2011

New MCN May 4: Norton V4 on MotoGP grid in 2012

New MCN May 4: Norton V4 on MotoGP grid in 2012

In this week’s issue of MCN, on sale May 4 we pit the new Suzuki GSR750 against the GSX-R750 on road and track to see if you really need a sportsbike to have fun. Norton boss confirms the British...

Kawasaki World Superbike team boss denies drug smuggling

Kawasaki World Superbike team boss denies drug smuggling

The boss of Kawasaki’s World Superbike squad says drugs, gun and ammunition found in his race transporter lorry were planted by a drugs gang. Paul Bird, owner of Paul Bird Motorsport (PBM),...

Horex VR6 - how it all fits together

Horex VR6 - how it all fits together

Six cylinders no wider than four, big vee-engine character from an inline-sized lump? Reborn German manufacturer Horex promises this and up to 200bhp from its 1218cc VR motor (V for vee, R for in a...

MCN on safari in Kenya

MCN on safari in Kenya

Jeff and Andy catching up with news whilst out on safari at Tsavo east & west national parks, Kenya.

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes

What else is there to say when faced with this combination of all good things that is the £5500 QTvan mobility scooter caravan? We don’t know how this has passed us by until the very evening before...

The lazy way to look at tons of Tuono V4R pictures

The lazy way to look at tons of Tuono V4R pictures

Want to wallow in some Tuono V4R-porn? We can understand that. Here’s a way to bathe your eyes in all its loveliness – but BE WARNED, the effect on your ears will be the opposite.

Cat and Fiddle cameras finally on

Cat and Fiddle cameras finally on

A network of bike-catching average speed cameras on one of the country’s most popular motorcycling roads has finally been switched on a year behind schedule. The £800,000 cameras were installed last...

Supersport star tests GSR750 for MCN

Supersport star tests GSR750 for MCN

48 hours after tacking a hard fought win in the British Supersport Championship on board his Relentless GSX-R600 Suzuki by TAS, Alistair Seeley was back at Brands Hatch joining the MCN team putting...

Comment: Why the G650GS is the first of a new breed of hooligan bike

Comment: Why the G650GS is the first of a new breed of hooligan bike

Yes, I know it sounds unlikely. But stop shaking your head and listen. Here’s why, despite its mild-mannered exterior, BMW’s G650GS is a hooligan bike: The original hooligan bikes of the seventies and...

Win BSB Tickets with online racing game

Win BSB Tickets with online racing game

Motorcycle and scooter insurance specialist MCE Insurance has launched a free online bike racing game with a chance to win tickets to the MCE British Superbike Championship. In Big Ed’s BSB Challenge,...

Harley torched in new Walkers TV ad

Harley torched in new Walkers TV ad

A Harley-Davidson, Elle ‘The Body’ MacPherson, crashing waves and cheesy pop video piss-takes are the main elements in Walkers Crisps new TV ad which premiered last night. And guess what? Gary Linker...

You bought their kitchens. Will you buy their bikes?

You bought their kitchens. Will you buy their bikes?

The Ikea incursion has seen the Swedish way of life occupy our homes and give us undreamt-of storage options. Now they’re after your garage, as long defunct brand Swedish brand Ockelbo ponders a...

Best of bikemart: Modern classics up for grabs this week

We’ve been browsing MCN bikes for sale every day to bring you some of our top picks from over 10,000 motorcycles for sale.              Read more modern classics news and features Here’s just a few of the fantastic modern classic machines available this week:   ’92 Honda CBR900RR FireBlade, £1500   Original, definitive Blade ‘rewrote sportsbike rules’ and becoming a classic We say: Just...

Ducati Monster 1100 Evo lands in UK

Ducati Monster 1100 Evo lands in UK

Ducati’s latest big-bore, air-cooled Monster, the 1100 Evo, has arrived in UK Ducati dealers – and at MCN’s office door. MCN is currently testing the new £10,119 Monster 1100 Evo on UK roads and it...

Prince William rides his 1198S Corse home from footie

Prince William rides his 1198S Corse home from footie

Royal dude Prince William rode his Ducati 1198S Corse home from football training last night, the Sun reports – in a welcome and defiant up-yours to anti-bike society. Clad in tracksuit, trainers,...

Tuono V4R too ugly? French to the rescue!

Tuono V4R too ugly? French to the rescue!

Fabulous new Aprilia Tuono V4R too ugly for you? Here come the French, with what they hope is the answer – a modified RSV4, dubbed the V4 Street. Arriving just after the launch of the Tuono V4R the V4...

MCNLive! ticket prices frozen for 2012

MCNLive! ticket prices frozen for 2012

Next year’s MCNLive! stays at 2011 prices Party at Butlins for just £99* for three days of non-stop entertainment Offer closes soon!  This year’s MCNLive ranks as one of the most memorable MCNLive’s...

TT3D smashes into UK box office top 10 - where to see it

TT3D smashes into UK box office top 10 - where to see it

TT3D Closer to the Edge has spread to 60 MORE new cinemas, ranking it among the most successful big screen documentary releases ever. The buzz around the brilliant biking movie continues to grow, and...

