Motorbike

Yamaha says: The new, stylish and compact X-MAX 125 features a strong, rigid frame for sports-style riding, so it's at home taking you past the traffic on your daily commute.

How sporty is the new R1200S? Well it's that sporty BMW has taken luggage off the option list - this bike's built for brisk road riding and the occasional track day.

Vespa says: The Vespa GTS 125 Super inherits the elegance and dynamic style of the Vespa GTS 300 Super. The steel body, with the horizontal grille on the right side as a clear homage to the past, gives the Vespa the superior rigidity and control that you would expect.

The WSBK paddock are now heading to the UK for the seventh round

There's no getting away from it: the BMW R1200GS Adventure is a man's bike. If you're a wimp you can forget it, it's not for you.

Peugeot says: Satelis boasts a completely modern look and includes numerous features to improve ease of operation and enhance comfort.

EVERY NOW AND then a new model appears that gets me quite excited. The new FZ1 Fazer was one of those, and in this case because it appeared to tick all the boxes for the sort of bike I'd be looking to buy right now with my own money if I had any.

A Ducati with 50 per cent reduced maintenance costs? What have they done? Chopped off one of the cylinders? A confused Jon Urry investigates

Clear road, tuck in behind the screen and pin it. The speedo reads up to 280kph, but there’s an unmarked segment beyond that, where ‘300’ should be but isn’t.

Torque-laden tourer with the benefit of maintenance-free shaft drive

IT WAS FAIR to say this was not the most glamorous of launches. There was no hot and cold running champagne, no business class flight to a far-flung land, and nor was there anyone offering me gifts and trinketry at every available opportunity.

WHEN TWO TESTED an early prototype of the Moto Morini Corsaro a few issues ago it impressed, but was by no means perfect.

Kawasaki prefers not to mess around.

It’s increasingly difficult for manufacturers to come up with really individual bikes. Especially big bike manufacturers. One designer decides underseat exhausts are the way forward for example, and suddenly so do all the others. But CCM is a company more able to plough its own furrow.

The Ducati Monster 695 (2006-2008) fills a niche for a more powerful but well-priced bike that retains the legendary design touches of the marque

No two ways about it, Ducati’s Sport 1000 isn’t a comfy bike. It stretches you out like a rack and breaks both your wrists at anything less than 70mph with harsh suspension and aggressive clip-ons.

The latest incarnation of the Monster gets a 999 130bhp engine and a chassis to match any superbike. Wide bars, wide attitude, wide grin

Thirty-three years in the planning and Ducati's Sportclassics are finally here. But you'd better be quick if you want one