liked his Honda Blackbird so much he set up a company to cater for them “After 17 years of Blackbird ownership I still absolutely love them,” says John Smith. “I must have owned more than...

New MCN October 14: New ZX-10R unveiled

13 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

In this week’s edition of MCN, available in newsagents, on iPad and Android from October 14: Official pics of Kawasaki’s new R1-chasing ZX-10R! Awards special issue – the best bikes of 2015 Rossi...

My Life In Bikes: Bruce Dickinson

12 October 2015 by MCN

Iron Maiden’s lyrical screamer talks mopeds, the TT and licensing woes Did you grow up around motorbikes? I did. My dad had a car showroom, and one day he turned up on a Norton 750 Commando, in his...

New Suzuki finance offers with £1 deposit

12 October 2015 by Andy Downes

Suzuki is now offering a new £1 deposit and 0% finance offer on the range of small capacity and A2 licence-friendly machines with the new offer running until Janauary 31, 2016. The new offer starts on...

'I still fight in bars, but I used to win' – When Evel comes a-calling

11 October 2015 by Bike magazine

The phone rang in the Bike magazine office. It was Evel Knievel. Three months prior, Bike had run a piece on Evel’s life. He’d seen it and liked it. So he’d decided to ring for a chat about...

Super Special: Rob Bean's Suzuki XR69 rep

09 October 2015 by Andy Downes

With Suzuki’s XR69 being the four-stroke weapon of choice for classic TT racers, lust – and prices – at an all-time high for the brutal ‘Xperimental Racer’. Which is why this Bandit-based replica is...

7 great bikes with Ducati power

09 October 2015 by MCN

That Desmo engine sure gets about. Phil West on the weird world of non-Ducatis 1993-1998 Cagiva Elefant 900 One of the best and most successful of the early adventure bikes. Powered by Ducati’s...

BMW bet big on going small

09 October 2015 by Richard Newland

While the new R nineT range isn’t breaking dramatically new ground for the German firm, their decision to move into the sub-500cc is a radical departure. The first fruit of their collaboration with...

GALLERY: Get under the skin of Kawasaki's new ZX-10R

09 October 2015 by MCN News

This is Kawasaki’s 2016 ZX-10R superbike, unveiled in Spain yesterday as the Japanese giant pulls out all the stops to capitalise on their domination of the World Superbike series. Here we go...

Rossi’s rally car up for auction

09 October 2015 by James Archibald

A Subaru Impreza driven by both Valentino Rossi and Colin McRae, is to be sold at Duxford auction next week (14 Oct). You’ll need deep pockets if you want to buy it though as it’s expected to fetch...

VIDEO: See the new Kawasaki ZX-10R in action

08 October 2015 by MCN News

This is Kawasaki’s 2016 ZX-10R superbike, unveiled in Spain today as the Japanese giant pulls out all the stops to capitalise on their domination of the World Superbike series with the first major...

Hot new Kawasaki ZX-10R unveiled

08 October 2015 by Andy Downes

Gary Rothwell nails 209mph wheelie

08 October 2015 by MCN News

Gary Rothwell set yet another world record recently when he nabbed the world’s fastest wheelie at a frankly astounding 209.822mph. Measured over a flying kilometer at Elvington in Yorkshire, the UK...