There are so many iterations of the Suzuki RGV 250 Gamma running around that you either need to be a savant to keep them all straight, or refresh yourself every time one comes up. There are VJ21s, VJ22s, VJ23s and a bunch of SP variants in between. Some are corked, some are uncorked, which means,…
The Suzuki TL-1000S was a monster of a sport naked that came out a little bit before the thirst for such things got really desperate, and then promptly got swamped in the publicity surrounding the TL-1000R superbike, which was supposed to beat Ducati at its own game. Unfortunately for Suzuki, the TLR whiffed as a…
The Honda RC51 had a short lifespan as a factory-supported superbike contender, but it made its years count, taking home World Superbike titles in 2000 and 2002. The latter was a special year for the big twin Honda, as Nicky Hayden also captured the AMA Superbike championship aboard one. Honda celebrated the feat in 2004…
Going Moto Guzzi has always been a choice. These v-twins are an interesting alternative to the high-strung offerings of those other Italian marques. Character is plentiful, as is an abundance of low RPM torque. Quality is high, at both the component as well as the build level. Performance is adequate – but far more relaxed…
Update 6.20.2019: We last saw this bike in March of 2018 and bidding ended just shy of $10k. It’s back on eBay with a buy-it-now of $17,875. Links updated. -dc Ducati has come a long way in terms of service costs and reliability. The four-valve Bologna twins have always offered good power and a bulging…
Many Japanese bikes aren’t intentionally sexy, in the way that a Bimota or MV Agusta often is, and they often fall flat stylistically when they do try to put style ahead of function. Italian machines are almost gratuitously beautiful, full of details that don’t enhance the bike’s performance, they just make the parts more interesting…
If Hunter S. Thompson, whose vocation was more or less using heavy drugs and shooting things, was so scared of the Ducati 900SS/SP that he wrote more of a cautionary tale than a review, it is truly hard to imagine the bone-deep terror a Ducati 851 must inspire on the street. With 15 or so…
In the world of different strokes, there are Japanese sport bikes and Italian sport bikes. And for a short while, there was a rational choice out of left field – Austria – with the KTM RC8R. With a unique blend of high-quality components and features not often found on bikes in the range, the RC8R…