MCN reviews
|
You might recognise the name Confederate. MCN featured the original version of the Hellcat in 1998 and you may also remember that their New Orleans factory was flattened in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. They’re back in business now, still building... Rieju’s new Marathon 125 supermoto is powered by the same engine you’ll find in Yamaha’s YZF-R125 and WR125 range, albeit fitted with a 30mm Keihin carb instead of fuel injection. Costing £3199 this Spanish-made machine is actually £400 cheaper than... If your parents have a fair old wedge to chuck on your first bike, 125SM ownership is not only guaranteed to put a ruddy big smile on your face, but also pull the girls outside the local KFC. Nothing in... Triumph’s decision to revamp the original Rocket III into a streetfighter is an interesting one. Why? Because it hardly fits the bill – stripped version of a sports bike with oddball looks – because of its custom-biased specs of long... From the café racer styling to the air-cooled India-built single-cylinder engine, the Enfield clubman is soaked with nostalgia. Even the addition of modern-day fuel injection, front disc brake and the new 5-speed unit construction engine fails to dent the projected... Replacing the old Brutale 989R, the new 139bhp 990R has a sleeved-down version of the new 1090RR engine. It’s slightly lower spec, so has non-adjustable footpegs, more durable Pirelli Diablo Rosso tyres (not Dunlop Qualifier RRs), forged aluminium wheels, no... MV’s new range-topping Brutale 1090RR, the first of the new-generation of machines built under Harley Davidson ownership, might not look very different to the old one, but it’s a revelation. It’s 85% new, boasts a dual power map, an eight-stage... A great-looking, soulful bike we hope stays just as raucous and raw while its rough edges are smoothed for final production. It will be a special bike but does the JAP name cast a strong enough spell? Time will tell. Ducati’s entry-level 803cc Hypermotard 796 is a stormer of a machine. It’s 12kg lighter and its seat is 20mm lower than the Hypermotard 1100, which makes it easier to ride and in the real world, and every bit as fast... Kawasaki has revived a dead class of motorcycle – the cheap and cheerful trail bike. Soft power, a novice friendly chassis and low running costs are completely at odds with the hardcore enduro styling. It’s as happy getting back and... Yamaha’s all-new WR125X has everything it needs to be the class leading learner supermoto. It’s great looking, well-equipped, has a great new engine, is solidly built and is great fun to ride. The Yamaha WR125X is a serious, substantial piece... Harley’s Wide Glide dates back to the seventies. The new for 2010 bike retains the old-school low-rider looks of long, raked and wide-spaced forks (hence the name Wide Glide), skinny front wheel and minimalist bulk. But what makes the new... It’s been a long time coming, but the new Honda VFR1200F is fast enough to keep Super Blackbird owners happy and makes the VFR800 look as old as the hills. This is a true sports tourer in all senses of... BMW’s successor to long-lived and popular entry-level F650 single is, confusingly, being based on the F800GS, neither a single (it’s a parallel twin) or a 650 (it’s 798cc) – so perhaps not surprisingly it’s miles better than the old one.... Hybrid technology has finally reached motorcycles – the MP3 Hybrid has an electric motor that can assist the petrol engine or run as a standalone engine. But sadly it’s not quite ready to provide a viable alternative yet – price... If the idea of a 1187cc, 115bhp V-twin machine with Scrambler clothing and mild off-road capability provokes the madness within, the Scrambler is the doorway to the nearest nut house. On the road-biased tyres (an optional fit because the standard... The Runner is a long-term favourite in the scooter market, and for this year the original design was finally updated. Now four-stroke, the Runner is a sporty-looking and practical machine. The Roehr is a very exclusive, hand-built, all-American sports bike using a supercharged Harley Davidson 1250cc V-twin stolen from a V-Rod. The frame was designed by Walter Roehr himself. It’s not just a gimmick either, it works and, considering the... As the name suggests, the Moto Hispania SM1125 is a Spanish made learner legal supermoto. It certainly looks the part and will have young potential customers drooling at shop windows. It’s competitively priced, being one of the cheapest in its... It’s been a long time since new models from Moto Guzzi were anything to get excited about and although there’s nothing radical or inspiring about