price

Honda's focused World Superbike contender

Dualsport gets road wheels and suspension. 640cc option available

The Roadster is based on British Cafe racer principles - narrow, simple, pokey

Totally impractical for road use, but who cares - awsome

WHO ARE YOU? SR 50: the legend rides on, and gets better. Every year! When the SR 50 first came out, it was already in a class of its own. The “sports scooter” category was invented specially for it.

Updated with a facelift, engine internals and a new swing arm.

Not exactly cutting edge, but who cares when it sounds as good as this

A good retro if the name doesn’t bother you

Taken with tongue firmly in cheek, the Shadow could be a fun way into the whole cruiser thang

Considerably more expensive than the Marauder, the Intruder remains the better machine that may just serve you beyond passing your test

The ‘busa isn’t finished yet but it is starting to soften around the edges. Still a quality act packing an awesome punch, but refined and classy rather than one of the rat pack

The SV650S is a blinding little bike that packs more punch for your pound than many other more expensive tools out there

Anyone remember Kawasaki's ill-fated ZR-7, which got panned from day one and never really recovered? The half faired ZR-7S, which appeared a year later in 2001 also came in for some stick.

Updated version of S1 Lightning, occasional fuel injection glitches

A bike that is simply so capable it refuses to lie down and die, even when superceded by the 1200 variant. Awesome

Serious track tackle for the 748 aficionado. For the committed only

De-tuned Blackbird engine in fine-handling muscle chassis. Weird looks

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.

The Yamaha YZF-R7 OW02 is a race homologation motorcycle of limited production run of only 500 units. It was designed to compete in the Superbike World Championship and Suzuka 8 Hours endurance races.

A learner legal machine with more than a nod to cruiser styling, the Marauder is a good choice for the money.