New Guzzi Le Mans ridden and rated 17 June 2001 The new Le Mans is no longer a superbike like the one which first bore the name back in 1976. The cynics will see it as a marketing exercise by Aprilia, the new owners of Moto Guzzi’s 80-year-old... Read more ...
1700cc super Harley 17 June 2001 This started life as a stock 1450cc FXDX Dyna Super Glide Sport. But it’s been bored out to 1700cc, making it the largest-capacity Harley-Davidson ever officially sold in the UK. It’s a stock 1450cc... Read more ...
Superstock Clarion Suzuki GSX-R1000 10 June 2001 RIDER: John CrockfordPOWER: Over 155bhp@12,400rpmDRY WEIGHT: 175kgTOP SPEED: 190mphRESULTS: Donington Park: 5thSilverstone: DNFSnetterton: DNFOulton Park: 7th Read more ...
Junior Superstock Clarion Suzuki GSX-R600 10 June 2001 RIDER: James HutchinsPOWER: Over 105bhp@13,800rpmDRY WEIGHT: 170kgTOP SPEED: 165mphRESULTS: Donington Park: 2ndSilverstone: InjuredSnetterton: InjuredOulton Park: Injured Read more ...
Four Clarion Suzukis ridden and rated 10 June 2001 This year Suzuki has done the triple with its 600, 750 and 1000. All three are the best bikes in their class. Best meaning the most-focussed, lightest and most powerful bikes in their respective... Read more ...
Supersport Clarion Suzuki GSX-R600 10 June 2001 RIDER: Karl HarrisPOWER: Over 120bhp@14,200rpmDRY WEIGHT: 167kgTOP SPEED: 175mphRESULTS: Donington Park: DNFSilverstone: 3rdSnetterton: 6thOulton Park: 3rd Read more ...
More for the TT fans 10 June 2001 They might call the 250 race the Lightweight, but it's a race for the real heavyweights of The Island. Read more ...
Long term test on the Yamaha Tmax 10 June 2001 Sometimes, the strangest combinations actually go together remarkably well. When I was a kid, my favourite teatime snack was peanut butter and jam sandwiches. Other children would curl their lips with... Read more ...
Clarion Suzuki GSX-R750 XR09 Superbike 10 June 2001 RIDER: John CrawfordPOWER: Over 165bhp@14,000rpmDRY WEIGHT: 162kgTOP SPEED: 190mphRESULTS:Donington Park: 3rd and 3rd Silverstone: 3rd and 5thSnetterton: 7th and 7thOulton Park: DNF and 4th Read more ...
Is time running out for MAG and the BMF? 10 June 2001 PRESSURE groups are there to fight for our rights. They understand the things we care about and the issues that wind us up. That’s the idea, anyway. But a recent demonstration against toll charges at... Read more ...
Riding Britain’s greatest road 10 June 2001 The days of the Roman Empire weren’t just about eating grapes, grappling with virgins and having lots of hot baths. Some of it was about standing guard on the rainswept borders of northern England... Read more ...
Trials? Boring? Take another look 10 June 2001 Action from the Sheffield Arena trial last year is likely to change your mind Read more ...
German and British firms consider link to buy TL engines 10 June 2001 GERMAN firm Sachs and British company CCM are in talks aimed at teaming up to buy Suzuki TL V-twin engines.CCM refuses to confirm it, but an insider at Sachs said: " It helps if we work... Read more ...
First pictures of Road Star Warrior 10 June 2001 Yamaha’s new XV1700 Road Star Warrior is unveiled today, boasting sports bike technology and cruiser styling.The Warrior’s engine is pure cruiser. Based on the XV1600 Wild Star’s 48 degree air-cooled... Read more ...
Our first long term test on a Buell 03 June 2001 I was shaking. Part cold, part anticipation, part excitement. But mainly fear. I was just about to to pick up my Buell X1 Lightning. Problem was, I had not ridden a motorcycle in 15 years and I don’t... Read more ...