the Bellagio, and it’s still mostly been assembled by raiding the parts bins, for a... The Victory Hammer S is the latest product of America’s fledgling ‘second’ motor company with a slightly sportier stance and image than the stock Hammer due to mean black slathered everywhere and gorgeous Performance Machine Gatlin wheels, the rear wearing... The Aprilia Shiver is the first Aprilia to be created from a clean sheet of paper since cash-rich Piaggio took to the helm, and on the basis of our test it’s a good-un. The Aprilia Shiver is one of a... The Kawasaki GTR1400 is the long-awaited, long-rumoured flagship sports tourer based on the powerhouse ZZ-R1400 – and it’s been worth the wait. The GTR1400 is a classy, smooth and potent bit of kit, delivering a magic carpet ride across continents... The The BMW HP2 Megamoto’s £12,595 price tag is ridiculously high and will stop most of us from ever experiencing it, which is a great shame. The HP2 Megamoto is far more agile, powerful and fun than you’d ever imagine... The Buell 1125R is vastly improved in the six months since its launch in late 2007 but, make no mistake, it is not Japanese or Italian standard in any one area of the bike. The engine is a 131bhp Rotax... The Nightster is the result of a simple plan by Harley-Davidson and it’s brilliantly executed. What plan? To take the second cheapest model (Sportster 1200) in Harley-Davidson’s vast range and tweak its styling to end up with a new bike... The verdict is still up in the air regarding the futuristic, dynamic looks of the Suzuki B-King. It seems you either hate it or love it. What can be said for sure is the B-King is very fast, enough to... Triumph’s new Street Triple looks just like a Speed Triple but with the engine out of the Daytona 675 – and it’s a revalation. The Street Triple is light, fast, fun, agile, sounds great, stylish, cool and cheap, too. Overnight... Suzuki have played around with the GSX1300R Hayabusa’s styling without losing the original’s looks and character, as a result the new Suzuki Hayabusa looks really sleek. Engine capacity had increased and so has power and torque. Handling hasn’t been significantly... This latest version of the Honda Transalp is much improved over the last model, but to be honest that was never going to be difficult. The motor is just quick enough, should last forever, and offers a smile when the... The BMW HP2 Sport is expensive and quite rightly so considering this is the finest sporting package BMW have rocked up with. Forget the fact that the HP2 Sport is an old air-cooled Boxer engine that supplies the goods, think... The Ducati 848 isn’t just a small 1098, it’s much more than that. The 848 is a proper fast (top speed is 166mph), fine-handling, gorgeous Ducati superbike in its own right. It’s no longer the poor relation to its big... Sporting a new, detuned version of the current CBR600RR engine and a new cast aluminium chassis, bodywork and suspension (now adjustable for preload) the updated Honda CBF600 is practical, easy to ride, fairly swift, comfortable and thanks to ABS brakes... Since 1992 the name FireBlade has conjured visions of a hard-charging superbike with attitude. While this is true of the very first two models, since then the FireBlade became a model of respectability. The 2006-07 model was arguably the best... The new Kawasaki ZX-10R scores an easy five out of five; it surely must be the fastest production 1000cc bike of the current crop. But this ZX-10R is not all about Kawasaki’s new blistering engine and head-banging attitude, it’s controllable... The American market has been a big success for the Kawasaki Ninja 250 range for years and years and… But even the Yanks need a fresh brew every now and then and the Ninja 250R is the latest offering. Fortunately for... Ducati is back to its decadent best with the exotic, reassuringly expensive new 1098R. Built in limited numbers so the Italian firm can race it WSB, the 1098R forms the basis of their F08 factory racer. In fact, never has... The KTM RC8 is the revelation of 2008… even though we’ve known it’s been coming for four years. Perhaps we should’ve given KTM more credit because all their machines (on and off-road) to date are superb. Nonetheless the RC8 is... Suzuki’s new budget and novice-friendly GSXF650F all-rounder proves that sometimes, brilliance is found in the most unlikely places. Although on face value merely a ‘Bandit with a fairing’ the GSX650F’s blend of real world performance, practicality, fun factor and value... BMW's new F800GS is virtually unique: a 750/800 class adventure bike, that to most degrees offers the best of both worlds. It’s light, slim and perky