MCN long-term test fleet 2024

Welcome to the 2024 MCN Long-term Test Fleet.

Over the course of the year we'll be putting serious miles on these 12 bikes to find out what they're like to live with.

Keep an eye out for written updates, videos and more. Click through to each individual page to get the latest updates as we pile on the miles.

Click on the pictures below:

BMW R1300GS	Kawasaki Ninja 650
Yamaha MT-09	BMW R12 nineT
Honda CBR600RR	KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo
Ducati Monster+	Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports
Suzuki GSX-S1000GX	Royal Enfield Himalayan 450
Triumph Scrambler 400 X	Harley-Davidson CVO Pan America
Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid	Yamaha XSR900 GP
Ducati Hypermotard 698 Mono	Watch all of our long-term test videos

BMW R1300GS

Kawasaki Ninja 650

Yamaha MT-09

BMW R12 nineT

Honda CBR600RR

KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo

Ducati Monster+

Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports

Suzuki GSX-S1000GX

Royal Enfield Himalayan 450

Triumph Scrambler 400 X

Harley-Davidson CVO Pan America

Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid

Yamaha XSR900 GP

Ducati Hypermotard 698 Mono

Watch all of our long-term test videos

Check out previous MCN Fleets below:

Year: ALL

I felt more confident on the brakes once I fitted aftermarket brake pads to the Suzuki GSX-S1000GX

29 January 2025 by Michael Guy

The GSX-S1000GX doesn’t really want for anything in the horsepower department thanks to the fact that it uses a derivative of the original Suzuki GSX-R1000 K5 inline four engine. With a claimed 149bhp...

I'm on my third Kawasaki long-term test bike of '24-'25 and it's my favourite one yet!

29 January 2025 by Gareth Evans

You join me a few hundred miles into life with the third Kawasaki of the long-term test period, and it’s one I simply wasn’t expecting. You see, the firm have taken the high-tech Ninja 7 Hybrid away...

One of these things is not like the others... But it's not the Triumph Scrambler 400 X!

22 January 2025 by Ben Clarke

The Scrambler 400 X has an immediate sibling in the form of the Speed 400 roadster, which shares its engine and frame but uses more road-biased suspension, wheels and tyres. But there are other spurs...

These are my defining reasons why you should consider buying an R1300GS, even if you don’t want one…

22 January 2025 by Richard Newland

There are those who have a BMW GS; those who want a GS (openly or secretly); and those who would rather remove their own eyes with a tea-stained spoon than be seen on one. But if you’ve never spent...

I joined a HOG chapter for a ride-out and here's why all H-D owners should consider joining

15 January 2025 by Justin Hayzelden

No Harley-Davidson test would be complete without experiencing the social side of ownership, which is accessible through H-D’s in-house riding club, the Harley Owners Group (HOG). A year’s free...

I've spent the last six months riding a Yamaha XSR900 GP and these are the best and worst bits

15 January 2025 by Carl Stevens

I’ve had the joy of riding the Yamaha XSR900 GP for just shy of six months and I’ve really come to love it. I was worried that its reasonably modest power figures might become dull, the lack of...

These are some of my favourite roads in Europe and they're ideal for a KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo

08 January 2025 by Michael Neeves

I had some outstanding rides on my KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo in 2024. Riding Spa Francorchamps was pretty special, as was a tour of the Picos and Pyrenees with my mates, but the highlight has to be...

These five mods or upgrades make the Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports an even better bike!

08 January 2025 by Steve Herbert-Mattick

The last five months with Honda’s enormous adventure tourer have been a real joy. Few bikes I’ve ridden over the years have clicked with me like the Africa Twin. Wonderful engine, classy styling,...

Winter is coming! Dan gets into the nitty gritty of CBR600RR commuting life as it gets colder

30 December 2024 by Dan Sutherland

Part of my mission statement for living with Honda’s CBR600RR across 2024 was to see if it was practical enough to be used as an ‘only’ bike. In order to meet this remit, it must be usable as an...

What's life going to be like with Ducati's Hypermotard 698 Mono? I'm going single to find out

27 December 2024 by Emma Franklin

It was back in October 2023 when I first heard about Ducati’s all new single. I’d been invited to interview Engine Director, Stefano Fantoni and during the hour-long discussion, he introduced me to...

