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

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

Check out previous MCN Fleets below:

Year: ALL

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...

I rode a Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 for 3000 miles around Europe and found two big problems

25 September 2024 by Joseph Wright

Embarking on my debut long-distance tour filled me with a mixture of excitement and nerves. As I left my hometown of Peterborough a Euro-virgin, and heading for Calais on the Royal Enfield Himalayan...

I'm not normally a huge fan of Kawasaki's Ninja styling, but this one's the ugly duckling

20 September 2024 by Gareth Evans

Thanks to a packed schedule I’ve been using the Ninja 7 Hybrid mainly for commuting recently. I’ve got a few longer jaunts planned for later in the year (along with some experiments; more on that...

I rode 1250 miles in four days on the Suzuki GSX-S1000GX. There's one thing missing from this bike

19 September 2024 by Michael Guy

There’s nothing like the anticipation of going on a big trip, and having already crunched out some big journeys on the easygoing Suzuki GSX-S1000GX, I was looking forward to my trip to northern...

I can't believe it when people think a BMW R1300GS is too heavy for them! Here's why

11 September 2024 by Richard Newland

Something that I hear a lot when out and about on the BMW R1300GS is: “I can’t imagine riding such a massive motorcycle, especially off-road.” It’s an observation that, inexplicably, never ceases to...

I went off-roading on a Triumph Scrambler 400 X and quickly learned two things

11 September 2024 by Ben Clarke

One reason I was drawn to the Scrambler version of the new baby Triumph is that I like to occasionally dabble off-road. I’m no Billy Bolt, and I don’t pretend to be, but I love the challenge of...

The Yamaha XSR900 GP is a gorgeous retro sportsbike but here's how I plan to make it perfect

05 September 2024 by Carl Stevens

I’m actually a bit gutted to say goodbye to the MT-09 long-term test bike, as it’s been utterly sublime over the first part of the year. It has done a cracking job of quenching my thirst for a fun and...

I took a £24k, 280kg Harley-Davidson CVO Pan America off-roading and it blew my mind

04 September 2024 by Justin Hayzelden

Ever since tackling some unpaved passes in the Italian Alps, I’ve been itching to get the Pan America off the tarmac and onto the dirt. Weighing in at around 280kg without the luggage, there’s no...

I saved over £500 by fitting aftermarket luggage to my Honda Africa Twin but it's too wide

29 August 2024 by Steve Herbert-Mattick

Official motorbike luggage is an option for the ATAS, but ever on the hunt for a saving I though I’d kit my new Honda Africa Twin AS out with expandable panniers from Spanish specialists Shad. The...

I rode a KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo 3250 miles in Spain, here's one feature I wouldn't be without

28 August 2024 by Michael Neeves

You read a lot about Bluetooth-enabled displays like the one fitted to the KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo nowadays. We’ve come a long way from simple analogue dials. They generally work with an app and...

Long-term Honda CBR600RR review update three | Hitting the CBR's natural habitat at Cadwell Park

22 August 2024 by Dan Sutherland

The last 2500 miles with Honda’s CBR600RR have been flipping brilliant. It’s beautiful to look at, nimble on the lanes, and roomy enough over distance. To find out if it goes as fast as it looks, I...