enough to be a credible off-roader yet it’s also substantial, grunty, roomy and potentially... The KTM 690 Duke's new LC4 single cylinder engine is the most impressive part of the new Duke. It’s hard to believe it’s a single, so much better than the lumpy single cylinder engines of old. The styling is very... The Aprilia Dorsoduro is priced competitively cheaper than Ducati’s Hypermotard and KTM 990 supermoto, and still turns heads, is laden with quality parts and has clearly been designed and not just thrown together. The Aprilia Dorsoduro may not be as... The new 696 Monster is Ducati’s most important bike, this is the bike that brings in the money and the sales, and thankfully it seems Ducati have got it spot on with the all new Monster. Thankfully they’ve not played... Basically, perhaps very basically, the Harley-Davidson XR1200R is a good bike. Dynamically the XR1200R performs and handles better than any Harley before. It’s brisk (if not exactly fast), fun to throw around and looks good, too. The main disappointment is... The Yamaha XT660Z Tenere is a great value, superbly capable adventure bke with real off road capability. Global treks aren’t really on the cards as the Yamaha XT660Z Tenere’s vibey single cylinder engine makes hard work of pulling its 185kg... The Moto Guzzi V7 Classic isn’t perfect. It’s underpowered slightly, a tad vibey at speed and the levers aren’t span adjustable. But otherwise we struggle to find fault. The Moto Guzzi V7 Classic is stylish, useful, charismatic and simply a... Forget the dinosaur CB1000 of the early nineties, or the now defunct 900 Hornet, the CB1000R is a whole new bag for Honda, designed with Europe, using a retuned version of the 2007 FireBlade engine and with 2008 FireBlade forks... Triumph’s standard Street Triple mixes Triumph Speed Triple style with the tech of a Triumph Daytona 675 engine. It's light, fast, fun, agile, stylish and cool... and it just got even better. The 'R' version comes with fully-adjustable suspension and fiercer radial four-pot... This new version of the Enfield Electra may look the same, and to be fair in alot of ways that count it is, but in fact it features an all new unit construction engine with fuel-injection, dragging it kicking and screaming... Taking just one year to build from a clean sheet of paper, Bimota’s new DB7 has been an instant sales success. That’s a relief for the small firm in Rimini, Italy, who were pinning their hopes on the DB7 being... New for 2008, the K8 is the latest incarnation of the giant-killing Suzuki GSX-R750. With only minor tweaks for this year and a facelift, the 175mph K8 is now the smoothest and most refined GSX-R750 ever. Suzuki say it has... Harley's Cross Bones is the perfect antidote to a tough week at work. It’s so comfortable, thanks to its wide, beautifully padded, hand-stitched sprung seat and rubber-topped footboards that you could almost fall asleep on it; something the whisper-quiet exhausts... The Benelli TNT super naked has been with us now, almost unchanged since 2004. Early 1130cc models were snarling, brutal, wheelie-prone monsters with a savage-sounding wail from its three into one underseat exhaust. But these very early models could be... Apart from the tinny two-stroke noise coming out the back of the SX125 and RX125 the new learner strokers could pass for a bigger supermoto. But get on board and you’ll find that the power and handling simply doesn’t match... Like the Ducati Monster 696 that arrived earlier in 2008, the bigger capacity Monster range was, after 15 years, in desperate need of an update. And the result is the best air-cooled Monster ever. Only subtle styling tweaks have been... Based on the sports Buell 1125R, the 1125CR is essentially a naked version of the same bike. As it comes it has one-piece handlebars to mimic clip-ons, but the pay-extra upright bars make more sense to ride with – far... Nobody else has a 168bhp V-twin on its books, complete with traction control, Ohlins suspension, data-recording etc, and if they did it’d probably cost more than the £14,750 Ducati 1198S. And there’s a good chance it wouldn’t have the same... In terms of chassis and handling the new Kawasaki ZX-6R a big step forward over the old ZX-6R. The new big piston forks use MotoGP technology and make a huge difference. They take a little getting use to at first but enable... The new Suzuki GSX-R600 is very similar to last years GSX-R600. Underneath the new body work chassis wise it’s very similar. Suzuki engineers have played around with the engine but instead of seeking peak performance they have tried to make... Honda has given its supersports weapon subtle tweaks for 