And so those old, oily, smoke-blowing classics that were meant to have been melted down and turned into Toyota Hybrids right about now are still out and about. Yes, there’s some classic dirt bikes that surely need to be included on a list, but for this month we’ll focus entirely on their bitumen brothers. So in no particular order, here’s our list of the bestest five blue smokers ever.

5. 1980 Yamaha RD350LC

Wet dreams are made of this. Image via Yamaha MC.

For a generation of wanna-be junior racers born in the late ’60s and early ’70s, the Yamaha RD350 constituted a dream bike that would still raise blood pressures and tents in pants to this very day (especially in the UK). See, back then in 1980 or thereabouts, fast motorcycles weren’t as plentiful or as cheap as they were today.

Depending on your financial circumstances and just how much money your parents made, a request for a motorcycle for Christmas could result in any number of flat-out rejections, lame-ass mopeds, buzzy scooters, and many other “I could probably run faster than this” two-wheeled options. But if you managed to somehow land yourself an RD350, you’d be instantly rocketed to the top of the list for local cool kids in your area. It was that good. And that fast.

A well-deserved win. Image via MCN.

Now while the specs may seem a little tame by today’s standards, a bike weighing in at 160kg (350 lbs) with 50 hp and a top speed of a tickle over the ton that was also legal for learner motorcyclists to ride was a mind blower back then. C’mon! 110mph on a learner-legal motorcycle!

Who made that decision? I’ll tell you who; bureaucrats who didn’t understand the power of two-stroke engines, that’s who. “It’s only 350ccs. You’d have to try pretty hard to get into trouble with that!” they said. But oh, how wrong they were. And thusly, a metric shit-ton of British kids proceeded to go out and do exactly that. It’s a wonder there’s any of them left in one piece, to be honest.

4. 1971 Kawasaki H2 Mach IV

Note the twin right-hand exhausts… Image via Kawasaki

Depending on who you ask, the ’71 Kawasaki H2 Mach IV is either the best or most dangerous motorcycle ever made. Whatever the truth may be, it’s definitely etched its name in the history of two-strokes as a kind of 1970s motorcycling high water mark, in the same way that some of the American muscle cars did around the same time. They too are overpowered, underbraked, easy to break loose—and from all reports, hilariously good fun to boot.

…and the single on the left. Image via Kawasaki.

And just why this might be doesn’t exactly require rocket science to fathom—supersonic speeds have something to do with it. See, if the RD350 can get 50hp out of a twin 350cc two-stroke, then no prizes for guessing that the Kawasaki engineers managed about 75hp for this 200 kg (440 lbs), 748 cc, triple-cylindered beastie. And that’s probably a conservative power estimate.

Torque was also impressive, at around 77 lb-ft. So they are strong on go and weak on woah. Modern upgrades and 50 years of learnings have somewhat tamed these Kobe monsters, but not enough to stop the insanity and accompanying in-helmet giggles.

3. 1994 Honda NSR250 SP

Lines for DAYS. Image via Honda.

If ever a two-stroke bike got the race replica thing right, surely it was the 1994 Honda NSR250. Almost the spitting image of Luca Cadalora’s 1992 world championship bike, the thing did—and still does—look like the absolute business. Jaw dropping features included a keyless ignition via Smart Card theft prevention system dubbed “PGM-IV ignition”, that gorgeous single-sided swing arm and a Big Tobacco paint job that still raises the hairs on your arms, despite all of us knowing better.

Proof that when it comes to moto graphics, more is more. Image via Honda.

Weighing in at a paltry 150 kgs (330 lbs) and with a conservative 40 hp on tap, those in the know could get their hands on a special HRC Smart Card that would unlock an extra 15hp (aka the “unrestricted” mode). And don’t get me started on the 12,000 rpm redline. Damn! The SP model shown here was the cream of the crop thanks to a dry clutch, adjustable suspension, and Magtek wheels.

Only 1,500 were made, but there’s a wider pool of bikes to choose from if you can forego the SP pack. It’s a well-known fact that Soichiro Honda was not a two-stroke fan, but with bikes like this coming out of the imaginations of the Hamamatsu engineers, you’d have to wonder what they would have been capable of if they’d really leant into the technology.

Yes, I know you want to hear it. Try this.

2. 1985 Yamaha RD500LC

If only it had more acronyms on it… Image via Yamaha.

If the Honda motorcycle above was the race rep smoker to have in the 90s, then I think it’s fair to say that the ’80s equivalent would have to be the Yamaha RD500LC. Also known as the RZ500 in Canada and Australia, the bike was the almost-inevitable conclusion to Yamaha’s successes with Kenny Roberts and their legendary YZR500 Grand Prix bike.

And don’t forget the RD350LC, too. But this was no learner-legal boy racer bike; this angry red and white rocket was the absolute real deal. And with 88hp and 50 lb-ft of torque available from a damn V4 engine, there’s not much to argue about.

Injection-molded plastic never looked so good. Image via alumfortt.com.br

The RD (Race Developed) model uses a 50˚, twin-crankshaft V4 engine layout with YPVS—or Yamaha Power Valve System—technology, which basically increased the engine’s output by varying the “timing” of the bike’s exhaust port in relation to the engine’s speed with a servo motor. The other upside is a broader powerband. And don’t get me started about those incredible quadruple exhausts.

The engine also featured intake reed valves that set it apart from the GP bike, which used rotary disc valve induction. A Japan-only special edition was also released, named the RZV500R. The major difference here was a hand-welded aluminum frame, which reduced the bike’s weight by a substantial 10 kilos (22 lb) over stock. Want.

1. 1985 Suzuki RG500

Without the tail section… Image via Suzuki.

I saved the most powerful for last. Any Barry Sheene fans worth their salt will know that his first GP wins were on the RG500 Suzuki “XR14” smokers in the mid ’70s. The design was unique insofar as the four cylinder engine was arranged in a square configuration just like the Ariel Square Four from the 1930s.

And despite the well-known heating issues with that design, Suzuki’s engineers managed to produce something pretty special. Special enough that it went from racing winner to showroom sales success with the release of the road-going RG500 (Also called the “Gamma”) you see here. As is usually the case, this was also the point at which Suzuki racing decided that the square four design had reached its limits, and they shifted to a V4 configuration in 1987.

…and with. Better with, yeah? Image via ruotedasogno.com.

The bike available to the public had a claimed torque figure of 53.11 lb-ft (72.0 Nm) and horsepower was 94.94 HP. Just as impressively, it weighed in at 175 kg (385 lb) dripping wet, so it not only had almost 10 horses up on the RD Yamaha, but it was also a full 25 kg (55 lb) lighter.

As with all ’80s bikes, it’s covered with tech abbreviations. In this case, the one that really matters is the “SAEC” initials on the bike’s right side fairing. Similar to Yamaha’s YPVS system, it’s essentially an exhaust power valve that varies the geometry of the exhaust system in an effort to make more power over a wider range of engine speeds.

The bike also had “AEC” tech which affected the bike’s valves for a similar outcome. And while in my eyes, its looks haven’t quite stood the test of time like the Yamaha and Honda above, there’s little doubt that a well-tuned and maintained bike would make for a great Sunday ride and a great moto investment opportunity in 2022.

The post The Top 5 Two-Stroke Motorcycles of All Time (On Road Edition) appeared first on webBikeWorld.

And while choosing the best ones of the bunch might be similar to choosing favourites amongst your own offspring, it’s a task we’ve assigned ourselves unflinchingly. We’re just really good like that. And with contenders from far-flung countries like Japan, Germany and Spain, it’s going to be a bit of a world tour, too. What’s not to like? So get into your off-road riding gear and get out your premix containers. Here we go.

5. ’74 Yamaha YZ360

Probably the top of the Japanese crop when it comes to off-road two-strokes, Yamaha really hit their stride with the YZ360. So much so that its famous “YZ” initials are still talked about in hushed tones to this very day—in fact, Yamaha is bringing YZ back for 2023. The “YZ360A” (to give it its full nomenclature), was one of those rare bikes that was virtually identical to the ones the factory was racing at the same time in global MX competitions.

Bearing exactly nothing in common with any other Yamaha bikes of the time, those fortunate enough to have cracked one open report that not only were they clearly hand-assembled, but that all of the bike’s internal components were bespoke racing parts fitted, balanced and adjusted to within an inch of their lives. And believe it or not, Yamaha advised customers to replace the piston rings after every damn race as the cylinder wasn’t able to be bored out. That’s crazy talk…

We’re pretty confident in saying that they went like stink, too. And what with the eye-watering price (at the time), there would likely have been riots at Yamaha dealerships if they hadn’t. With a powerband that was micrometres wide, the bike’s real advantage over the competition was its featherweight, er, weight.

Coming in at 212 lbs (96 kgs) and with 30 lb/ft of torque (power figures are suspiciously absent from Yamaha brochures and ads of the time) you can easily imagine the get-up-and-go the YZ had. Soon, the MX world would be infatuated with long-travel rear suspension set-ups, so in many ways the YZ was also the end of an era.

If you ever get the chance to own one, you’d be certifiable not to grab it. Steve McQueen did. It’ll cost you around $8,500 US.

4. ’73 Honda CR125M ‘Elsinore’

“Elsinore”. The name that launched one million dust baths, and another Steve McQueen favourite, too. Of all the bikes here, it’s probably the Elsie that most affected the global MX scene we know today.

Named after the Lake Elsinore race in California, it was a massive backflip from a company that was run by a card-carrying two-stroke hater by the name of Soichiro Honda. And while we won’t go into the reasons why, they somehow managed to pull the world’s best two-stroke out of their proverbials, even if it was rapidly overtaken by their Northeast Asian competitors in a matter of a few short years.

Not really on the bleeding edge of the global dirt bike boom of the day, part of the bike’s success was tied to the fact that Honda made so damn many of them. As someone famously said, “The Honda Elisinore won everything simply because there were so many of them competing”.

“Elsinore”. The name that launched one million dust baths, and another Steve McQueen favourite, too. Of all the bikes here, it’s probably the Elsie that most affected the global MX scene we know today.

