February

Benelli opens UK order books

04 February 2002

BENELLI has named the 19 UK dealers who will sell its long-awaited Tornado superbike, and has today opened its order books for the exclusive limited-edition version of the triple. Between 40 and 50 of...

Win a Fazer 600

04 February 2002

It’s true, you never get something for nothing in this life. We’re going to give one of you a 2002 Yamaha Fazer 600, another one will get a place on an MCN track day and one more will win a pair of...

Long term test: Yamaha Tmax

04 February 2002

JUST because you’re paranoid, doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you, according to an old saying. And while I might hesitate to share that gem of wisdom with the barefooted bloke I regularly see...

Win a VIP British GP weekend

04 February 2002

You can win a fantastic VIP hotel break at the British GP by entering our new MCN2U mobile phone text message competition. We have 10 tickets to the GP itself as runners-up prizes, too. The first prize gives you and a friend a night’s Hilton hotel accommodation at for the GP weekend and grandstand seats at Donington. Entries have to be made by text message via your mobile phone. The competition is...

Honda plans road-going V4 and V5

04 February 2002

HONDA is working on an all-new 1000cc V4 superbike AND a Hayabusa-style V5. Both are expected to draw heavily on technology being developed for the firm’s new V5 four-stroke GP race bike. The V4...

World’s first ride on Ducati 998S

04 February 2002

This is what I always hoped a Ducati 998 would be like. First-look suggests there is only one little change from the standard machine – the letter ” S ” on the end of the numbers. But what a...

Ally Pally sets new record

04 February 2002

More of you than ever before visited the Ally Pally for the MCN Superbike and Road Racing Show which finished on Sunday, February 3. World firsts such as Suzuki’s B-King, Triumph’s Speed Four and the...

Keeping the TT alive

04 February 2002

Lining up at the Glencrutchery Road startline

You hand £13,500 to Riders charity

04 February 2002

You donated a grand total of £13,500 to biking charity Riders for Health in auctions at the Ally Pally show. Over the nine days of the show items ranging from a wooden statue of Colin Edwards to a...

Time running out to help stop road tax hike

04 February 2002

There are just days left for you to tell the Government where to get off over its threat to raise road tax for most riders. Thousands of us have already taken the time and trouble to fill in an...

Hail to the crashers

04 February 2002

Yes, they all walked away. Amazing. Not that we need to say this, but DON’T try this at home… these are paid professionals!

Aprilia kit gives Falco more fight

04 February 2002

Aprilia is offering an aftermarket kit for its V-twin Falco which bosses say will give it streetfighter-style and loads more grunt. Aprilia UK’s Paul Walker said: ” As it is, the Falco wheelies...

Pugh, Pugh, Harley, McGrew

04 February 2002

Harley-Davidson is considering offering special editions of the Electra Glide and the Road King in the UK… if they feel enough firefighters want them. The Firefighter special editions come in scarlet...

First test on Azaro III tyre

01 February 2002

Our first impressions from the test of the new Avon Azaro III sports-tour tyre reveals this could be the perfect all-rounder. On a CBR600 at the Valencia track in Spain on Friday, our test rider Adam Morrissey said: " I’m scraping the pegs and my toes and everything and it’s not until you are right at the very limits that these feel anything less than a full-on sports tyre. " For most riders on...

MV Agusta F5 to be most powerful on the road

01 February 2002

The 1000cc MV Agusta F5 due for launch at September’s bike shows is expected to be the most powerful production bike in the world with more than 160bhp at the rear wheel, according to insiders. The...

Your views on the Ally Pally

01 February 2002

Here’s what you had to say after visiting the MCN Ally Pally show. Not been yet? Hurry up, it closes on Sunday, February 3. Sarah Kittendorf: ” The highlight for me was the discount prices for the...

Bulldog let off the leash

01 February 2002

Yamaha’s relatively sedate 65bhp Bulldog can be turned into a feisty 80bhp bike for less than £100. Herts dealer Motorcycles and Moore say a simple mod, involving the removal of a washer, allows the...

The reason behind upside-down forks

01 February 2002

TELESCOPIC forks do a difficult job. Not only do they have to keep the front tyre in contact with the road under a wide range of conditions, they also have to withstand braking and steering forces...

Get it over, then!

01 February 2002

Richard Quayle rides his CBR600 at the TT. We assume he uses rearsets.