2009, designed to give it more mid-range oomph and a smoother power delivery. New pistons, cylinder head and exhaust system have bolstered torque between 6000-10,000rpm, which makes the engine more flexible... Don’t think that this is just ‘another’ Brutale: the new 1078RR is very, very different. The Italian firm has been known to release a bewildering number of Brutale variants since the first 750 was released in 2003. As well as... After just two years in production the Moto Guzzi 1200 Sport gets a new engine. So it’s out with the old two-valver and in with a new 105bhp four-valve head motor, taken from the Stelvio adventure bike and the Griso... You would be hard pushed to tell the difference from the successful but outgoing Triumph Daytona 675 model and the latest 2009 model. But stand closer and the differences jump out at you i.e. the new angular top fairing, Nissin... Reworking an existing model to make an all-together different model can work, as Suzuki’s Bandit and V-Strom range has shown – add panniers, taller screen, other accessories and they become good budget touring bikes. Buell’s take on this is to... The most beautiful novice 125cc bike money can buy – yes, it even outclasses Yamaha’s YZF-R125 and biggest competitor Aprilia RS125. The Cagiva Mito SP525 is essentially the long-running two-stroke Cagiva Mito 125 brought up to date in every area... You’d never guess this was an entry level custom cruiser, at only £6500 it’s a hell of a lot of bike for the money. It questions whether you need a larger bike, as it does everything a larger customs does... This is like no in-line-four cylinder sportsbike ever produced. It’s simply sensational. The Yamaha R1’s ultra-short-stroke engine has a cross-plane crankshaft, with its crank pins set at 90° and has irregular firing intervals, which is technology lifted directly from Valentino... This is the naked version of the half-faired Yamaha XJ6 Diversion. Aside from the lack of fairing, it is exactly the same spec, but somehow it has transformed the Yamaha from sensible budget middleweight to exciting mini streetfighter. With its... The new Yamaha XJ6 Diversion is the half-faired version of the Yamaha XJ6. It's more powerful, better handling and prettier than the trusty old Diversion of the late 80s and early 90s. But just like that old original, it offers... It may look largely the same as the outgoing model but the latest version of BMW’s naked K1300R has had a host of small changes that add up to a much better bike all-round. With a claimed 173bhp and some... It may look largely the same as the outgoing model but the latest version of BMW’s rocketship K1300S has had a host of small changes that add up to a much better bike all round. With a claimed 175bhp and... The BMW K1300GT is a Grand Tourer in the true sense of the words. It manages to combine massive performance with supreme practicality and comfort. There’s no getting away from the sheer size of the BMW K1300GT - it’s a... Retro trailie style meets roiling museum exhibit Enfield – and it works a treat. For us the ergonomic mix of pegs and bars, fruity pipe and overall style hit the mark more than any other Electra. You may concur, or... The first Kawasaki ER-6n already offered fantastic value for money – fun, practicality and decent looks for £4500. It didn’t need a revamp, but for this year it now has a classier more grown up image. The chassis has been... The KTM 990 Adventure is already a brilliant adventure trail bike, but the 2009 adds a little bit more refinement and power. A new crank has smoothed vibes, and touch extra power is not instantly noticeable but welcome all the... This is the ultimate evolution of MV Agusta’s famous F4 model, which has been with us in one form or another since 1999. The in-line-four-cylinder MV Agusta 1078cc F4 1078 RR 312 replaces last year’s 998cc F4 R 312. The... It does what is says on the tin but with some added extra style. The four stoke motor is virtually bullet proof if on the slow side and old compared to the two stoke competition. But it’s dependable, easy to... The old SV650 was a good bike and to be honest Suzuki didn’t have to do much to make it a great bike once more. But they have gone one better and given us an excellent bike. Obvious improved looks... Unashamedly a circuit-based blaster that will need a road-rider to be fully aware of what he is about to buy if it’s to be used on the road. From the competition-biased WP suspension to the 170bhp engine and the lightweight... The Suzuki GSX-R1000 K9 is the first completely new GSX-R1000 in the big Suzuki’s history, but it feels uncannily similar to the K7/K8 model it replaces. Despite