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Used Test: Yamaha Fazer 1000
By Bertie Simmonds on 16/08/2008 21:50:12
Eagerly anticipated but horrendously expensive on its launch, the Fazer needed a price cut before gaining the popularity it deserved. But what about a used one?
When it was launched back in 2001, the Fazer 1000 was being touted as a sports bike alternative. In reality it was very close to a sports bike, but mainly on price: a whopping £8100, or nearly £1900 dearer than the Bandit 1200! An R1 was only a
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Used Review: Aprilia Tuono
By Bertie Simmonds on 08/04/2008 22:00:52
For sheer naked fun, nothing short of a frolic with Lucy Pinder can beat the Aprilia Tuono. Launched in 2003, it immediately won an army of fans
. Gearing Tuonos have 17-tooth front sprockets with 42 teeth at the rear. Many owners go the route of lowering the gearing, with 16- or even 15-tooth front sprockets popular, or 44-tooth rears. A new front sprocket costs around £20 and takes just over
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Used Test: Suzuki GSX-R1000
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/08/2008 22:31:27
Upon its launch in 2001, the Suzuki swept all before it. Six years later it is still arguably the best of the litre sports bike brood, but how does it handle in the fiercely fought second-hand sector?
It's funny how bulbous the original 2001 GSX-R1000 now looks next to the lithe and silky-smooth 2006 GSX-R, R1 and Blade. But half a decade or more ago this was the latest 'big thing', a machine which made the likes of the FireBlade and R1 also
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Used Review: Yamaha YZF-R1
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/04/2008 17:50:05
A quantum leap in performance over the mighty FireBlade, the Yamaha YZF-R1 set new standards for power and performance at its launch back in 1998. New and old models alike still sizzle today.
Yamaha knew it had a 150bhp, 177kg winner on its hands. It stuffed the 1998 FireBlade and newly-lithe ZX-9R in group tests around the world, at the same time becoming the best-looking sportsbike to ever come out of Japan. But, like the Blade before it
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Used Review: Ducati Monster S4 & S4R
By Bertie Simmonds on 08/04/2008 21:11:47
Like the original but on steroids, the Monster S4 grasped bare-biking from Bologna by the bars and took it into the new millennium. But are there any bugs? Used-bike fact hound Bertie Simmonds finds out.
Ducati's evergreen favourite, the Monster had been around for seven years when - in Y2K - the S4 was launched.This was a much-needed shot in the arm for the Monster family, which by this time had been overtaken by the opposition, such as the TL1000S
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Used Review: Ducati 916, 996 & 998
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/04/2008 14:08:20
An aesthetic and performance revolution in its day, the 916 series has guaranteed iconic status for Bologna's blood-red bullets for time immemorial. But are those stories of Desmodromic histrionics all true?
, seminal 916.Developed in 1993 and launched in 1994, the 916 Strada was an astounding success. It had journalists spluttering for the superlatives and Foggy reaching for the World Superbike title in the bike's very first year of production. The 916 was a
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Used Review: Triumph Sprint RS
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/04/2008 21:38:34
Quiet, unassuming and unpopular the Sprint RS may have been as a new buy, it now has a loyal following and makes a bargain sports tourer.
I was at the launch of the Sprint RS in southern Spain in 1999. Some muppet in the office thought it would be a good idea to ride back from there to the Midlands, in late December.But thanks to decent winter kit and the Sprint RS's solid attributes
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Used Review: Triumph TT600-Daytona 600-650
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/04/2008 22:01:14
Yep, it's true. Back in 1996, when Triumph first mooted a middleweight sportsbike - codenamed T806 - they looked at making a triple.
-cylinder layout should be used. From this we can gather that listening to focus groups can be a bad idea, for 10 years down the line we're full circle with the new Daytona 675 triple...So, in 1999 we got a four-cylinder motorcycle that scarcely deviated from
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Used Review: Aprilia RSV Mille & Mille R
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/04/2008 13:50:45
With looks and performance akin to a kick in the pods, Aprilia's Mille proved that not every Italian sportsbike had to be a blood-red, 90¡ V-twin from Bologna.
lumpy) power delivery. It piled out 128 claimed bhp, which equated to around 112-115 in rear-wheel terms.With Aprilia already umpteen titles through their 125 and 250cc GP haul at the time, you had a beautifully polished and organically curving ally beam
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Used Review: Yamaha YZF-R6
By Bertie Simmonds on 05/04/2008 16:08:21
Yamaha's feisty little R6 has deservedly gained a cult status amongst its fans, as a rev-happy, sharp-edged alternative to Honda's more easy-going CBR600.
'claimed' 120bhp (more like 105bhp at the rear wheel) and was also the first production bike to boast 200bhp per litre.But these figures only tell half the story. What did make the bike the success it became was its single-minded attitude to sports biking
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