Talk us round a few corners, David

01 February 2002

Hitch a lift round the Island with David Jefferies.

Your jacket as pop star

01 February 2002

Get up in the attic, clear out the back of the garage… you might have just the thing dance act Adrenalin Junkie need for their next pop video. The band, which provides some of the soundtrack to the...

Long term Futura report

01 February 2002

One down, 619 miles to go and already my heart is in my boots. Along with about a litre of rain water. Behind me the doors of the Brittany ferry and the comforts of a warm bed and a full bar. Ahead of...

Paul Smart rep Ducati ready to roll

01 February 2002

Ducati’s tribute to British racer Paul Smart is at last ready to go into production and our artist’s impression is thought to be very close to how the finished article will look. The retro-styled...

Honed to perfection

25 February 2001

HAVING honed and refined the FireBlade over the eight years since its introduction in 1992, Honda entered the new millennium with perhaps its most radical incarnation of the model yet. Although always...

All these first tests coming soon

25 February 2001

MCN’S Marc Potter will ride Ducati’s new 996R on Wednesday March 7, becoming one of the first people outside the factory to do so. And we’ll be bringing you his first reactions on that very day. In the next fortnight you can also look forward to the world’s first tests of the Aprilia CapoNord, Kawasaki RZX1200S and ZR7S and Piaggio’s new 500cc super-scooter, the X9. Keep checking back with...

25 February 2001

INSURANCE The bike falls into the group 16 category in the UK, which means that certain types of cover in certain parts of the country for some riders isn’t available at all from a handful of firms, making shopping around for quotes essential rather than merely advisable. MODEL VARIATIONS When buying a ZX-9R, potential purchasers essentially have a choice of two main model types – the pre-1998 “B”...

Benelli boss speaks exclusively to MCN

25 February 2001

NOBODY outside the factory has ridden the Benelli Tornado yet but it’s already one of the most desirable bikes on the planet – and that is just for starters, according to Benelli president Andrea...

Piaggio reveals 250… and promises a 500 to follow

25 February 2001

PIAGGIO is launching a 250cc scooter next month called the Jupiter. Powered by a Yamaha YP250 Majesty engine it will be in UK showrooms by April. A 180cc version and a 500cc one will follow later this...

The meanest green machine

25 February 2001

KAWASAKI’S Ninja nine has enjoyed a cult following amongst the big cube cognoscenti, not just for its sheer performance but also for its styling and brute-force engine. Determined not to let their...

Forget Bodie and Doyle, the real professionals are here

25 February 2001

EVERY discipline has its crack troops, who are called into action for the key projects. You want to send specialists behind enemy lines to disable their radar systems? You need the SAS. You need to...

Ducati plans Foggy rep Monster

25 February 2001

DUCATI bosses in Italy have confirmed they are working on a Monster tribute to four-times WSB champion Carl Fogarty based on the latest S4 version of the bike. It uses a 916cc water-cooled motor...

The choice is no longer so clear-cut

25 February 2001

HERE in Britain, we have a history of favouring one type of bike over any other. More than any other riders in Europe, we choose to spend our money on sports bikes and superbikes. But now the first of a new breed of motorcycle has arrived, which could change all that. Say hello to Yamaha’s Fazer 1000 (see road test on page 24). It’s cheaper than a full-on superbike, but it still offers awesome...

A Triumph to make Italy tremble – but not Japan

18 February 2001

TRIUMPH publicly unveiled to the world this morning the long-awaited successor to its 955i triple – and immediately told riders looking for something to humble a GSX-R1000 to look elsewhere. The...

More Gatso cameras looming

18 February 2001

EVERY police force in the country could soon be allowed to use money from speeding fines to pay for thousands more speed cameras. Following similar pilot schemes involving eight police forces around the country, the Association of Chief Police Officers has announced plans to spread the scheme nation-wide. Richard Brunstrom, chief constable of North Wales and ACPO co-ordinator of the scheme, said: ...

ZX-9R to power new musclebike

18 February 2001

KAWASAKI is planning to launch a naked musclebike using a retuned version of the ZX-9R’s 144bhp engine. The 899cc four-cylinder engine could be tweaked to make more torque than the ZX-9R’s formidable...

Triumph’s Daytona gets 147bhp

18 February 2001 by MCN News

A BRITISH-built superbike with the potential to take on the best Japanese and Italian machines is enough to get any rider’s mouth watering. And Triumph reckons its new 955i Daytona is exactly...