Named after the Lake Elsinore race in California, it was a massive backflip from a company that was run by a card-carrying two-stroke hater by the name of Soichiro Honda. And while we won’t go into the reasons why, they somehow managed to pull the world’s best two-stroke out of their proverbials, even if it was rapidly overtaken by their Northeast Asian competitors in a matter of a few short years.

Not really on the bleeding edge of the global dirt bike boom of the day, part of the bike’s success was tied to the fact that Honda made so damn many of them. As someone famously said, “The Honda Elisinore won everything simply because there were so many of them competing”.

But don’t get me wrong; they were a great bike. With a paltry 82kg (179lb) curb weight and a little over 20 horsies, it wasn’t far behind the YZ in power-to-weight ratio terms. And with Honda’s legendary engineering making it go, there’s no doubt that you could ride it to the moon and back before it’d gently ask you to service it. Or not.

Also like the Yammie, the Elsi too would die a quick and tragic death after Suzuki and Maico engineers realised around this time that monoshocks and more travel in the rear of motocrossers was a game changer. These days, good examples will set you back around $6,000 US.

3. ’74 Bultaco Pursang

Everyone loves ‘Tacos, right? Well in this case, it’s the same for the bike as it is for the Mexican tortilla masterpiece. And unlike Honda, Spanish manufacturer Bultaco was there from the beginning of the meal.

As America embraced the offroad moto world, Bultaco handed out some pretty tasty snacks, but in ‘74 the penny dropped when good ol’ Joe and Jolene Dirtbike realised that the showroom “Pursang” (“Pure-blooded” in Spanish) models were as close as look at you to the bike ridden by Jim Pomeroy when he won the 1973 Spanish 250 GP on a Factory ‘Taco. Not known for their reliability, the bikes still look like a million pesos—and with a low seat and comfortably set fork angle, the things would slide for days on a track.

The factory claimed 39 ponies, but that’s probably more accurate for Jim’s race bike than the ones in the stores. And while it didn’t make them go any faster, there was something about the bike’s overall finish and the factory’s attention to detail in terms of metal finishing, paint and plastics that just made those poor, helpless riders who happened to wander into their local Bultaco dealers go weak at their already-sore knees.

And not to sound like a broken record here, but the Pursang’s days were also numbered. This time, it was more to do with corporate hijinx than the bike being beaten on the track. You can pick up a mint Pursang these days for around USD $6,000, but it’ll still break down (and parts aren’t exactly in plentiful supply these days).

2. ’81 Maico Mega 2

What a difference a few years make! And look at the travel on that rear! Looking much more like a modern MX bike than our three previous winners, the German-made Maico Mega 2 was an absolute kick in the pant eggs for the rest of the world’s MX manufacturers. Here was a bike that was more powerful and better handling than almost any other bike of the day.

Riders talk about power delivery that felt like the moto gods themselves were pushing you forward, and while it looked not too dissimilar to the Maico, you better believe that those rascally Germans were a notch or two above the Spaniards when it came to reliability. Of course, the fact that it had 490cc of get-up-and-go probably had a lot to do with it, but for a brief, shining moment, the Mega 2 was a world-beater.

Of course after this Deutsch salvo across the bows of global MX, people soon began to realise that half a litre of two-stroke engine was a BIG handful—even for the pros. And that classic, “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday” mentality of the manufacturers began to look a little more dangerous than it did a meagre decade before. The big buggers were getting heavier, too.

While light by today’s BMW GS standards, the Mega here weighed in at around 106 kgs, and its power output on a new or well-tuned race model was an eye watering 53 hp. That’s two-and-a-bit Elisnores, buddy. Ouch. You’ll need around $13,000 US to get yourself on one these days.

1. ’83 Honda CR480R

Again existing in that twilight zone that was the early ‘80s open class two-stroke MX world, clearly Honda were still using their “more is more” bike design ethos. Know that within three short years, this bike’s smaller prodigy—namely the ’86 CR250R—would rule the roost. But for now, capacity was king. And doesn’t the thing look amazing, too?

With the possible exception of the Maico above, it’s clear that bikes like this led the way forward with their designs. More sleek and less boxy than the aforementioned German, the Honda wasn’t the best MXer of the early ’80s, but if you won prizes for dropping jaws and being hung on teenager’s walls, the CR would be world champ for eternity and then some.

The key to the CR’s success was that Honda managed to make it feel more like a 250 than the half-litre bad boy that it really was; largely this was down to Honda making sure the thing was as slim as hell. This was also helped by the fact that it only weighed about 102 kgs (226 lbs) wet and still put out an awesome 50 hp.

Look closely and you’ll see a distinct lack of front brakes; the drums Honda bolted onto the CR were just barely enough to get the thing stopped, but you don’t win races by going slow, do you? MX magazines of the time were in awe of the bike, most commonly mentioning the fact that it was a real scalpel in the corners and that it jumped like a pegasus, too. You should be able to snap up a nice one these days for around $8,000.

The post The Top 5 Two-Stroke Motorcycles of All Time (Off-Road Edition) appeared first on webBikeWorld.

So all you have to do as a budding young motorcycle collector is to be able to spot the ones that will increase in value in the future and pick one up right about now, when they are still to be had for reasonable prices. But which bikes should you be looking at, I hear you ask? Well, it just so happens that we’ve racked our brains to come up with the top 5 bikes (in no particular order) that will only become more and more valuable as the years go by. So why not pull out your shopping list and start making some notes?

5. The Yamaha XT500 (1976 to 1981)

For those not in the know, the Yamaha XT500 was a massive win for Yamaha—in more ways than one. Firstly, it won the first Paris to Dakar races in the late 1970s, showing that Yamaha really knew what they were talking about when it came to off-road bikes. And they achieved this with an engine that was only the company’s second four stroke design.

Not only that, but the engine is largely the same unit that’s in the XT’s sister bike, the Yamaha SR400. And that specific bike was in production until 2021. That’s forty five years of popularity. Go figure.

And it’s not only the XTs you’ll be after, there’s another member of the family here that can be equally as rewarding for investment purposes. Alongside the XT, Yamaha also sold the TT500, which was essentially the same bike but without all the road-going doohickies like the headlight, indicators, and rear vision mirrors.

Sure, they aren’t road registerable, but they also have a certain offroad racing vibe that the XT doesn’t. Spare parts are still fairly easy to come by, and they are dead simple to work on. The single cylinder donk gives you 30-something horses and it is silly easy to ride.

The only real caution needed here is that it’s kickstart only, so if you plan on riding it regularly, you’ll need to make sure you have the technique down pat before you go offroad.

4. The BMW R80/7 (1978 to 1994)

Another classic bike that stood the test of time, BMW’s R80/7 and all of its variations constitute amazing bikes that are old enough to be cool but plentiful and reliable enough to be a very sensible ownership proposition.

Not only that, but the platform BMW developed for the R80 had been under constant improvement since the 1930s, so by the late ’70s and early ’80s, it had fifty damn years of top shelf German engineering prowess behind it. The bike also marks the end of an era, with BMW branching out into various non-boxer engine platforms from here on in.

Not only was the R80 a smash hit in its own right; BMW also chose it at the base of their very first off road bike, the (again) Dakar-winning BMW R80 GS. And like a very good omen, those particular red, blue and white classics have really skyrocketed in value over the past few years. So what do you think the R80s are gonna do? Yeah, that’s right.

The boxer engine is a real charismatic gem, the likes of which you don’t really get in new bikes these days—even from BMW. Still entirely air cooled, the 50hp bike has a charming combination of both slick German-ness and a touch of the retro mechanical vibes that all old bikes exude in one form or another. Those keen for more giddy-up should also look at the R100 Beemers such as the RT, RS & S models.

3. The Honda XL600R (1983 to 1987)

Okay, okay. So I have a Dakar thing going on. But just like my therapist, please hear me out. See, what with authenticity and retro being so hot right now and (thanks to smash hit TV shows like Stranger Things et al) making the ’80s cool again, we are more than a little overdue for a revival of the decade.

We had the 1950s cafe racer thing, the 1960s Steve McQueen thing, and the 70s slacker Harley thing all come back, so you can bet your bottom gasket that these big ’80s bikes will follow suit – just like BMW R80GS and the Cagiva Elefant have already done.

The other obvious occurrence to note is that with Honda’s Elsinores and their legendary 80s CR two-strokes now fetching top dollar, logic dictates that these plastic fantastics will follow suit. And those colours! I guess you’ll either love ‘em or you hate ‘em, but boy they really grab your attention.

With a single pot engine that would go on to power the Honda Dominator, you’ll get about 50 hp out of a properly-tuned one and it’ll only weigh a measly 130kg, so you should have no issues getting the thing to hussle. They were also equipped with Honda’s RFVC (Radial Four Valve Chamber) tech, which means you get two carbs, two exhaust pipes, a hemispherical combustion chamber, and a better-breathing, more powerful bike.

2. The Harley Sportster (1957 to 1983)

If you’ve had anything like the same experiences as I have, you’ll no doubt be seeing these Harleys still going for a song. A mate of mine got one recently in boxes for AUD $10,000 and a quick scour of my local classifieds reveals one for $15,000 that’s been on there for months and months.

So let’s just stand back and think about this. An original Harley-Davidson motorcycle made in the good ol’ US of A in the 1960s for less than ten grand US? Am I missing something? I think not. Sure, it’s not an Electraglide and they’ll probably be the smaller 883cc engines, but come on now!

Of course, the bike comes with all the caveats that any Harley to this day has; they are as agricultural AF and they really, really love to shake themselves to pieces, but what other brand or model of proper, honest-to-goodness motorcycling history would be available for the price of a budget family holiday and be a genuine 1950s-designed American classic?

With all post ‘67 models having an electric start, it’s also the perfect yin-and-yang partner for anyone (like me) who likes the convenience and reliability of having a modern bike in their garage. Yes, a more modern ride may never let you down—but why not complement it with something that lets you get hands-on, is undeniably cool, and that is only going to increase in price in the future?

1. The Yamaha RD350 (1973 to 1975)

Of course there’s a two-stroke on the list. While they might seem like politically incorrect anachronisms in this day and age, it’s important to remember that in many ways, two-stroke power kept the moto industry alive for a large chunk of the 20th Century. Hell, MotoGP was two-strokes all the way up until 2003.

