First rides & tests (March 2017)

Yamaha have sold over a quarter of a million TMAX maxi scooters since its inception in 2001, making it their best selling bike to date. For 2017 the big scoot gets a new aluminium chassis with revised...

As it turns out, Ducati made the right call to let us out in the dry for a brief blast on the Monster 797 last night as our scheduled riding day has been something of a washout. I’m so glad they did...

It’s no secret supersport sales have plummeted over the last decade. And while most manufacturers have put their 600s out to pasture, using a get-out clause to allow them to keep selling non-Euro4...

Yamaha’s 2016 XSR900 is a retro streetbike success story. And deservedly so, because it takes the MT-09’s stunningly charismatic, wheelie-tastic 847cc, 115bhp inline triple motor, its die-cast ally...

Scrrrrsh! The sound of footrest-on-tarmac contact makes me jump; it’s only the first corner, and the Yamaha SCR950’s Bridgestone Trail Wings aren’t even warm yet. But we’re already grinding dusty...

MCN will be grabbing a full first ride on Yamaha’s rather foxy, new, limited edition XSR900 café racer today. With an identical chassis set-up as the hugely popular standard XSR900 streetbike, Yamaha...

MCN will be slipping and sliding, and rolling and riding Yamaha’s new SCR950 today, both on the road and off it. As its name suggests, SCR is short for Scrambler – this is Yamaha’s Faster Sons...

There wasn't anything wrong with the outgoing Suzuki V-Strom 1000, but for 2017 Suzuki have made a few tweaks and introduced the more adventure-focused XT version, which gets wire wheels, bashplate,...

MCN Senior Road Tester, Adam Child, has packed his race leathers and is heading to Almeria, Spain to ride Yamaha’s new supersport YZF-R6. While the majority of other manufacturers have put their 600...

If your adventure bike doesn't have more electronics than the space shuttle and gadgetry coming out of its ears it often gets forgotten, but Suzuki's updated baby adventure bike, the V-Strom 650XT,...

After a small break, 2017 sees air-cooling return to the Ducati Monster family in the shape of the new Monster 797. And for those who are fans of traditionalism, that’s a welcome relief as in 1993 the...

Dunlop’s new Sportmart2 Max looks like a great choice for rapid road riding and occasional trackday use. We tested the new tyre in the mountain roads overlooking Montpellier in the South of France,...

We're currently on our way to Spain to ride the new Suzuki V-Strom 1000XT on Thursday March 23. The XT is the slightly more off-road focused version, fitted with gold wire-spoked wheels instead of the...

We're heading to Spain this week to ride the new Suzuki V-Strom 650XT, which features new styling more like its big brother, the V-Strom 1000, and updates to the 645cc V-twin engine. The new engine is...

Tilting three-wheel scooters have been around for a decade or more – stroll through Paris or along the French Riviera, and you'll see loads of them, plus a few in London. You can drive them on a car...

BMW’s budget R nineT Pure delivers largely the same as its more-expensive big brother. Pared-to-the-bone when it comes to equipment, but boasting great dynamics and a characterful engine, BMW’s R...

MCN Senior Road Tester Michael Neeves took Kawasaki's new Z900 for a road test against Yamaha's MT-09.  To find out how the already-established affordable naked Yamaha did against Kawasaki's new...

Fast, frenetic, friendly and flexible, BMW’s new S1000R Sport is much like the old one – and that’s no bad thing. Now in its fourth year of production, BMW’s top-spec super naked has been treated to a...

MCN Senior Editor Matt Wildee is in Spain, testing BMW's new S1000R Sport. The German supernaked has received a host of changes for 2017, including a new, lighter chassis, revised...

We get the first taste of BMW’s new beautiful café racer. BMW’S £10,755 R nineT Racer has arrived in the UK and judging by our sneaky first ride, this is a motorcycle that goes as well as it looks.

KTM's latest and - according to the Austrian firm - most extreme adventure bike, the 1290 Super Adventure R has landed, with the company launching the bike in Peru last week. Unlike most high-tech...

KTM are claiming their new 1290 Super Adventure R is the most extreme adventure bike ever made – and after a full day’s riding in the blistering heat of Peru – I’m inclined to agree. But you don’t...

MCN’s Senior Road Tester Adam ‘Chad’ Child has touched-down in Peru to ride KTM’s new 1290 Super Adventure R – that’s right we’ve sent the smallest guy in the office to ride the big R version. For...

Yamaha's standard MT-10 was already one of our favourite bikes, but with the SP version Yamaha have moved the game on to further the heat on the competition. The SP version comes with semi-active...

Honda's new 745cc scooter aims to blend the ease of use you get with an automatic scooter with the practicality and versatility of an adventure bike. A scooter and an adventure bike might seem like an...