a new short-stoke engine and an all-new chassis, the K9 hasn’t captured the... The new Moto Guzzi Café Classic is a café racer version of the V7 Classic retro roadster warmly received last year. Powered by Guzzi’s small block 750 Nevada V-twin powertrain in an old school twin shock chassis, it’s a dinky,... At last, we’ve finally been able to ride the RSV4 in the dry after its sopping wet launch in Spring 2009! As we said before, Aprilia built the RSV4 as a race bike first, road bike second. You won’t even... The KTM 990 SMT is a new take on the adventure bike theme that manages to combine all the mental fun of a supermoto with the comfort, practicality and ability to cover miles of an adventure bike. It’s being hailed... BMW placed the F800R as an entry-level, sporty, naked urban machine to slot in amongst myriad of 600cc middleweight bikes eg Yamaha FZ6, Triumph Street Triple, Honda Hornet and so on – even though its engine is 798cc! And we... The Ducati Streetfighter looks like a crashed 1098 superbike but packs so much presence and attitude it works standing still. It needs to because at £13,995 for the S-version we rode here, it has a hell of a lot of competition... Triumph’s all-new Thunderbird is bravely aimed at taking on Harley in the US, but in terms of spec, quality, performance and price looks the best-equipped rival ever to do just that. It performs well, handles better, is beautifully built and... In theory the WR250X is a perfect funky first bike – lightweight, funky looks and an all-new design should spell big fun. But it doesn’t – the Yamaha is badly let down by it’s chassis, which is unforgivable given the... The Aprilia RX50 has the looks of a proper enduro bike, but none of the performance. Restricted, it’ll struggle to break 30mph, and de-restricted (illegal for 16 year-olds) it’ll top 50 eventually. The chassis will cope with gentle off-roading, but... This is the smaller engined version of Benelli’s brilliant, but unfortunately rare Tre K 1130 sports tourer. We rate it highly: it’s comfy, easy to ride, sounds great, handles well and has a wild side for when the mood takes... The ‘updated’ version of Honda’s bum-basic commuter only needed a few upgrades over the original 1960’s design – CDI ignition is the main benefit, reducing maintenance. Otherwise, it’s still the crude but charming plod-along it always was – only emissions... The standard Aprilia SL750 Shiver is just another funky naked bike – but the simple addition of a fairing turns it in to one of the best Italian all rounders you can buy. The Shiver GT is very competent, mixing... With no roadster to fill the void in Yamaha’s range between a learner 125 and something like an 80bhp XJ6, the Japanese firm have decided to bring the YBR250 in to the UK as a limited run. It’s friendly, practical... The biggest yet of Piaggio’s peculiar MP3s has an identity crisis. It looks like a scooter but the law classes it the same as a Reliant Robin three-wheeler car. Because Piaggio has added a footbrake and widened the space between... The Moto Guzzi Stelvio is well built, sounds great, stylish, easy to handle, comfortable, practical and comes with that historic Moto Guzzi badge on the tank. It’s not as focussed as the BMW R1200GS Adventure on road and nowhere as... Don’t think of the Brutale 989R as a watered-down version of its 1078RR bigger brother; it’s a powerhouse of a bike in its own right. MV claim a massive 142bhp from the crank and a top speed of 165mph, which... The largest incarnation of the Piaggio MP3 retains the same reassuring all-weather grip and stability afforded by the third wheel, but with more power for motorway cruising. It’s no Goldwing, but if your daily commute mixes town work with high-speed... The Gilera Nexus sits between the Nexus 125 and the Nexus 500 as the mid-capacity sporty scooter in the Gilera range. The design is based around the concept of a sportsbike, but adapted for a CVT step-through scooter. It’s certainly... The Piaggio X7 250 ie is halfway between a full-on maxi scooter and a lightweight city scooter, so in theory should offer comfort and a bit of class with some traffic busting ability. It manages it too – it feels... The Suzuki Sixteen 125 is aimed at trendy teens looking for stylish transport (hence the name – continental teenagers can ride one from age 16), but the UK scooter market is different – it fits with a more mature rider,... Now that the iconic Vespa PX series has been killed off by emissions laws, the LX twist-and-go four-stroke is just about the closest thing to the original Vespa look. Underneath the classic looks they’re a modern scoot – and the... |
||
|
More Articles...