And few manufacturers had as much love for the two-stroke than Yamaha. They have some true classics in their historical lineup; need I mention the RD 250 LC, RD 350 LC, and the legendary YZ 360 motorcrosser? What a curriculum vitae! Yet here lies a classic Yamaha that’s still on offer for more than reasonable prices and it’ll blow your socks off with its turn of speed to boot.

Now it’s a well-known fact that two-strokes need a bit more love and attention than their four-stroke brethren, but by the same token they’ll outpace any similar-capacity non-smoker bike of the same era (or even newer) easy as look at you. And as you can see from the image above, they’ll also look, sound, and go even better than stock with a few racing mods added.

Besides, have you ever heard a Yamaha two-stroker at full tilt with a racing exhaust? And that smell! Should you favor something a little more modern, there’s always the bike’s younger, liquid-cooled siblings (aka the LC models mentioned above).

But be warned, these bikes were a smash hit with boy racers when they were released, and things have never really let up since then. But on that topic, here is a VERY hot tip. Motorcycles that teens drool over often boom in price when those same teens reach their 40s and 50s; an age where many people are comfortable enough to start buying those toys that they were never able to get their hands on way back when. So it stands to reason that the 80s bikes mentioned here should be coming on song right about now. You can thank me later, when you’ve got a bit of cash.

The post 5 Future Classic Motorcycles You Should Buy Now appeared first on webBikeWorld.

But this isn’t the bike’s fault. That brand new 1000cc Suzuki GSX-R isn’t the one that sent you sliding on yr butt cakes across the freeway and into oncoming traffic. That was all your own doing. But what about when your self-control and riding skills are up to the task, but the bike isn’t?

It’s a problem you’ll rarely encounter in the modern world, but for a while there it was a little more common. So which bikes are we talking about? Come with me now and get that ambulance service on speed dial as we look at the top five most dangerous motorcycles ever made.

5. The Brough Superior SS100

Now I know I’m treading on sacred ground here, but allow me to explain. Yes, the Brough Superior  is legendary and it will always hold a special place in my heart as the great Granddaddy of all modern bikes. But (and this is a big but) you have to remember that what we had here was essentially 1920s technology putting out 50 hp or more in various configurations over the next decade.

Other bikes of the day were lucky to have 15 horses, so the modern day equivalent would be like Ducati or Honda releasing a sportsbike with 350 hp and zero electronic aids to contain it. Yowsers.

And with WWII and all its technological advancements yet to happen, George Brough had created a real mechanical freak that few could ride properly and still fewer would be able to master. Even with truckloads of riding experience and numerous Brough Superiors to his name, the bike was too much for T.E. Lawrence (aka Lawrence of Arabia).

A survivor of World War One, a Brough took his life in 1935 after he misjudged an overtake, hit a dip in the road and went over the bars without a helmet on. Makes you wonder how many other non-famous Brough riders met a similar fate, yes?

4. The 1971 Suzuki TM400

Ahhh, the Seventies! When men were men and hospitals were full of motocrossers. Thanks in large part to the hit film On Any Sunday, off-road motorcycling had suddenly become a big sport at this time and all the manufacturers were scrambling (pun fully intended) to get their dirt products into showrooms and selling. And as we all know, nothing succeeds like excess. So in that spirit, Suzuki Motorcycles pulled the satin covers of their first proper, open-class motocrosser in 1971. Powered by a very impressive 400cc two stroke smoker and putting out 40 hp, people were rightly pumped to try these little yellow beasties in the dirt.

But that’s precisely when the bike’s shortcomings became apparent. Built on a too-soft frame and with supremely under spec’d shocks front and back, the thing was a handful to ride even for a pro. And the problems didn’t stop there. Suzuki also included the hilariously-named “Pointless Electronic Ignition” system (I kid you not) that did a really piss poor job of advancing and retarding the bike’s timing. The net effect here was that the engine would randomly move its peak power around the rev counter in a life-threatening game of cat and mouse.

From all reports, it loved nothing better than to surprise you with a big kick in the backside right in the middle of a tight corner. Suzuki went into overdrive to stop all the broken bones with a heavier flywheel and better shocks. They eventually dropped the pointless ignition too, but it didn’t really matter in the end as they were already being outclassed on the world’s tracks by an army of far superior Maicos and CZs. Ooops.

3. Late ’70s & Early ’80s Harley Sportsters

Anyone with even a cursory knowledge of Harley’s checkered past will know that the late 1970s and early 80s were dark years for the Milwaukee giant. A ham-fisted corporate buyout from the American Machine and Foundry Company in 1969 saw the legendary company crumble into a bumbling mess of a business plagued by poor quality, union issues and tanking sales.

Running on nothing but fumes and the pop culture status the 1960s had afforded the brand, they somehow managed to continue releasing new bikes, including their all-important Sportster models.

And as for those poor, unsuspecting customers who actually fronted up to a dealer with a bag full of their hard-earned to purchase a bike in the early 80s, well… let’s just say they inherited all the fruits of the previous decade’s complete shit show. Still a full 12 months away from being rescued by a bunch of brand faithfuls lead by Willie G. Davidson himself, the Sportsters of this era were as fast and manoeuvrable as they were well-built. That is to say they were some of the worst, slowest and most cumbersome bikes Harley ever produced.

They probably would’ve hurt more riders if it wasn’t for the fact that they basically shook themselves to pieces soon after they left the showroom floor. I pity the poor Harley Service Managers of the time; how exactly do you tell a customer that they’ve bought a chubby, shaking lemon of a bike without losing your job in the process?

2. The 1997 Suzuki TL1000S

In stark contrast to the Harleys, the Suzuki TL1000S is a great example of a bike that was dangerous not because it was crap, but because it was pushing the advanced engineering envelope a little too far. On paper, the thing looked like a real winner. A big v-twin sportsbike from a respected Japanese manufacturer? What’s not to like? So in 1997, Suzuki fans were frothing at the chops to get their hands on one. And the bike did not disappoint. Great reviews saw good sales, but then things went a little southward.

Suzuki’s engineers had faced a considerable challenge when placing the big, long v-twin in the bike’s frame. Put simply, the engine was taking up the space in front of the rear wheel where the bike’s shock usually sits. Their answer was to go with a tricky and largely untested shock, damper and spring set-up that had been lifted directly from ‘90s F1 racing. The rear spring was placed on the right side of the bike and a remote “rotary style” rear damper tried to do its job through a set of spinning arms, some valves and a tablespoon or two of hydraulic fluid.

But it just plain didn’t work and any serious up-and-down action for the rear shock would result in the oil overheating and the damping going right out the window. So the bike’s rear end would get lazy. Then you had a big, torquey v-twin and a soft, saggy rear wheel which made the front of the bike about as steady and reliable as a tipsy Italian Prime Minister. And into the scenery you’d go. Look hard enough and you’ll still find a bunch of TLS devotees out there. You’ll be able to spot them easily enough; they’re the ones on crutches swearing black and blue that the bike is the best thing they’ve ever owned.

1. The 1972 Kawasaki H2 Mach IV

And so we come to the top spot. And what a bike it is. Following on from the almost-equally-as-dangerous H1 Mach III 500cc, the ‘72 two-stroke triple with an astounding 750 cc’s showed that Kawasaki has learned nothing from the broken bones caused by the H1. With a jaw-dropping combination of far too much power, a rear-biased weight balance and a frame seemingly made from rubber tubing, the H2 was an accident waiting to happen.

And did I mention the pencil-thin front forks, the totally under-specced brakes and the horrible 1970s rubber? I may have also neglected to talk about the fact that the bike would spontaneously wheelie under full-throttle acceleration when the two-stroke triple hit the 3,500 rpm power band on its way to a 12-second flat quarter-mile. And that’s on a bike that weighed in at 190 kilos dripping wet. Hot damn, what a wild ride that must have been. It’s like they didn’t even bother to test the thing before they started selling it.

Needless to say, even a pro rider would have been fighting to keep the little buggers under control, so us mere mortals had little to no chance of managing them. Lucky for Kawasaki it was the free-wheeling ‘70s, so despite the army of injured riders and smashed-up H2s, they just grimaced a little, pointed at something off in the distance and then pretended it all didn’t happen.

Or more correctly, they beat their engineers and test riders with a bamboo stick, and got them to make some rather hastily-conceived ‘safety’ mods for the ‘73 and ‘74 models. After all, market research has since shown that customers find it very hard to purchase new motorcycles when they are dead. Who’d have thought?

The post The Most Dangerous Motorcycles Ever Released appeared first on webBikeWorld.

With a moto collection apparently numbering in excess of 200 bikes—along with a bunch of cars and even a few planes—he was someone who was deeply passionate about motorcycle riding (and especially racing). Legend has it that he paid for acting lessons from his race winnings. And even better than that, he had the financial fortitude to indulge in collecting bikes to his heart’s content.

So what cycles does a man of immaculate taste and considerable skills purchase when money is no object? THIS is what.

#1. 1970 Husqvarna 400 Cross

There’s not many films that can top On Any Sunday in terms of getting people excited about motorcycling. Talk about being in the right place at the right time.

Put simply, it’s probably the greatest motorcycling movie ever made. And the stars of the whole damn thing were good ol’ Steve Mac and his still gorgeous Husqvarna 400 Cross that provided the ‘wow’ moment at the end of the film. If you’ve never seen it, what the hell are you doing with your life?

The late ‘60s were a pivotal time for off-road motorcycles. As the genre developed, huge leaps and bounds were made when the manufacturers realised that these bikes could be so much more than just road bikes with knobby tyres and no mirrors.

The now-legendary Swedish designers at Husky started with a blank piece of paper, a powerful two-stroke engine, and an innate understanding of what it took to go fast on the dirt. And in ‘69, there wasn’t much faster than this 400. With 40hp on tap, it may not sound like much—but match that with a mere 100 kilo (220 pound) curb weight, and you’d have to be dead inside not to have fun on this.

Sold? Well, it can be yours for a mere $320,814 Californian bucks, which just so happens to be the exact price it was purchased for at auction in 2018.

#2. 1962 Triumph TR6 650 Special

You know a motorcycle is famous when you strike up a geeky conversation about it at a social gathering with the most naive non-motorcyclists you can find—and they know the bike you’re talking about. The famous ‘fence jump’ scene at the end of McQueen’s The Great Escape from 1963 is another legendary moto moment that he himself created. And it was arguably the single most famous on-screen moto moment of the Twentieth Century. It’s also interesting to note that this is the only non-racing bike in the list.