Labour’s roads minister interviewed on bike policy 03 June 2001 EVERY four years, something strange happens to politicians. Suddenly, their horizons broaden.They develop keen interests in anything from farmers to bone marrow transplants, so quickly it makes people... Read more ...
Joining our cameraman at his proper job 03 June 2001 David Jefferies shows the skills needed to wield the MCN onboard camera Read more ...
Rival parties pass their verdict 03 June 2001 Conservatives " Labour have been all mouth and no delivery in their integrated transport strategy. The Government doesn’t even measure journey times in congested cities. If they did, they’d find motorcycles to be the shortest. Labour should be promoting two-wheelers instead of clobbering motorists. We will do our utmost to empower bikes. In congested areas in particular, motorcycles play a... Read more ...
The advantages of lightweight wheels 03 June 2001 WHERE do you start when you want to modify your bike? A bit of engine tuning first, maybe upgrade the brakes to suit the improved performance and as it goes along add rear sets and finish off with a spangly new paint job. But would you add lightweight wheels?For most of us, light wheels are something of a luxury item. They cost a fortune, admittedly look good but surely they can’t make that much... Read more ...
Long term test: Life with an FJR 03 June 2001 I had said farewell to my ZX-12R in mid-December. It was mid-May before I finally got my hands on the FJR. I hadn't even ridden a push bike in the intervening time. You will therefore understand my... Read more ...
The view from the mudguard… 03 June 2001 The TT might not be on for the racers, but we can still marvel at what they do. Read more ...
Out and about: Hunstanton 03 June 2001 Hunstanton hands over a prime parking spot to motorcycles, close to the bandstand and nestled between amusement arcades and cafes.There are some good routes to it to be found if you scour your map of... Read more ...
Yamaha Bulldog revealed 03 June 2001 Yamaha’s new Bulldog BT1100 is revealed today for the first time.The Japanese firm claims the Bulldog is specifically designed to meet the needs of the European market.Yamaha reckons its new machine... Read more ...
First ride on Honda’s Varadero 125 03 June 2001 Like its bigger brother, this Varadero uses a V-twin, but it has a learner-friendly 125cc capacity.That’s not really enough to cope with gusting headwinds, reducing your rpm to 10,000 instead of... Read more ...
Suzuki plans 650cc scooter 03 June 2001 September will see the launch of Suzuki’s new Skywave 650 – a big bore scooter aimed at bikes like Yamaha’s T-max and Honda’s Silverwing.Like its competitors, the bike will use a two-cylinder engine... Read more ...
Enter the 200mph ZX-12R 03 June 2001 The last time I rode a ZX-12R, it topped out with a less than hyperbolic 183mph, or 12mph slower than a politically castrated 2000 Hayabusa, leaving in its wake more questions than answers. But let... Read more ...
Rare Ducatis become available 03 June 2001 Just when you thought Ducati’s super-exclusive MH900E was impossible to get hold of… a British dealer has managed to bag a couple.But if you want one you really shouldn’t hang about. DK has just two... Read more ...
Strange tales from when the racers are at play 01 June 2001 There’s a clapped-out cliché that’s been pinned to the noticeboard of many a place of employment over the years which reads as follows: " You Don’t Have To Be Mad To Work Here – But It Helps! " While many workplaces aren’t exactly the lunatic asylums they’d like to think they are, the bike racing industry can rest easy in the knowledge that, for them, this shop-soiled sentiment... Read more ...
Government orders dark visor tests… at night 01 June 2001 The Government is ordering tests on dark visors… AT NIGHT.The decision (and we wish the testers the best of luck) has been taken after an initial report suggested dark visors are fine for daytime use... Read more ...
Kawasaki comes up with a Sportster rival 01 June 2001 Kawasaki is launching a budget cruiser aimed at the Harley Sportster market.The bike will join the firm’s VN1500 family next year, say sources close to the factory. The Japanese firm’s VN range... Read more ...
Are "real world" bikes the future? 27 May 2001 Sports bikes have a tradition of outselling all other types of motorcycle in the UK, and the latest sales figures show they’re still our first choice.But they also reveal something else. Though the... Read more ...