A solo seat on a sportbike is a statement of intent that says, “I’m a very serious sports motorcycle rider, and a passenger will only slow me down when I’m out dragging a knee in the canyons.” Or maybe it just says that your significant other has their own motorcycle for canyon-carving… Honestly, considering the…
Update 2.17.2017: Last posted in August of last year, this bike reached $34,101 reserve not met. Back on eBay and closes on Sunday. Links updated. -dc Prior to the RG500, two-strokes were found only in the smaller racing classes, and Suzuki was breaking new ground with this bike: no one had ever really built a…
Back when two-strokes ruled the entry-level sportbike class in Europe, Aprilia’s RS125 was designed to appeal to new riders who wanted something sporty, but were limited in terms of displacement and outright power by strict licensing laws that prevented the purchase of bikes that in the USA would be considered “learner bikes.” Sponsor logos and…
Considering I can comb eBay for months on end and not see a single Laverda for sale, it’s crazy that we’ve seen not just one but three worthy examples representing a couple different eras recently. From the 1990s Formula that might be more familiar to our readers, to the more vintage 1984 Jota and today’s…
The engine of any motorcycle is its living, beating heart and the powerplant of Aprilia’s funky RSV Mille R was, at the time, as unconventional as the bike’s styling. A 90° v-twin is generally considered ideal for sporting applications, as the angle between the cylinders provides “perfect primary balance” where the unpleasant vibrations caused by…
Like rock and roll bands, manufacturers of premium motorcycle brands always have their eyes on the US market: a land of seemingly endless wealth to buy expensive, high-end motorcycles and wide-open spaces where big-bore motorcycles can roam free. In Europe, smaller motorcycles were very popular, owing to taxes that punished larger machines, expensive gas, and…
If you live here in the US and have a hankering for a two-stroke sportbike the choices, assuming you don’t want to monkey about with a grey-market import, are few and far between. 70’s two-strokes were relatively light and nimble, but still limited by the suspension and frame technology of the time, and by the…
In creating the 996, it might look like Ducati simply slapped a set of fresh decals onto their 916, with an extra “9” replacing the “1.” But the development of the 916 into the 996 and finally into the 998 saw a lot of gradual changes under that very pretty and iconic skin. Introduced in…