Apart from the rather comical sight of Nazis riding British Triumphs, the bike is as much a star as McQueen is. A TR6 650 Special was made to look more ‘wartime’ with olive drab paint, a luggage rack, and a ‘40s-style seat. The script—originally written to have the heroes escaping via train—was rewritten after McQueen suggested the bike jump idea as being more exciting and cinematic than a slow train to freedom.

Aussie motocross champ Tim Gibbes and stuntman Bud Etkins were tasked with making it happen. Despite McQueen’s requests (and his various other stunts already being completed for the film), Etkins was to do the final jump that made it into the movie and into the annals of motorcycling history, too.

#3. Métisse Desert Racer

Yes, McQueen and desert racing were clearly a big thing. The bikes you see here are the mere tip of the iceberg as far as his offroad bike collection goes. The Honda Elsinore, anyone?

But putting that aside for one moment, I think it’s fair to say that his crowning achievement in offroading bikes was the Métisse Desert Racer. Developed by McQueen and Bud Etkins to be the last word in desert racing, it was essentially a parts-bin special that turned out looking (and working) pretty damn well.

Still available today for those with an inclination and a few spare dollars, collectingcars.com saw one sold for £21,250 in early 2022. For that price, you could get a genuinely beautiful bike powered by a fully reconditioned Triumph TR6 twin engine and four-speed ‘box, with a period Triumph front hub and BSA rear.

Tasty extras included an Amal carb, a chrome-moly nickel plated oil-in-frame, erm, frame, chromed steel wheels and exhausts, a scrambler rear boot, and a trials front, topped off with competition levers & grips. I figure if I write another 200 of these stories, I’ll be able to get my own, but the chances of me looking as cool as McQueen on it are pretty much zero.

#4. 1920 Indian Daytona PowerPlus

Sure, board track racing is all retro cool and hip now, but in the 60s, the sport was about as popular as stabbing a salty fork into your eye. As always, McQueen could see the beauty—not only of the sport but of the bikes themselves.

Little more than dangerously fast and powerful motorised bicycles (check those pedals), the romance and bravery that came from these machines was apparent to McQueen—even while the world stood dazzled by the modern magic of two-strokes, the rise of Japanese bikes, and newer, less deadly forms of moto racing.

A non-McQueen PowerPlus sold for a gasp-inducing $150,000 all the way back in 2006. You may be wondering what McQueen got for his cash way back then. Amazingly, the engine had a very modern-sounding 1000cc and eight valves in a sidevalve configuration.

Using the engine as  a stressed member, the bike was a direct response to the successes of the Harley and Excelsior bikes that the Indian racers were up against in the racing ranks of the day.

And in case you are wondering, the PowerPlus Indians of this period can be readily identified by their s-shaped seat post. Mind you, with 16 hp and a top speed in excess of 100 mph, you’d be hard pressed to spot it as it screamed passed you on the splintered boards.

#5. 1915 Cyclone Boardtracker

As with the Indian above, these two photos are of the actual bike owned by McQueen as taken by the auction houses that had the privilege of selling it. Conceived a full 6 years before the above Indian, the Cyclone couldn’t have been more aptly named.

Faster and more powerful than anything that had come before, this bike’s specs were so far beyond the other racers of the day that the Federation of American Motorcycling officials at the time assumed its recording-breaking capabilities were the result of timing errors or cheating rather than it being just straight-up quicker.

The bike’s most unique feature was probably its overhead valves, which were actuated by an innovative shaft-and-bevel system and clearly years ahead of their time. Add this to a 61 cubic inch, 45 degrees V-twin engine with massive valves and super fancy sealed bearings, and you had a recipe for both massive speeds and dubious reliability.

While it left Indians, Harleys and Excelsiors eating its dust (or sawdust, as the boardtracking case may be), the fact that it had trouble lasting the distances required meant that the novelty wore off and soon they couldn’t give these bikes away.

All this is amusing when you fast forward to 2015, when the exact bike you see here with all that McQueen heritage was sold at auction for a rather incredible price. Or, as the Hemmings auction house put it in early 2015, “The 1915 Cyclone sold for a hammer price of $775,000, becoming the most expensive motorcycle ever sold at auction. Last fall’s reported $1.35 million sale of the Captain America chopper from Easy Rider was never finalized.”

The post ROYAL GARAGE: Steve McQueen’s Top 5 Favourite Motorcycles appeared first on webBikeWorld.

In an attempt to dodge the need for a flame suit from the comment section I will highlight a couple of notable bikes that are not on the list which some may think belong. Currently, Honda has no formal release of the CBR1000RR-R and/or SP. Honestly, I think they are looking for ways to add more R’s to the fairing, and though it is well rumored to be coming, there is nothing to share yet. Then we have the CBR with fewer R’s, the CBR1000RR. It is rated at 199 hp. Just one “R” shy of 200, so it does not make my list.

Then the all-new Suzuki Hayabusa. I was already fully making space on the list for it, but it specs out at 188hp. Just keep in mind it has been built for tuners to get freaky with and 200 hp is hiding in there with just a little aftermarket fun. Did I say 200? Tuned Hayabusas easily get to 300 if you have a fat wallet.

To the list! Who gives us more than 200 ponies for 2022?

2022 Kawasaki Z-H2 /H2 SE

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 200

Now in its third year, the 2022 Kawasaki Z-H2 is the naked streetfighter version of the utterly mental H2/H2R lineup. At a detuned 200 HP, the inline 4 engine still carries the screw-type supercharger that whacks pressurized air into the cylinders. The reason that the engine needed to be detuned from its more powerful brethren is simply because of the amount of weight removed when making it a streetfighter.

531 lbs with 200 HP and 101 lbs-ft of torque will end up going down the road pretty damned quickly, especially since the supercharger guarantees you’ll have all that power pretty much anywhere, at any altitude, in North America. Definitely, a bike to be reckoned with.

2022 Kawasaki ZX-10R

• Company Website (US)
• Company Website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 203

Liter bike wars are as on as they ever were, and last year Kawasaki poured multiple tweaks over the ZX-10R. With a claimed 203 HP, a wet weight of 456lb, and all the aero tech and rider aids you can possibly dream of, this machine won’t let you forget why Kawasaki won WSBK 6 times in a row.

The 2022 model carries on essentially unchanged, but they have unleashed a new stealth livery. Metallic Diablo Black, Metallic Matte Graphenesteel Gray has the ZX-10R looking absolutely menacing. Overall getting a bike with over 200hp for less than $20K is tough, good luck finding another with this level of racing pedigree.

2022 BMW S 1000 RR & M 1000 RR

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 205

The 2022 BMW S 1000 RR is BMW’s top-of-the-range supersport. Its 205 HP, 999cc inline 4 engine is packed with the level of technology you would expect from the German company, including variable cams and titanium valves. A very aggressive seating position high and rearwards gives the bike excellent sports handling characteristics, and as BMW themselves say, it’s meant more for the track than the road. This is evidenced by the fact that the wing mirrors come off with about a grand total of 5 minutes’ work, leaving behind a smooth track missile that’s meant to be leaned over to obscene angles in the corners.

You can also option an M Sport package, which replaces some bodywork with carbon fiber, as well as gives the bike a more aggressive suspension setup. The power, however, remains the same.

Returning for 2022 is the M1000RR, which includes all the goodies from the M Sport package, but also adds a new, far more aggressive ECU, and weight savings in the range of about 20 lbs over the already lightweight S1000RR by use of titanium components and a much lighter exhaust system. Try not to pass out when you see the price tag, remember you need to pay to play at the top level.

2022 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R ABS

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 208

The 2022 Kawasaki ZX-14R carries on for another year. The basic design may be fairly dated at this point it is still a compelling ride. Powered by a 1,441 cc inline 4, the engine, which produces 208 crank HP, has the distinction of being so large for a supersport that the aluminum frame of the bike is directly bolted to the casing and uses the engine as a stress-bearing member of the entire chassis. Befitting a top of the line model, the ZX-14R has pretty much every bell and whistle you could want on a supersport, including race-derived brakes, all forms of stability control, ABS, and even selectable power modes so that in stop and go traffic, it uses less fuel and is easier to pull away from a stop. While not really a pure supersport, the ZX-14R creates its own category of “supersport touring,” doing it a quarter of a mile at a time.

2022 Ducati Streetfighter V4/V4S/V4SP

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 208

The 2022 Ducati Streetfighter V4 models are unapologetic about what they are. Based on the supersport Panigale V4 models, they are stripped down, lightened, and powerful sledgehammers designed to rule the streets. The look of the front end was influenced by The Joker from DC Comics, with a grinning LED daytime running light over the pair of full headlights. The biplane wings on the sides of the radiator cover are there to provide stability at high speed but also add to the shoulders of the bike, giving it a fighting stance that promises to smack other bikes around the head with its growling exhaust and powerful looks. Ducati themselves call this the “Ego Booster” design concept, without any comedic irony at all. They mean it, and the motorcycle shows it.

The V4S is an even more stripped-down and unapologetic pugilist. Weighing 5 lbs less than the V4, it also comes with electronically adjustable suspension to handle any fight it needs to. But wait there is more! Ducati could never stop when there is more insanity available, welcome the V4SP to the 2022 lineup.

Marked with the legendary “SP” (which stands for Sport Production), and kitted out with “Winter Test” livery. The new carbon rims, 3 lb lighter than those of the Streetfighter V4 S, significantly reduce the moment of inertia and contribute to an overall weight saving of 6.6 lb. The comprehensive range of equipment is completed with Ohlins Smart EC 2.0 suspension and the Brembo Stylema R® braking system with front calipers.

2022 MV Agusta Brutale 1000 RR/RS/Nurburgring

• Company website (Global)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 208

The 2022 MV Agusta Brutale 1000 RR is, much like the Ducati Streetfighters above, very unapologetic about being an in-your-face, snarling, nasty, loud bike that will happily tear your face off. Of course, befitting a bike from an Italian boutique manufacturer, the Brutale’s 998cc triple is made of titanium con-rods, Asso piston rings, high durability low friction cylinder wall linings, and carbon fiber throughout the body of the bike. The result is a stylish brute that is ready to fight any and all takers.

