Latest news in motorcycling
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China: the new Japan
06 May 2001
Fireworks, egg-fried rice, kung-fu, intricate writing…Those are just a few of the things that spring to mind when we think of China. One thing that doesn’t feature on that list is high-performance...
More cunning stunts from the Brazilian nut Farias
06 May 2001
He’s going to lose it… He’s going to lose it… Oh. Maybe not then.
Long term Kawasaki ZRX1200
06 May 2001
There were a number of bikes on my private short-list that I was gagging to get a test ride on before I signed on the dotted line and bought one for myself. One of them was the ZRX1200S> But try as I...
All the ladies love a biker
06 May 2001
So this is why he doesn’t get many girls on the back of his bike…
Green machines could do 170mph
06 May 2001
AMERICAN firm eCycle reckons it can build an environmentally friendly diesel-electric hybrid superbike which will hit 170mph. It’s making the claim after turning out a 125 hybrid which will wheelie as...
German style plus Italian engineering…say what?
06 May 2001
If you can’t wait to get your hands on the naked Aprilia RSV Mille due next year, Scottish dealer Moto Ecosse could provide you with the next best thing. It is importing all the parts you’ll need to...
New Laverda coming soon
06 May 2001
Laverda is launching a scooter, it’s first addition to the range since the firm was taken over by Aprilia. The 150cc twist-and-go will arrive later this year to keep attention bubbling while an...
Something big in the city
06 May 2001
THE slack-jawed man can’t take his eyes off the biggest commuter bike he’s ever seen. He approaches and asks: ” How big is it? ” ” 8.2 litres, ” is the reply. ” Wow, two litres! ” he responds. ...
Now we’ve ridden the new 955i on both road and track
06 May 2001
After Thursday morning’s track session, we’ve now been able to ride the new Triumph 955i Daytona on the road, too. MCN’s Marc Potter, said: ” The roads in the immediate area of the Estoril circuit...
Army goes diesel
06 May 2001
THE army has spent a quarter of a million pounds developing a diesel-fuelled bike which goes 120mph on one gallon, but makes just 24bhp. Based on a Kawasaki KLR650, the 580cc Combat Military...
What’s new on the 2001 955i
06 May 2001
ENGINE: Essentially the new Daytona’s three-cylinder is the same basic lump as the old engine but there’s quite a lot of detail changes. It breathes better and is more efficient than the old engine...
First test on production MV Agusta Brutale
06 May 2001
Park a bike as stunning as the new MV Agusta Brutale outside a bar in the town of Varese, northern Italy and out they swarm for a look and a fondle. Italians love motorcycles and style in equal...
Ex-demo covered 5000 miles more than the clock showed
06 May 2001
A Triumph customer is threatening legal action after buying a TT600 which had done 5000 more miles than shown on the clock. In January, Michael Hastings travelled from his home town of Dumfries to buy...
New bike sections added to 200-plus already on site
06 May 2001
Ducati’s ST4S and the latest incarnation of the legendary 916, the 996R, are our latest additions to the 200-plus bike sections on this site. By following the ‘BIKES’ link at the top of the page...
And he says he still doesn’t really know the course…
01 May 2001
That hasn’t stopped Michael Rutter being one of the fastest men ever round the Island.
Race tyres for the road, in a roundabout way
01 May 2001
‘WHAT we are selling to the public is a racing tyre. What the racers are using is a standard tyre. So the tyres are the same.’ Those are the words of Helmut Dahne, PR man at Metzeler and the fastest...
It’s in front…for now
01 May 2001
Adam Morrissey: So what sort of challenge is this? Honda GoldWing, the ultimate touring bike, against a Yamaha R1, which until the arrival of Suzuki’s GSX-R1000 was the ultimate sports bike and is not...
Renault launch two-wheelers
01 May 2001
Renault has launched a new range of bikes developed with Benelli. Rival French car maker Peugeot is already a big player in the scooter marker and it seems Renault wants to grab a bit of the same...
Any time you want to let us off, Michael, it’s fine by us
01 May 2001
Rutter just isn’t going to stop is he?
Is this the next step for the TT… pillion racing?
01 May 2001
Michael Rutter shows why we should be glad passenger footrests are one of the first things junked from a race bike.
Honda recalls 2001 Wing
01 May 2001
The all-new 2001 Honda GoldWing has been recalled just weeks after going on sale. There are two faults which can cause the engine to cut at speed, although they are not serious enough to lead to any...
Bikemart arrives online
01 May 2001
WE’RE adding Bikemart TM to the range of services on offer here at motorcyclenews.com. In phase one we’ve added a whole load more dealers in new and used bikes to browse alongside the offers from...
Bonnie gets the cafe treatment
29 April 2001
German tuner LSL has taken a new Triumph Bonneville and created a real café racer called the LSL Bonneville Clubman. LSL has changed as few parts as possible to keep the price down. The most obvious...
First ride on bigger-bore C1
29 April 2001
Riding a 175cc bike from Bracknell, around the M25 then up the M1 to Kettering may not sound like a lot of fun to most people. But then, you probably haven’t tried it on one of the oddest looking ”...
Can’t tour on an on-the-edge 600? Think again
29 April 2001
THERE were some decent enough reasons for making this voyage of intense pleasure and crippling pain. My new 2001 GSX-R600, in its glorious black and yellow, needed a good thousand miles of running in...
Mugello test reveals Tornado almost ready
22 April 2001
TESTS earlier this week in Mugello reveal Benelli’s WSB hopeful, the Tornado, is almost ready for action. The Italian firm first presented their three cylindered hopeful to a receptive audience at...
KTM reveals official sketches of LC8 Rallye
22 April 2001
KTM is planning a Rallye version of its new monster trailie, the LC8 Adventure. The bike, which will make its racing debut at Dakar 2002, will form the basis of a production race replica version which...
No lightweights, these
22 April 2001
They might call the 250 race the Lightweight, but it’s a race for the real heavyweights of The Island.
Making a break from the norm with the BMW R1150R
22 April 2001
WHEN I mentioned to someone that I was about to take delivery of a new BMW, the first question they asked was: ” Which one? A three-series? ” The reaction is understandable. BMW cars have a strong,...
Four new bike sections now open
22 April 2001
Follow the ‘BIKES’ link at the top of the page and you’ll immerse yourself in a world of facts and figures, tests and tips on the motorcycles you own, admire and lust after. The latest additions to...
Now you know why they call him "Big" Dave Jefferies
22 April 2001
Somehow, eight-stone Daijiro Katoh might not have the right physique for the rigours of The Island