New KTM Duke 690 spied

New KTM Duke 690 spied

This prototype is the new 70bhp KTM Duke 690. It was spotted being filled up with fuel yards from the KTM factory in Mattighofen, Austria, by an eagle-eyed Austrian KTM owner who took pictures and...

New MCN April 27: Why the Diavel smokes the lot

New MCN April 27: Why the Diavel smokes the lot

In this week’s issue of MCN, on sale April 27 and guest edited by Suzi Perry, we pit the Ducati Diavel against a K1300R, Multistrada, Superduke and V-Rod Muscle in a world first group test. We test...

'Handling of a race bike, comfort of a street bike' - Motus MST-01 on track

'Handling of a race bike, comfort of a street bike' - Motus MST-01 on track

Of course you¹d expect to hear that in a promotional video, but it¹s an Ohlins technician talking, even if he couches his comments in the bubblewrap of ‘This is the beginning… I can’t imagine what the...

MCN in Afghanistan

MCN in Afghanistan

Reading MCN on a weekly basis while serving in Afghanistan!

Happy days

Happy days

On holiday in the pool enjoying the sun and my MCN.

My daughter on my bike

My daughter on my bike

I eventually got my daughter Carly on my Gixxer!

Moto Guzzi Stelvio 1200 8V - "a cracking do-anything, go-anywhere machine"

Moto Guzzi Stelvio 1200 8V - "a cracking do-anything, go-anywhere machine"

Moto Guzzi has never made a secret of aiming the Stelvio squarely at the mighty BMW R1200GS and thanks to a raft of changes, the Italian and German machines are closer than ever, to the point where...

Zero electric bikes – electric riding experience

Zero electric bikes – electric riding experience

Earlier Zeros used to have a lash-up feel, but the Californian firm’s 2011 models are very much proper bikes. There are two new road bikes – the S (for Street) is purely for Tarmac and the DS (Dual...

Moto Guzzi Norge GT 8V - "a hugely capable mile-munching tourer"

Moto Guzzi Norge GT 8V - "a hugely capable mile-munching tourer"

Moto Guzzi seems to have all the bases covered with its new Norge GT 8V tourer. It’s smoother and friendlier than ever, and a stiffer suspension set-up has stopped the old bike’s tendency to get a...

Suzuki/VW tie-up yields first fruit?

Suzuki/VW tie-up yields first fruit?

VW has surprised the Shanghai car show by revealing an electric scooter. And if this is the first fruit of the VW-Suzuki partnership (the German firm own a fifth of the GSX-R maker) we can’t wait for...

Is the new Honda CBR250R better than a 1982 Super Dream?

Is the new Honda CBR250R better than a 1982 Super Dream?

A glance at the specs of Honda’s new CBR250R and the Kawasaki Ninja 250R could leave you wondering exactly what manufacturers have been doing for the last 30 years. Like the Ninja 250R, Kawasaki’s...

ABS compulsory on US BMWs but 86% of UK BMW buyers opt for it anyway

ABS compulsory on US BMWs but 86% of UK BMW buyers opt for it anyway

ABS will be standard on all BMWs sold in America from 2012, the firm’s US bosses have announced. But it’s a move unlikely to spread to British beemers while 86% of us are happy to pay between £645 and...

Staff bikes: BMW G650GS - 'Quality'

Staff bikes: BMW G650GS - 'Quality'

I’ve just spent my first weekend with the BMW G650GS, after taking delivery of it on Friday, and the word I want to say is: quality. You’d never guess this is one of the cheapest big bikes you can...

Why new bikes aren’t as heavy as you think

Why new bikes aren’t as heavy as you think

The specifications of some small-to-middle-weight new bikes have caused disquiet on the forums of MCN this year. One user wrote of the new Honda CBR250R, which weighs 162kg and makes a claimed 26bhp:...

Parker Brothers Choppers: If you build it, they will come

Parker Brothers Choppers: If you build it, they will come

As you’ve probably guessed by the ‘Green Machine’ three wheeler, Florida based Parker Brothers Choppers aren’t your usual brand of southern state bike builders. Self confessed movie nuts Shanon and...

Video: Shaw Harley-Davidson Captain America Fat Boy built in 7 minutes

Video: Shaw Harley-Davidson Captain America Fat Boy built in 7 minutes

World Championship winning custom bike builders Shaw Harley-Davidson have managed to cram 100 hours of labour building their very special Captain America Fat Boy into 7m14sec of captivating video.  ...

Video: Rukka Kalahari jacket

Video: Rukka Kalahari jacket

MCN’s Michael Guy swears by his Rukka Kalahari jacket and trousers combo. (See his review here.) Here’s a fairly comprehensive run down of all the features of the upper half of this top notch...

New Yamaha YZF-R15: no compromise on the hugger

New Yamaha YZF-R15: no compromise on the hugger

New Yamaha? In this economic climate? And a ‘super sport urban bike’ at that? Yep, you read it right (Looking for a 125? Find a Yamaha YZF-R125 for sale). Unfortunately, the svelte new R6-alike 150cc...