To ensure there is a Brutale for every rider, you can choose the Brutale RS. What is different about the RS you ask? The bars, yup pretty much just the bars. They sit slightly higher for added comfort, because doesn’t everyone want to be comfortable on a Brutale?

Actually no, some want even more from their Brutale and for you, MV Agusta serves up the Nurburgring version. This is simply a pure track weapon with a weight savings of 3kg over the RR. I cannot stop staring at the gorgeous carbon rims. Everything has been refined on the Nurburgring model to just be faster, and show that they are also an Italian brand that knows exactly how to buid a mental street fighting machine.

2022 Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX SE

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 210

The 2022 Kawasaki Ninja H2 SX SE received numerous upgrades to ensure it stays the ultimate cruise missile in the sport touring world. Sharing the same 998cc inline 4 with a screw-type supercharger as the rest of the H2 line, the SE gets a boost over the Z-H2 to 210 HP. Kawasaki has taken things to another level with rider aids and electronic goodies, which does make sense when you have well over 200 hp to keep in check.

In addition to the standard list of 4 letter Kawasaki acronyms for the rider aids, adaptive cruise control, blindspot detection, forward collision warning have all been added. On the luxury side of things, the seat is wider and a tad plusher, a proximity key system is standard, and the styling has been tweaked.

Personally, I will let the others delve into the minutia of details amongst this lists race bikes with license plates, I am all about this supercharged touring gem.

2022 Ducati Panigale V4/V4S/V4SP2

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 210

The 2022 Ducati V4 and V4S are the primary models of the Ducati supersport line. With the trademarked Desmosedici V4 engine, both the V4 and V4S extract 210 HP from the 1,103 cc mill. Ducati worked closely with their in-house racing team, Ducati Corse, to tune, tweak, and fiddle with the bike until it met every target they had. The result is a motorcycle that not so much carves corners as much as slices them, powers down straights with a howling exhaust note, and can stop mightily with race-derived brakes.

Much like the Streetfighter, Ducati introduced the Panigale V4 SP2 for 2022. The power output of all models is the same, where they differ is with the level of high-end kit you choose to go with on the quest to shave tenths of a second off, around the track. From V4 to V4S, the improvements involve all areas, aerodynamics, ergonomics, engine, chassis and electronics and a few kilos weight savings. From V4S to SP2, you get carbon fibre rims, Brembo Stylema R® brake calipers, MCS radial master cylinder, dry clutch, 520 chain, billet footpegs and a specific kit for track use, and again a few more kilos of weight savings.

If the V4 SP2 is your dream machine, you will need to wait for Q4 of 2022, but it will be worth it and it looks so good in “Winter Livery.”

2022 Aprilia RSV4 RR

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 217

Now we are getting into the pure supersport bikes. The 2022 Aprilia RSV4 RR is 100% racing bike, diluted slightly to be street legal. With a 217 HP V4 engine shared between the RR and the 1100 Factory as it was for the 2021 model year, you can expect to be wagging the front wheel in the air on hard acceleration, as the bike itself is a featherweight 450 lbs soaking wet holding a brick.

Add to that impressive brakes, laser-like handling, and a dual-beam aluminum chassis that doesn’t flex as much as an inch, and you have an aggressive Italian supersport motorcycle ready to devour the closest racetrack. And, joy of joys, you can ride the bike to and from the track as well

2022 Kawasaki Ninja H2/H2 Carbon

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 228

The 2022 Kawasaki H2 and H2 Carbon are, in the shortest possible definition, street-legal versions of the monstrous Kawasaki H2R. It shares the same supercharged inline 4 998cc engine, but the ECU is programmed to allow torque and HP to be manageable on regular pavement. Detuned to 228 HP and 98.5 lb-ft of torque, one will still have to squeeze tight to the aerodynamic body and tuck down behind the windshield to prevent being ripped off by the sheer force of air passing over the bike.

In place of the winglets of the H2R, the H2 has wing mirrors and includes universal signal lights front and rear. The H2 Carbon is a more extreme version of the H2 that replaces almost the entire front cowling with a carbon fiber derivative of the one that is on the H2R and provides slightly better airflow. Both the H2 and H2 Carbon are electronically governed with their max speed, unlike the unlimited H2R, due to the fact that the bike could very well lift its front slightly from the sheer amount of air that passes around and under the bike.

2022 Kawasaki Ninja H2R (not street legal)

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 310

This is it. This is the most insane, most powerful, most amazing motorcycle on sale in 2021. The 2021 Kawasaki H2R is a track-only bike that takes absolutely everything that the Japanese manufacturer knows about bikes, and smashes it together into a cruise missile. The H2 line’s 998 cc inline 4 is cranked up to 11 here, with the supercharger whacking compressed air in at an ungodly rate to produce a nigh unbelievable 310 HP. It is not street legal as the bike uses composite components that do not allow for mirrors to be fitted, uses slick tires only, and has many race-grade components taken from Kawasaki’s World SBK and MotoGP efforts.

To give you an idea of just how ridiculously powerful the H2R is, consider the fact that it currently holds the world record for 0 to 400 KPH (249 MPH) at 26 seconds from a dead stop. That’s faster than even hypercars like the Bugatti Chiron and McLaren F1 can reach the same speed. It’s so fast that the canards on the cowling where the mirrors would be are actually necessary to keep the front of the bike on the road, otherwise it would lift slightly from the sheer amount of air passing around and under the bike.

The H2R is widely regarded as the first true series production “hypersport” bike, creating an entirely new category of motorcycles above the supersport range.

Special Mention – Ducati Panigale V4R

• Company website (US)
• Company website (Can)
• wBW specs, photos, & more
• HP: 234 (221 optional)

The Ducati V4R is about as close as one can really get to riding the Ducati GP20 MotoGP superbike without being a factory works rider. With a MotoGP derived Desmosedici Stradale R 998cc V4 engine, 234 HP is available at a fearsome 15,500 RPM. The base build of the bike is with the Ducati Corse racing kit, which is still street legal… barely. If you opt to not have the racing exhaust and the slight detune of the “street” version of the V4R, the power drops to 221 HP, which is still nothing to sneeze at.

As is obvious, the bike has been extensively designed and worked on by Ducati’s in-house race team, Ducati Corse, to be as close as possible to the MotoGP bike. This is not a bike for long rides on the highway, nor really for commuting. This is a bike that begs, wants, needs to go fast and attack corners hard. One of the purest expressions of Ducati’s racing pedigree available to the common man, the V4R is simply one of the best motorcycles for an experienced rider to extract the maximum from any track they visit.

Although the V4R is still listed on the Ducati websites, I do not believe you can actually even order one any longer (the configurator is no longer active). With the newest V4 SP2 released, it will be interesting to see what is next for the Panigale lineup.

The post Every 2023 Motorcycle With More Than 200 HP appeared first on webBikeWorld.

Contents

• BMW History
• What Makes BMW’s Special?
• 2022 Adventure Lineup
• Our Recommended BMW’s

Just hearing someone say BMW adventure motorcycles conjures up images of twisty mountain highways, steep dusty trails, vast deserts, and dense forest roads. BMW is the company that pioneered the adventure motorcycle segment, and it’s the first that comes to mind for most riders when adventure touring is concerned.

The Bavarian company has been expanding its adventure lineup lately, and it now has a robust list of bikes that can satisfy basically any rider out there who has a penchant for taking a motorcycle where Harley folks wouldn’t dare. While there’s plenty of great options, choosing the best BMW adventure motorcycle has never been tougher. That’s why I thought it best to take a detailed look at the lineup and make some recommendations.

You might not agree with my selections, but dear reader, I want you to know that I have your best interest at heart. Below you’ll find what I think is the best BMW adventure motorcycle overall and what I think is the best for specific scenarios or buyers. Before we get into that, though, let’s touch on the history of BMW adventure bikes and the full current lineup.

A Brief History of BMW Adventure Motorcycles

It all started with the 1981 BMW R80 G/S. BMW wanted to build a dual-sport machine that could do more than just tear up the trail and be street legal. It wanted to build a motorcycle that you could tour with, off-road with, commute with, and do basically everything you can think of. The bike that the company created was the machine you see above.

When the bike came out, people didn’t really know what to do with it. Many thought it was simply an enduro with far too much weight. Others found it awkward and unmanageable. What only a few moto-journalists realized was that by compromising a bit in the dirt, they gained so much. The BMW R80 G/S is a motorcycle that really could do everything.

Once the first G/S hit the street, the game was afoot. BMW had opened the adventure motorcycle pandora’s box, and it managed to win the third-edition Dakar rally with Hubert Auriol in the saddle in 1981. It did the same in ‘83, ‘84, and ‘85. Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, BMW continued to refine this design. The early GS bikes are known as airheads.

In the mid-1990s, BMW revised the bike and produced what became known as the oilheads. These bikes served the company well until the end of the 1990s, and the 2000s birthed further design evolutions such as the R 1150 GS and the R 850 GS. This is also when BMW started producing models with the Adventure name attached, which added additional equipment for more extreme adventuring.

Smaller single-cylinder models, like the F 650 GS also became available. These single-cylinder models are often held up as the best off-roaders from this era. BMW was also offering larger adventure bikes like the R 1150 GS.

After that came the parallel-twin models in 2007. BMW started with the F 800 GS and a new F 650 GS. Around that same time, the company improved its big-bike offering, creating the R 1200 GS and R 1200 GS Adventure. Things evolved from there both in the middleweight adventure category and on the higher end, which essentially gets us close to today.

BMW continues to innovate here, and what started with a bike that was called awkward and was misunderstood has become an extremely popular machine that birthed an entirely new segment of the motorcycle market.

What Makes BMW Adventure Motorcycles Special?

In two words: culture and capability. BMW adventure motorcycles have achieved legendary status thanks to years of successful, well-made, durable, and ultimately enjoyable motorcycles.

The simple fact of the matter is that the capabilities BMW built into its GS motorcycles have developed a specific rider culture for the brand. This is a very good thing for BMW, and something other brands will always have a tough time competing with.

