In a teaser comment on social media, Kawasaki has hinted that it has a two-stroke motorcycle in development. Admittedly, it is only a hint, but a significant one, in a ten-second post in which the company responds to pleas from two-stroke fans with the phrase, “We heard you!” More substantial evidence that Kawasaki is working on a two-stroke came in July 2024, when it submitted a patent application for a new stroker motor employing fuel-injection, a turbocharger and inlet valves operated by a camshaft. These changes could make a new-generation two-stroke far less polluting than the old-school engines, and more efficient in fuel use, while retaining their traditional benefits of high power and relatively low weight. It looks like any claims

Smaller, cheaper sub-500cc bikes are soaring up the sales charts, according to the latest detailed sales figures from DfT and DVLA. For the first six months of 2024, sub-500s took five of the top ten seller spots for over 125cc machines. Triumph’s 400cc single was the star performer, with the Speed 400 grabbing second place (1135 sales in January-June 2024) and its Scrambler 400X cousin in fourth (1000 sales). The Speed 400 actually outsold BMW’s new R1300GS, though the evergreen R1250GS remained best seller overall, at 1324. Other smaller bikes in the top ten were the Royal Enfield Meteor 350 in seventh place, the Honda ADV 350 in ninth and Enfield’s Himalayan 452 in tenth. That was backed up by MCIA sales

We’ve heard of barn finds, but this is something else – Charterhouse Auctions is planning to offer a bike that’s been in uninterrupted storage for over 90 years! Maybe the term ‘barn find’ is pushing it a bit, but the British Motor Traction, built circa 1900, was loaned to the Science Museum in 1933 by the owner’s family, who recognised it even then as an historic machine. Did it ever go on display? We don’t know, but soon afterwards the Museum put the bike into store, and there it stayed until Charterhouse was recently commissioned to put it under the hammer. Charterhouse boss George Beale said: “Whilst it is amazing to think this bike has been hidden away for all these decades,

Paul Varnsverry, the highly respected motorcycling clothing expert, is launching a campaign aimed at eliminating uncertified and potentially unsafe bike kit, currently being imported into the UK and offered for sale online. Varnsverry, Technical Director of clothing consultant at  PVA-PPE, is started a petition aimed at alerting Government to the dangers of untested kit. In conversation with MCN, he praised the efforts of Trading Standards in the last three years, in checking bike shows and high street shops for sub-standard kit. But he added that clothing offered online is attempting to circumvent these checks. “I started noticing a significant number of vendors selling untested, non-certified clothing,” he said, “using social media to bypass the usual checks and balances put in place

Ariel motorcycle production has ended. That might be a surprise to those who associate the name with Britain’s glory biking days of the 1930s and the ‘50s, but for the last ten years, Ariel has been building the Ace, a VFR1200-powered super naked bike. Designed as a two-wheeled equivalent to Ariel’s lightweight Atom sports car, the Ace was a striking design using a trellis aluminium main frame and high tech girder forks. Power came from Honda’s 1237cc V4 from the VFR1200, mated to the optional DCT transmission – with 175bhp, it gave the Ace stunning performance, but the end of VFR production seems likely to have influenced Ariel’s decision to end production. The last customer bike, finished in Gulf colours, was

Staffordshire Police have been fighting bike theft by equipping specially trained officers with drones and Honda CRF300L off-road bikes – and the new strategy is working. Operation Transom, put into action on Sunday 15th December, saw officers from three Staffordshire units – Park Hall Country Park, Werrington and Bucknall – target areas where anti-social riding had been reported. Inspector Becci Price said: “On many occasions the actions of those involved have not only been anti-social but also reckless and criminal. Riders risk injuring themselves, other road users and pedestrians. They will be dealt with accordingly through disqualification, arrest and prosecution.” Operation Transom worked by using the CRF-mounted officers as deterrent patrols and a drone for additional information. Two stolen bikes were

Has the death of the sports bike been exaggerated? Toshihiro Suzuki, President of Suzuki Motor Corporation, has hinted that the EICMA show in November 2025 could see a significant sports bike launch for the company. Speaking to Motorcycle News in late December 2024, he said: “We cannot tell you the detail, but we think it’s important to bring supersport motorcycles to the market, adapting to the new regulations...We think it’s important, because it’s Suzuki’s heritage.” The reference to ‘heritage’ is significant, because it could signal the return of a four-cylinder GSX-R – Suzuki’s current sports bike offerings are limited to the single-cylinder GSX-R 125 and GSX-8R parallel-twin. The GSX-R fours were iconic models for Suzuki in the past, allowing it to own

Dainese, owner of AGV Helmets, has announced the world’s first helmet recycling scheme, using recycled materials from end-of-life lids to help make new ones. Currently, all old helmets, whether crash damaged or simply having reached the end of their useful life, go to landfill or incineration, and manufacturers are now looking for less ecologically damaging means of disposal, of which recycling is an attractive option, possibly saving costs on using all-new materials for every new helmet. The research and development project, for which Dainese is currently building a new factory, appears to address two issues: the recycling of plastics in existing lids, and the design of new ones to make them easier to recycle when the time comes. The company is

Bolton-based CCM, one of Britain’s few motorcycle manufacturers, gave a glimpse of its future model plans at Motorcycle Live. The company, founded by Alan Clews in 1971 and run and owned by the Clews family for much of its existence, was taken over by Pitalia Capital in 2022, which until now has continued with the existing line-up of 600cc road bikes. CCM’s Managing Director Jason Broome, who took over the top job in May 2024, has said that new engine platforms will be introduced over the next three years. The first new bike will be the Project X adventure machine, which was unveiled at Motorcycle Live and is due to go on sale in May 2025. With a distinctly retro look

Britain’s classic vehicle clubs – for motorcycles, cars and commercial vehicles – are being urged to take on digital technology to combat falling memberships. Many clubs are faced with ageing demographics and a need to attract a new generation of younger members, but some are still relying on traditional methods such as printed magazines and local events. Writing in Historic, the magazine of the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs (FBHVC), digital expert Will Jefferies said: “In today’s digital world, a strong online presence is essential to attract new members. Without it, clubs may struggle to engage younger audiences who prefer digital platforms.” Will Jefferies went on to recommend automated software for admin tasks such as membership renewal, freeing up club volunteers

Japanese motorcycle makers had a good 2024, according to Roger Willis, Finance Editor of the trade paper British Dealer News. By contrast, the ‘legacy’ names such as BMW, Harley-Davidson and Ducati are suffering as sales fall in key markets. Honda looks set to sell more than 20 million bikes worldwide in the 12 months from March 2024, while Kawasaki (just chosen to provide camera bikes for 2025’s Tour de France) is also on the up. Suzuki is projecting two million sales while Yamaha’s profits have soared to over £650 million to the end of September 2024. Much of their growth comes from developing markets in Asia and India, where demand for smaller bikes continues to grow. “Studiously avoiding the market instability

King of the Baggers – Harley-Davidson’s race series for fully-equipped touring Harleys – could be coming to Europe after the company signed an agreement with Dorna, organiser of MotoGP. Bagger racing (somebody had to say it...) first appeared in 2020 and has been a huge success in the US as part of MotoAmerica series, with the touring bike rounds acting as support races. The sight of big twin Harleys, battling it out on track, complete with fairings and panniers, is certainly a spectacle. To publicise the agreement signed between Harley and Dorna, the Baggers made a guest appearance at Barcelona this year after the final MotoGP round of the season. It’s still not confirmed whether bagger racing will join the MotoGP schedule