1989The last year of the Eighties highlighted just how quickly motorcycles had advanced. The top bikes of ‘89 had liquid-cooled, multi-valve engines and high-tech chassis, some with aluminium frames and multi-adjustable suspension. They weren’t far

the 80bhp and almost 50kg in the young gun’s favour — is this: in its day, the GPZ900R wasn’t merely one of the world’s top superbikes. It was the best. By a country mile. In a world of air-cooled, twin-shock monoliths, the original Ninja was a revelation

Cruiser engines are getting so huge these days that Yamaha's new Midnight Star is billed as a middleweight even though its V-twin motor displaces 1304cc, the traditional American 80 cubic inches.The liquid-cooled XVS1300A squeezes into Yamaha

Clermont-Ferrand.The Charade's style mixes aggression and retro cool, with its black fairing, single seat and high-level exhaust system emerging from a big V-twin engine. There's a hint of early 70s works Harley XR750 road-racer in designer Sacha Lakic

and can be customised. The result is the Tricker. It went on sale in Japan last year, and now it's available elsewhere - though not just yet in Britain.Power comes from an air-cooled, 249cc single-cylinder engine making a modest 19bhp at 7500rpm. With 35mm

. Part of the reason for that is they've stuck so faithfully to the original lines. The big air-cooled motor's impact is emphasised by large-diameter steel frame tubes, fat tyres and that huge, conical single silencer that makes a virtue of Euro 3

cruisers will be sold under the Star brand). Whatever the name, it's a cool-looking bike. There's a flavour of old cars like the Chrysler Airflow in the way the headlight flows into the tank with its three chromed lines on each side, and in details

into the Nineties.Now the Tenere is back, and you’ve only got to glance at the spec sheet to realise that the new-generation XT660Z is distinctly different. This Tenere’s liquid-cooled motor, borrowed from Yamaha’s XT660R trail bike, is more sophisticated than

The big technical advances of the 1980s, such as liquid-cooling and aluminium frames, were common by ’88 but this was another great year. Japan’s Big Four launched hot new models, Ducati led an Italian fightback, Norton proved the British bike

DUCATI 851The last year of the Eighties was more notable for revamps than for completely new bikes, and nobody did it better than Ducati. The previous year’s 851 had been one of the most eagerly awaited bikes ever: the first Duke with a liquid-cooled