Similar to the way there’s an entire culture around Harley-Davidson motorcycles in general or Honda Gold Wings for styling-challenged, comfort-seeking touring riders, the GS line of BMW adventure motorcycles has bred its own kind of rider, one that is always looking for a bigger and better adventure—at least in most cases.

There’s also the posers. We’ve all seen these guys. The ones who buy the most expensive BMW R 1250 GS Adventure only ever ride it to Starbucks and talk about the adventures they’re planning to take. The funny thing about them is, it doesn’t matter. They’re a part of the club whether other BMW adventure riders like it or not. They’re also proving that a GS can and should be used for absolutely anything.

I guess what I’m saying is that the bikes are good, really good, and because they’re so good, they’ve developed a near cult following that has loyalists who won’t be shaken. Perhaps the biggest feat that BMW has pulled off with these bikes is that its adventure motorcycles will fully satisfy you no matter where or how you ride. They’re designed to do everything and do it well.

All BMW Adventure Motorcycles for 2022

If you jump on BMW’s website today to look at the models available in North America, you’ll find eight bikes. The first two I’ve listed below are certainly more sport-touring machines than adventure touring, but you can certainly take them down a dirt road without them dragging their bellies around in the dust.

Otherwise, you have six motorcycles that are designed to go anywhere, whether it be around town or out to the farthest reaches of the toughest trails. It’s important to keep in mind that these machines aren’t dual sportbikes. If you want to do the kinds of things dirt bike riders do, then a dual-sport or enduro is the bike for you. That said, if you want to do a lot of riding with a mixture of pavement and dirt terrain, these BMW adventure motorcycles will thoroughly satisfy you.

• 2022 R 1250 GS Adventure
• 2022 R 1250 GS
• 2022 S 1000 XR
• 2022 F 900 XR
• 2022 F 850 GS Adventure
• 2022 F 850 GS
• 2022 F 750 GS
• 2022 G 310 GS

As you can see, that’s quite the lineup, and there should be something there for everyone. However, if you’re looking for the best BMW adventure motorcycle, you should check out the selections I’ve made below.

The Overall Best BMW Adventure Motorcycle

BMW F 850 GS

Some folks who think bigger equals better will fight me here. I think the BMW F 850 GS is a better motorcycle than the R 1250 GS. The bike is simply a more manageable machine, and it still offers plenty of power and good features. If you wanted a more hardcore off-roader, then the F 850 GS Adventure is a good choice, and I talk more about that below.

The standard F 850 GS offers a lot of value for the money. At a $13,345 starting price, the motorcycle is one of the best middleweight adventure bikes in the world. It’s also the sweet spot in my eyes for the BMW lineup. The bike features a strong 853cc liquid-cooled twin-cylinder inline engine that makes 90 hp and 63 lb-ft of torque. That’s enough power for comfortable highway riding and enough grunt to get you through tough situations in the dirt.

I chose this one over the R 1250 GS because it’s about $4,500 less expensive and can do pretty much everything the R 1250 GS can. It’s nimbler, thinner between the thighs, and just generally a little easier to handle. The R 1250 GS is still an amazing bike, but I’d rather save the money and get the F 850 GS.

Read more about this bike.

The Best Value BMW Adventure Motorcycle

BMW G 310 GS

Honestly, the BMW F 850 GS is a great value for the money, but, the best value is the BMW G 310 GS. It’s a motorcycle that can do a whole heck of a lot for a low MSRP of only $5,795. The motorcycle is a great all-around little workhorse. It has real off-road capability and it’s equally at home on the street.

The bike gets a 313cc liquid-cooled single-cylinder engine that makes 34 hp and 21 lb-ft of torque. That engine is mated to a six-speed transmission. It’s a good bike for a lot of different riders from the newbie to the veteran adventure rider who doesn’t want to have to deal with much weight.

When I was thinking of the best value option in BMW’s adventure motorcycle lineup, I almost settled on the F 750 GS, which is a great bike. I didn’t select it because it’s quite a bit more expensive than this bike and offers less suspension travel. It’ll be more at home at high speeds, but is less of a good all-around motorcycle.

Read more about this bike.

The Best BMW Adventure Motorcycle for the Dirt

BMW F 850 GS Adventure

When it comes to the best BMW adventure motorcycle for the rider who wants to spend a lot of time on the dirt, I’d point to the BMW F 850 GS Adventure. The reasons listed above for the motorcycle to be the top pick overall, count here, too.

What makes this an even better off-road bike is that the Adventure model comes with a larger fuel tank—23 liters (6 gallons) instead of 15—additional protection for the engine and drivetrain components, height-adjustable windscreen, riding modes, and improved electronics.

This motorcycle is designed to take the extremely competent F 850 GS and turn it into a machine that can handle any terrain with ease. If you’re going to go pretty far off the beaten track, and you want a BMW motorcycle, this is the one I’d buy.

Read more about this bike.

The Best BMW Adventure Motorcycle for Touring

BMW R 1250 GS

Adventure touring is about finding those trails and dirt roads, but it’s also about touring across the country or around the world. While the bikes listed above will let you do that, if you’re really into the touring side of things, you can do no better than the BMW R 1250 GS.

The model is built to gobble up the miles. It features a 1,254cc twin-cylinder boxer engine that makes 136 hp and 105 lb-ft of torque. It’s a good engine with smooth power that is right at home at touring speeds.

The R 1250 GS will handle situations off the pavement well, but it can also be a fantastic bike to take on long road trips. The saddle is extremely comfortable, the ride smooth, and there is good wind protection and plenty of technology features to keep you happy. It’s not cheap, though. The bike has a starting price of $17,895, and while that money gets you quite a lot, you’ve got to have somewhat deep pockets to make it happen.

Read more about this bike.

Best Used BMW Adventure Motorcycles

BMW F 800 GS

If you’re after a good BMW adventure motorcycle that’s used, then your first look should be to the BMW F 800 GS. It’s the bike that preceded the F 850 GS, and it’s nearly as good. The fact of the matter is that the BMW F 850 GS is just a better version of this bike, so if you need to save a few bucks and buy a used machine, you won’t do much better than this. 

This motorcycle is a veritable do-it-all machine designed to put a grin on your face. Ask anyone who owns one of these, and you’re bound to get that rider fawning over their bike. The F 800 GS features an inline two-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine with a displacement of 798cc. That engine makes about 85 hp, which is enough for pretty much everything.

The F 800 GS comes with rain and road riding modes and ABS. Electronic suspension adjustment and electronic stability control are options. In general, this is a motorcycle that was designed to be the best adventure bike on earth, and it’s still a top-quality machine today. Keep an eye out for these on the used market. You should be able to find one under $10,000, which is a steal in my mind.

Read more about this bike.

BMW R 1200 GS Adventure

I listed the BMW R 1250 GS as the best new adventure touring motorcycle for touring, but the equivalent generation before it, the R 1200 GS is still a fantastic motorcycle and one way for you to get the big adventure bike from BMW without paying such a high price tag.

The BMW R 1200 GS might not be the newest and most advanced bike out there, but it still offers a whole heck of a lot in terms of power, abilities, and features. The motorcycle comes with a flat-twin 1,170cc engine that manages to churn out right around 100 hp, which when paired with the R 1200 GS’s fantastic suspension and chassis is enough to get you basically anywhere on the earth comfortably.

The R 1200 GS can be found everywhere. BMW sold loads of them, so there are plenty of well-maintained options out there. Prices will vary depending on mileage and condition, but you should be able to find one for just over $10,000 that’s ready to roll.

Read more about this bike.

The post These Are the Best BMW Adventure Motorcycles You Can Buy Right Now [2023 Edition] appeared first on webBikeWorld.

So to share my little obsession with you all, I’ve put together a list of my Top 5 insane WWII bikes in no particular order for your wide-eyed enjoyment. Behold what can happen when you have a war to win, government funding, and a military boss who just won’t take ‘that’s an insane idea’ for an answer.

5. The Killinger & Freund Motorcycle (1938)

Immediately breaking my own rules, this bike is not strictly a ‘battle motorcycle’. Instead, the one-of-a-kind ‘Killinger & Freund’ motorcycle was discovered by the occupying American forces after the end of the war in 1945.

Originally handmade in 1938, the art deco bike’s development was halted thanks to WWII rather than ramped up. None-the-less, the bike history has tied inextricably to the era and was spawned from the same ‘blue sky’ pre-war thinking that created many of the other bikes here.

Seemingly more of an exercise in engineering showmanship than a design meant to solve some urgent issue or challenge, the bike’s entire powerplant was fitted into its front wheel. Yes, you read that right.

And while this is handy in the fact that you can just swap wheels on the bike and off you go with a new engine, it also makes for a myriad of design challenges—including how to supply fuel to the spinning engines, power to the electrics, and throttle control to the carbs.

Despite all these brain teasers, the bike was reportedly fully operable and ended up being transported to the US, where it still lives today. And while it lacks the hardware and off-road chops of the other bikes here, it sure as hell isn’t running short of creativity. Just imagine if the idea had made it into post-war production?

4. The NSU Kettenkrad HK 101 (1944)

Like a concept vehicle from a Captain America movie, the NSU Kettenkrad or ‘Chain Wheel’ motorcycle (if you can still call it that) was developed late in the war by the Germans in an attempt to overcome the challenges of army motorcycles getting bogged in Europe’s wet, muddy springs and autumns.

Weighing a rather incredible 1,200 kgs (2600 lbs), the thing proved great in the mud but traded that advantage against a tendency to roll over on slopes and expose its passengers to gunfire in a way that a more nimble, faster two-wheeled motorcycle simply wouldn’t.

Able to tow equipment and carry three soldiers, it was powered by an Opel in-line four cylinder engine and was fitted with a 3-speed gearbox. With 36 hp, it was capable of 70 kmh (43 mph) on road and about 45 km/h (30 mph) overland.

And while the examples shown here aren’t armed, various other iterations were. A common addition was to place an MG 34 machine gun on the raised section between the driver and passengers. Would I like to own one? Hell yes. Would I want to rely on it in the heat of battle? Not on your life.