Over 10k miles later, here are the upgrades I've made to the BMW R12 nineT that made a difference

18 December 2024 by Saffron Wilson

Despite the BMW R12 nineT being marketed as a retro cruiser, I did more than just pootle around the town… although the tick-tocking engine always made that a fun endeavour. But I wanted to rack up the...

I've ridden almost 10k miles on a Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 and these are the best and worst bits

18 December 2024 by Joseph Wright

I must admit, I really enjoy getting the Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 covered in mud, and its performance on the trails has impressed me. However, that’s only half the story… I’ve rated how it fares on...

I've sent the MCN fleet Ninja 7 Hybrid back to Kawasaki thanks to a recall that said 'do not ride'

11 December 2024 by Gareth Evans

Best laid plans… having just enjoyed the challenge of seeing whether Kawasaki’s eye-opening marketing claims were true, the firm whipped the rug out from under me with a recall. The official letter...

You don’t need an adventure bike to have an adventure, but we all knew that anyway

11 December 2024 by Michael Guy

With the unpredictable UK weather, I’ve learned to grasp opportunities to get out on the Suzuki GSX-S1000GX (or any of my bikes) when I can and often at short notice. And while I don’t mind riding in...

I've tried plenty of luggage options for the BMW R1300GS but this is the stuff I live with

04 December 2024 by Richard Newland

The human race has managed many great feats in its evolution – one of which being the power to invent ways of not having to carry all your chattels about your person while riding a motorcycle. And...

These off-road mods add £3154 to the price of a Scrambler 400 X and they're worth every penny!

04 December 2024 by Ben Clarke

My last few updates have centred around the Triumph Scrambler 400 X’s viability as a genuine off-road option, and this is the end of that journey. Having taken the stock bike greenlaning I felt...

Here's why I've forgotten big performance numbers to focus on fun with the Yamaha XSR900 GP

02 December 2024 by Carl Stevens

Last time we spoke, I’d moulded the Yamaha XSR900 GP into a bike that’s more manageable over distances, but it still needed a little more edge in the corners. Step one? A set of Pirelli Diablo Rosso...

I covered 1025 miles in 24hrs on a Pan America to link the ancestral homes of Harley and Davidson

27 November 2024 by Justin Hayzelden

It’s 4am on a chilly Sunday morning and I’m standing in a dark layby on an unlit dual carriageway staring into a void of inky blackness. There’s not a single vehicle going in either direction, and the...

12 hours and 445 miles for cauliflower is a perfectly normal excuse for a ride on the Africa Twin AS

20 November 2024 by Steve Herbert-Mattick

It’s the thin end of the wedge, but late October can still throw up a good riding day. This one happened to coincide with an unexpectedly skivable day in an otherwise punishing work schedule. So,...

I've ridden over 15k miles on a KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo and as an all-rounder it’s tough to beat

20 November 2024 by Michael Neeves

My KTM continues to impress in ways I’d never imagined. Sure, it does all the things you’d expect: it’s rapid, loves skids, wheelies, stoppies and hooning around racetracks. I love all that, but I...

I took my mum for a Honda CBR600RR pillion ride and here's what she thought of the experience

13 November 2024 by Dan Sutherland

It doesn’t take a genius to work out that the Honda CBR600RR is a focused, rider-centric machine. And yet, over the last 5000 miles, it has proven to be a frugal filtering dream – demolishing big...

What I learned from spending a summer riding the Ducati Monster SP - and what I'm trading it for...

13 November 2024 by Emma Franklin

It’s been a roaring good summer with the Ducati Monster SP, but now it’s time to release it back into the wild to make way for a Bolognese bike with a slightly different beat, but more on that...

Can my Himalayan keep up with a KTM 690 Enduro off road? Of course not, but I got there in the end

06 November 2024 by Joseph Wright

Recording an off-road special for MCN’s YouTube channel presented a unique challenge: capturing two seasoned riders on focused KTM 690 Enduros tackling a slimy and flooded Salisbury Plain landscape.