3. Böhmerland 600cc (1932)

Unlike the Kettenkrad, the Böhmerland was a pre-war design from Czechoslovakia that managed to see some battle action in its twilight years—thanks in large part to its carrying capabilities and large capacity power plant. With space for four in sidecar guise, the bike measured over three meters in length and could manage 120 kmph (75 mph) for riders who dared take the behemoth to such speeds.

Totally lacking in any cornering abilities, the bike was very much a ‘point and shoot’ proposition in the sense that even the most gentle of corners were enough to force the bike to reduce its speed greatly to ensure it didn’t topple over.

This bike was more of an oddity that became useful to occupying German forces than an all-out war motorcycle. The Böhmerland (or ‘Bohemia’ in English) was actually produced in a military version, but to say that it had any great impact on the outcome of the war would be rather overstating the bike’s abilities.

Other interesting facts about the bike include that its fuel line was over 2 meters long, the total-loss oil system was seemingly designed to cover the riders with a thick coating of black gold, and the front fork design was about as complex as your average V2 rocket. But for sheer steampunk weirdness, nothing else comes close.

2. Moto Guzzi ‘Mulo Meccanico’ (1960)

Not to be outdone by Germans, the Italians also had their fair share of battle wackiness, as evidenced by the rather wonderful Moto Guzzi you see here. Designed to climb mountains and to replace mules, which were traditionally used by Italian forces to get gear overland in the country’s mountainous north, every second photo of the tricycle in action appears to show it climbing up a tree—for purposes that we can only speculate.

Maybe there were olive-picking intentions for the bike when it wasn’t being used in combat? Whatever the case, it also cleverly demonstrated the bike’s nifty 3WD system.

So with power supplied to all three wheels, the bike was more than capable when it came to climbing over obstacles and the like. And with 20 years of development and engineering under its belt since WWII, Moto Guzzi built the tricycle with an impressive six-speed transmission, reverse gear, switchable diff and even a torque split system that supplied 80% of the oomph to the rear wheel and the rest to the front.

Sadly, the bike didn’t quite cut the mustard in the field, and several riders reportedly died after the hefty machine rolled over on them in rough terrain. It would seem that even with 20 years of progress, the Italian engineers still couldn’t better Germany’s flawed Kettenkrad design—but they sure went head-to-head with them when it came to the looks.

1. Moto-Chenille Mercier (1939)

Developed from a long-term military interest in ‘semi-track’ vehicles globally since the 1920s, the French René-Gillet company (often called the Harley-Davidson of France) were asked by the French military in the early ‘30s to test the viability of tank-tracked motorcycles in off-road conditions with any eye to awarding a military contract to the company. The result was the father of the bike you see here.

More of a traditional motorcycle with a tank-like sidecar grafted onto the original chassis, it was still enough to keep the French army interested and wanting to see more. Too much red wine, maybe?

Thus, Moto-Chenille created this little wonder. Despite the beautiful JAP engine and undoubtedly cool design, the actual cooling of the bike was handled by a unique system involving a fan and a pipe that was used to direct air where needed.

Reports hint at a healthy top speed and ease of use that was stifled by the highly temperamental caterpillar track system. It’s also noted that in a test against a standard French motorcycle of the time, the Moto-Chenille was slower, more thirsty and (rather surprisingly) less capable when it came time to traverse a muddy trench. But what the bike did really well was climb like a billy goat. Until its front track failed, that is. C’est la vie.

The post TANKS FOR THE MEMORIES: The 5 Weirdest Motorcycles Ever Used in War appeared first on webBikeWorld.

This naturally made me wonder, what would be some of the most important motorcycles ever made? I love these sorts of questions, the type to cause endless debate. Knowing this I shall once again seek to stir up that debate with my list of 10 of the Most Important Motorcycles Ever Made!

Most Important Motorcycles #10: 1925 Brough Superior SS100

Photo Credit: Mecum Auctions.

George Brough pioneered the earliest British Supersport bikes with Brough Superior and the SS100, the first production bike to achieve 100 mph.

An accomplished racer and holder of World Records, he built the SS100 with a 45 hp (a crazy figure for the day) 988cc V-Twin and multiple outsource components. Each bike was test-ridden prior to delivery, certifying its ability to meet spec.

Every owner was encouraged by Brough to suggest their own ideas for developing the SS100, which meant that almost all his motorcycles were uniquely hand-built and the design continually evolving.

Famous facts—Lawrence of Arabia bought one of the first SS100s in 1925.

Most Important Motorcycles #9: 1931 Royal Enfield Bullet

Photo Credit: Mecum Auctions.

The Royal Enfield Bullet is the ultimate “classic motorcycle”. The Bullet has an incredible production history that covers 89 years! Yes, this is somewhat debatable due to the move from England to India, and that there have been 350 and 500 models, but there is a darn near straight point-to-point connection here that makes these bikes iconic.

Royal Enfield evolved with the requirements of the day but always seemed to hold onto the essence of the single-cylinder OHV design it began from. Used for work, pleasure, war, and racing the Bullet holds a place in the hearts of riders of all ages around the globe.

Most Important Motorcycles #8: 1935 BMW R12 and R17

Photo Credit: Mecum Auctions.

Why this BMW? It is the first motorcycle to have hydraulically damped telescopic forks, a configuration that to this day remains the most common and capable method of controlling the front wheel of a motorcycle.

While that alone is enough to make my most important list, the air-cooled, 745 cc side-valve boxer motor outputting through a Cardan shaft drive was an extremely reliable piece of military equipment. So good that many manufacturers “borrowed” ideas from the BMW R12 for their post-war motorcycles.

Most Important Motorcycles #7: 1958 Honda Super Cub

Photo Credit: AutoEvolution.

The Honda Super Cub is the most popular motorcycle ever manufactured. Period.

Since 1958 in sizes from 50-125cc, the air-cooled single-cylinder machine with its step-through design, comfy seat, and luggage rack has become something well beyond just a motorcycle. They have been used for, and I am not even exaggerating—everything!

Honda has built over 100 million Super Cubs! That is more than 5 times as many vehicles as the VW Beetle. Of course, Honda had the marketing slogan “You meet the nicest people on a Honda,” so everyone wanted to own one.

Most Important Motorcycles #6: 1970 Harley-Davidson XR750

Photo Credit: Mecum Auctions.

Finally caving to the pressure from foreign bike manufacturers, in 1969  the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), established new rules that there would be one maximum displacement for dirt track racing, 750 cc, with no regard for valve type. This move rendered the KR series obsolete and HD needed a replacement quickly.

It is true that the 1970 XR with its iron heads was not the fastest, it was the start of things to come and the eventual 29 Grand National titles. If that’s not enough—it was the bike Evel Knievel chose for his legendary stunts of the 1970s.

Most Important Motorcycles #5: 1974 Ducati 750SS

Photo Credit: Mecum Auctions.

The “Green Frame,” Ducati 750SS was a run of just 401 bikes in 1974, but oh what a special production it was.

In 1972 Ducati, with Paul Smart aboard, won the Imola 200, smashing lap records along the way. Rather than just make a tribute type of replica bike, the 750 SS was built by the race department to the existing spec. When they appeared in 1974  among the most obvious external differences were the adoption of a center-axle fork and Brembo front brakes—otherwise, these were the same as the race-winning 1972’s.

The 750 SS received rave reviews in the motorcycling press, being hailed by Cycle magazine as “a bike that stands at the farthest reaches of the sporting world—the definitive factory-built café racer.”

Most Important Motorcycles #4: 1980 BMW R80 G/S

Photo Credit: BikesRepublic.com.

Using a motorcycle both on and off-road was certainly nothing new, people had been doing so since the very first bikes were built. Yet it wasn’t until BMW released the R80 G/S that anyone had actually engineered a machine with this intention.

Large displacement engine, long-travel suspension, a single-sided swingarm, and mono-shock all in a machine with lights and a license plate? BMW created a whole new way to ride with a dual-sport machine that went on to win the Paris Dakar rally multiple times.

G for Gelände “offroad” in German S for Straße “street”, BMW can be thanked for creating the Adventure bike category.

Most Important Motorcycles #3: 1982 Yamaha YZR500 (0W61)

Photo Credit: Yamaha.

The Yamaha YZR500, a 1982 500cc Grand Prix racing motorcycle, was a huge engineering leap over one year. With the very first 2-stroke V-4 engine in a GP bike, Yamaha took everything further by suspending the engine under a totally new style aluminium frame with no undermount cradle supporting the engine.

This new frame developed by Spanish engineer Antonio Cobas was based on the theory that a triangle (delta) is far more rigid than a square. Using a new controlled flow die-casting process, Yamaha was able to make a very thin rectangular box frame material that was lighter and 4 times stronger than prior designs—ushering in what is now the well-known “Deltabox” frame.

Most Important Motorcycles #2: 1985 Suzuki GSXR 750

Photo Credit: Mecum Auctions.

The motorcycle landscape felt a shift in the force in 1985 with the introduction of the Suzuki GSXR 750. For the first time, the buying public was able to get a leg over what could only be called a track bike.

With over 100hp and weighing less than 400lbs, this sort of power to weight ratio had never been seen on public roads. Welcome to the Supersport world. With a powerband that was found near 10,000 rpm, and illegal speeds happening with the smallest twist of the wrist.

The slab-sided machine with the double bubble lights was destined to be a legend from day one.

Most Important Motorcycles #1: 2002 Honda RC211V

Photo Credit: MotoGP.

Major rule changes occurred going into 2002 for the FIM Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing Association. Gone was the 500cc two-stroke division, in its place, was now MotoGP which allowed manufacturers to choose between running two-stroke engines up to 500 cc or four-strokes up to 990 cc.

Honda responded with the RC211V to replace the NSR500. Packing a unique 990cc V5 capable of over 210 hp at 14 000 rpm. So dominant was Honda with this new machine, it won 14 of the 16 contests it competed in that season, and 3 of the next 5 Constructors Championships.

Final Thoughts on the Most Important Motorcycles Ever Made

How do you stop at just 10 bikes? There is little doubt I have left many wonderful bikes off my list. Heck, I don’t even list anything from the last 20 years!

That being said, I stand by my choices but I certainly want to hear your thoughts. Do you agree with these? Any you would swap out? I chose to list them by year made rather than attempting to rank them but if forced I would put the Super Cub number 1. How can you argue against over 100 million bikes produced?

The post 10 of the Most Important Motorcycles Ever Made appeared first on webBikeWorld.

Choosing the best motorcycles from any decade is always a challenge, and I am fully preparing myself for this article’s comments section by donning a flame suit. Yes, I have already revealed a couple of bikes that I must include—but let me know your thoughts; what did I miss? What bike released between 2000 and 2010 gets your heart rate up?

These 10 bikes are the models that always had me stopping to look at bike shows each year and wonder if my kids really needed three meals a day. Clearly, I was able to prioritize.

To the list!

2000 Suzuki Hayabusa

Via Suzuki.

Introduced in 1999, this 1299cc missile was instantly the fastest production motorcycle on the planet. Others tried to chase the title, but the big bad ‘Busa will forever be linked to the title of “fastest”.

Now, to be the best (in my opinion) takes more than just doing one thing really well. Fortunately, Suzuki also fit stout brakes, a capable suspension, reasonably comfortable ergonomics (for a missile), and surprising reliability into the Hayabusa.

Top speed turned into top sales, and in 2008 the second generation Hayabusa was delivered. Every element of the bike got a performance enhancement—more muscular bodywork, more cc’s, and more speed cemented this bike as absolutely one of the best of the 2000s. And the 2021 Suzuki Hayabusa is pretty great, too!

2001 Harley Davidson VRSC (VRod)

Via Harley Davidson.

Harley Davidson is as much a culture as it is a motorcycle brand—and moving into Y2K, the brass at HD was keen to find new customers. To draw in those new clients (and preferably younger ones) meant taking on one of the main criticisms of the brand: poor performance. Nobody knows performance quite like Porsche, so HD reached out, and the resultant engineering output was the Harley Davidson VRod—with an all-new 60-degree V-twin Revolution engine.

The Harley-Davidson VRSC (V-twin Racing Street Custom), or V-Rod, was everything the brand had never been before: sleek, light, and powerful. The frame was now hydroformed, the fuel tank was plastic (and under the seat), and the traditional tank location now held the airbox and battery.

The Revolution engine made some serious ponies—115hp to be exact—and could spin up to 9000 rpm. If it wasn’t for the HD badge, customers would have no idea who made this unique motorcycle.

For the HD faithful, the usual lineup of 45-degree V-twins remained—but for all those that never thought they wanted a Harley, the brand kept VRod’s in production for the next 17 years. That, my friends, is an epic run for this badass muscle bike.

2001 Honda Goldwing

Via Bookstrucker.

Messing with your flagship model can be a tricky task but Honda knew there was little choice. The traditional Goldwing owner was beginning to age out. Turning the engineers loose with a long list of must-haves, what they created for 2001 was nothing short of game-changing.

Starting with a sport bike-like aluminum beam frame, an all-new 1832cc six-cylinder, flat, boxer-style engine making 120hp and 123 lb-ft of torque completely transformed what riders could expect from a full-dressed touring machine. Bikes from Harley Davidson and BMW (or any other manufacturer actually), were suddenly very underpowered by comparison and in the mirrors after the first turn.

The handling traits of the new ‘Wing set expectations so far in a new direction it actually became difficult to make a reasonable comparison to any other fully loaded touring bike. 850lbs has never felt so tempting to drop into a corner like this.

I fully admit my fanboy status for the 2001 Goldwing. The images used for this article are of my father’s ‘Wing, a bike that will live in my garage forever. I rode it shortly after he brought it home in 2001, and I was shocked at its capabilities. 20 years and 45,000 km later, the bike is flawless and still gives me an unmatched smile when I ride it each summer.

To see what the brand has done more recently with this classic model, check out the 2021 Honda Goldwing.

2001–2005 BMW R 1150 GS Adventure

Of all the cult-like followings belonging to certain motorcycles, the BMW GS dual-sport/adventure bikes have one of the largest. But this devout following is well-deserved, and cannot be explained from a spec sheet alone.

Not especially powerful, the 1130cc boxer twin has the torque on tap every time your right wrist calls for it. The gearing and grip, when combined with the high perch and wide bars, somehow come together in a unique mashup of engineering to deliver a precise and shockingly nimble set of off-pavement skills.

The BMW R 1150 GS Adventure had a number of differences from the standard GS to make it more suitable for adventure travel. These included an optional 30-litre (6.6 gal) fuel tank, a larger screen, a single-piece seat, 20 millimeter (0.8 in) more suspension in the front and rear, a lower first gear, and a conventional sixth gear in place of the standard model’s overdrive gear.

An anti-knock sensor adjustment change allowed the adventure version to run on lower-quality gasoline as well. Common options on both models were heated hand grips and ABS brakes.

Cementing its place amongst the best, the R 1150 GS Adventure was ridden in 2004 by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman during their epic 30,000km journey in “Long Way Round.”

2002 Honda CRF450R

Via Honda.

Yamaha had a huge lead in the world of big displacement 4-stroke MX bikes coming into the 2000s—but in 2002, Honda hit back with a game-changing bike. It would probably have been a simpler proposition to make a team red clone of the Yammy YZ400F, but Honda went for a full clean sheet rework and delivered the CRF450R. It’s a big bore 4-stroke with weight and handling that rivals the 250cc 2 strokes of the day.

Every major complaint of the competition, Honda addressed. With a light and strong chassis, fast throttle response, capable suspension, and compact ergonomics, nothing was ignored and over the next few years, the CRF450R was the bike in the garage of every weekend track junkie. Delivering a major hit to the high-strung 2-stroke race bikes, Honda completely changed what riders could expect from a big bore 4-stroke.

2002 Yamaha FJR1300

Via Yamaha

Europe saw the Yamaha FJR1300 in 2001, and instantly North Americans were begging for it. Yamaha has always been a producer of excellent engines, and the 1298cc transverse inline-four rewarded pilots with 144 hp and just shy of 100 lb-ft of torque. Other sport-touring machines may have had a few more bells and whistles, but the FJR focused on being a superb corner-loving, mile-eating ride.

Reliability and capability are the hallmarks of the FJR1300. High-speed 2-up riding is aided with the electrically adjustable windscreen, plush seat, 6.6-gallon fuel tank, and slick panniers. The engine and 5-speed gearbox are mated to a drive shaft encased within the swingarm, which has mono-shock suspension and a remote quick-set two-position adjustable pre-load.

I love this quote from Cycle World when they named it as the best sport-touring bike of 2002 (and also 2004): “The FJR combines cruise-ship comfort with a motor that would probably propel an ocean liner at a good clip, all wrapped in a classy-looking silver package.” I would agree—there is not another sport-touring machine from the 2000s that can match Yamahas FJR1300.

2004 Triumph Rocket 3

Triumph simply blew everyone’s minds with the introduction of this beast. With 2294cc and nearly 150 lb/ft of torque from three massive cylinders, say hello to the Rocket 3!

Walking around the Triumph Rocket 3 reveals all sorts of unique bits. The front dual headlights, wide forks, and relaxed handlebar position seem aimed at the cruiser crowd. That radiator is huge! Then you swing around and look at it from the back and try to make sense of the three pipes and very wide rubber. The view from each side is equally interesting, with the right being dominated by the chrome exhaust manifold.

This bike looks totally different from other Triumph motorcycles, and I love it. Riders at the time praised the highly capable chassis and the handling prowess of the Rocket 3. It took a little time for them to truly discover the merits of the R3 and understand it was really a muscle bike that could both cruise and tour. I have no hesitation stating that the R3 has reached elite status, thanks to sticking to the mantra that more is always better.

2006–2010 Suzuki GSXR750

I told myself I could only include one Gixxer on this list, and here it is, the 2006–2010 version of the GSXR750. Providing the ideal crossbreed between the 600 and the literbike, the GSXR750 received a serious overhaul and came into 2006 with all the flair of Kramer into Seinfeld’s apartment.

Dripping with fresh sleek styling, the GSXR750 is the perfect choice for the Supersport rider out on the street. Dimensionally, it is near spot-on with the GSXR600, but with an additional 25 hp and only 2 extra kilos of weight.

Feeling like a smaller bike than the 2005 model, the 2006 version of the 750 really was like having the ultimate 600. Supreme handling, brakes, and an extremely light weight allowed Suzuki to own this niche space in the realm of supersport motorcycles.

I could debate all day as to why the GSXR750 is one of the best bikes of the 2000s. It is simply that good.

2007 Can-Am Spyder

Photo Credit: Motortrend.

Is it a bike? Don’t call it a trike, and it’s definitely not a car. What it is (in this writer’s opinion) is brilliant. With a Rotax-built, 998cc, liquid-cooled twin-engine producing 106hp, plenty of power was available to move the 700lb Can-Am Spyder with gusto.

With parent company Bombardier already having vast experience in this general mechanical layout thanks to the Skidoo brand, Can-Am engineers came out of the gate with a quality machine. Thoughtfully including a reverse gear and a Vehicle Stability System consisting of ABS, traction control, and stability control paved the way for new riders to gain confidence in the saddle.

I am including the Spyder in this list of the best of the 2000s for a very simple reason: it was a game-changer when it launched. With a rider-friendly 29’ seat height, a comfortable riding position, and a look that was sporty yet not intimidating, Can-Am was able to attract owners to the Powersports world who had never ridden a motorcycle.

This machine brought more women into the sport as well, with 21 percent of sales going their way. Not many machines can claim to have changed the market quite the way Can-Am Spyder did.

2000 Marine Turbine Technologies Y2K

Via Marine Turbine Technologies.

It’s a JET BIKE!!!! What else even needs to be said? Oh, I know—I will take mine in purple, please.

Unlike other attempts at turbine-jet bikes that relied on jet thrust for propulsion, the MTT engineers devised a 2-speed gearbox, to connect the turbine shaft to the rear wheel. Touting insane specs like 320hp and 52,000rpm, the MTT Y2K is a low production custom machine, with the first bike being delivered to none other than Jay Leno.

I won’t even bother to try and compare it with other sportbikes; that would be like trying to compare a grape to a watermelon—and honestly, who cares? It’s a freaking Jet Bike from the 2000s.

At the start of the current millennium, motorcycle manufacturers began to innovate and rewrite what is possible on two wheels. We can’t wait to see what the current decade will bring for motorcycle design.

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