I rode a BMW R12 nineT thousands of miles through Europe to get to Motorrad Days in Garmisch

06 November 2024 by Saffron Wilson

Earlier this year, I decided to take the BMW R12 nineT home to the Motorrad Days festival in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. I’ve done a big feature on the journey for the print edition of MCN, but I thought...

Marketing fact check: Is a Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid really faster off the line than a ZX-10R?

01 November 2024 by Gareth Evans

Kawasaki make some bold claims for their Ninja 7 Hybrid and Z7 Hybrid twins. The firm reckon that the ‘strong hybrid’ system in these 650-sized bikes offers “the instant acceleration of a 1000cc-class...

I've made 'big improvements' to the Suzuki GSX-S1000GX with two simple upgrades - and so should you

30 October 2024 by Michael Guy

Why is it that manufacturers go to great lengths to design and build bikes, yet seem to forget some of the most important points? The biggest bugbear has to be tyres, with manufacturers opting for...

I rode a Kawasaki Ninja 7 Hybrid from full to completely empty. Here's how far it goes on a tank...

30 October 2024 by Gareth Evans

Since I took delivery of the Ninja 7 Hybrid this year I’ve had one mission in mind – to see if Kawasaki’s claims about the bike were true. Their website states it’s as quick as a supersports bike from...

I swapped the Triumph Scrambler 400 X's OE tyres and instantly transformed its off-road performance

23 October 2024 by Ben Clarke

In my last update, I vowed to experiment with the Scrambler 400 X’s off-road capabilities after a frustrating first dabble on the dirt that included a low-speed hop-off on a sunny and dry green...

I rode a BMW R1300GS over 1000 miles in under 23hrs and I'd do it again - here's why

23 October 2024 by Richard Newland

It’s 4:39am. It’s chilly. Why am I hitting the BMW R1300GS’s starter button, flooding the driveway with an LED whiteness that hurts my eyes, instead of wrapping the duvet tighter and dreaming of...

Regardless of road or traffic conditions I arrive with a smile on the Harley-Davidson Pan America

16 October 2024 by Justin Hayzelden

I’ve spent the summer putting the Harley-Davidson CVO Pan America through all sorts of off-road abuse, from gravel tracks and muddy ruts to sandy trails and overgrown green lanes, and it has barely...

A tail tidy neatens up the Yamaha XSR900 GP but an unexpected accessory has made the real difference

16 October 2024 by Carl Stevens

It’s been a busy month in the saddle on Yamaha’s XSR900 GP, as I’ve been working on getting the very best out of it. You see, not only is it a gorgeous thing to look at, it also has the minerals to...

I took my girlfriend for two pillion laps of the Nürburgring in the wet... and she loved it!

10 October 2024 by Michael Neeves

I took my girlfriend to Spa Francorchamps in Belgium recently. The four-hour trip from Calais is worth it just to bask in the circuit’s majesty as it winds its way through the Ardennes Forest. But we...

I took my Africa Twin to the Honda Adventure Centre but I rode one of theirs instead

09 October 2024 by Steve Herbert-Mattick

One of the great things about off-road schools – besides allowing you to learn new skills and grow your confidence on challenging terrain – is that if you crash, it’s on someone else’s bike! This is a...

Here's why a Ducati Monster SP is the perfect option to introduce your kids to biking... probably

02 October 2024 by Emma Franklin

We’ve all got that first-ride memory. Whether hazed by time or as clear as yesterday, that moment when we first felt the exhilaration of being on two wheels, the buzz from the engine, the speed, the...

I ride a Honda CBR600RR a thousand miles a month and here's what's so good about it

02 October 2024 by Dan Sutherland

I got the keys to Honda’s returning CBR600RR just shy of four months ago and in that time I have made tweaks to the rear suspension, improved distance comfort with a double-bubble flyscreen, and have...

Think sleek retro bikes are no good for carrying a pillion? You're right, but I tried anyway...

27 September 2024 by Saffron Wilson

The sleek lines of the BMW R12 nineT are perfect for a single rider… But this retro machine comes kitted out with a pillion seat, so it seemed necessary to get a pillion’s perspective on the perch...