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News May 2025
Suzuki
GT750 – today's tempter, May 29
Suzuki's GT750
'Waterbottle' two-stroke triple is one of those
machines that has developed a strong following over
the years and you'd hope there might be a new cohort
coming through once they get a chance to ride them.
While many strokers developed a reputation for being flighty and peaky, the big GT was proof that didn't necessarily have to be the case – it was down to tuning and set-up.
This 1973 restored
example, running a new set of Delkevic aftermarket
pipes, is offered via
Bikesales and priced at Au$23,000 (US$14,800,
GB£11,000)
See our
Waterbottle brochure gallery, with links to more
resources.
Redefining
the Boxer – BMW R90S, May 27
Flashback: some
motorcycles redefine the perception of a marque,
according to Ian Falloon, and the R90S
exemplifies that by remaining influential for
BMW five decades down the track. See the
story here.
Sunday
shed wrap, May 25
One of the things we do
a few afternoons a week is circulate through several
of the bikes at home taking them for a quick gallop to
keep them exercised and healthy.
Today's count was four,
covering Brit, German and Japanese, finishing with the
50-year-old Gold Wing. See the story
KTM
rescued by new owner, May 24
Subject to the almost certain
approval by an Austrian court (and some other
formalities), KTM will soon be owned by
India-based giant Bajaj
Auto.
The latter has provided a
financial rescue package for the deeply troubled
European maker that has in recent months added up
to around €800 million (Au$1.4 billion, US$910
million, GB£670 million).
Ride
Apart has a report on the development –
see it here
This
story from Adv Rider provides useful
additional information
See our
KTM RC8 series retrospective
Norton
Thruxton Club Racer, May 23
While Triumph in recent
decades has tended to own the Thruxton name when it
comes to sporty motorcycles, Norton also had a crack
at it 50 years ago.
This circa 1975 sales
leaflet offers the would-be racer the chance to buy a
competition-ready Norton Thruxton Club, running a
short-stroke 750 twin with a modified chassis and race
bodywork.
You're promised it is "a
competitive 750cc machine specially designed and
developed by the technicians of John Player Norton
fame. A very limited number is being hand-built by
this team at the Thruxton Racing Department."
Journalist Hamish Cooper kindly put us on to a story about a
revived example, via Andover Norton.
He makes the wry comment, "A lot of effort was put into another failed project but at the time Norton Commandos were a dream bike for us long-haired teenagers!"
See our Norton
Commando profile
Plus the Triumph Thruxton 1200 R in the shed
Velocette also used the Thruxton name,
from 1964 through to 1971, while AJS used it for a variant
of the 31CSR in 1961.
Vincent
freshen-up, May 22
The glacial progress
with the recently-acquired 1952 Vincent Touring Rapide
moved on a step today, when we dropped off the rims to
young Pilgrim at Union Jack Motorcycles for new
rubber.
That, and a set of
mirrors, should be the final tasks before we put it on
the road.
Though
the machine had undergone a lot of recent work, the
tyres were made way more than 25 years ago – before
the current four-digit date stamping system was
introduced. They were USA-made Dunlop K81
TT100s and we'll be fitting the modern equivalent.
And, of course, we then decided
it's probably time to do the chain and sprockets
as well, though they're less urgent. Then do we
change over to touring handlebars, rather than the
flat items? More to come...
See our
previous story on the bike.
KTM
drama, May 20
The ongoing drama that
is KTM has provided new twists and turns involving
eye-watering amounts of money, with more to come.
Ride Apart online
says, while production restarted and stopped again in
recent months, Bajaj Auto has sunk around €200 million
and looks likely to provide three times that again.
Even that may not be enough long-term and so the
company may be looking for another investor.
Ducati
bevel 900 restomod, May 20
From Bike
Exif: In the world of vintage Ducati restomods,
few names resonate as profoundly as Toshiyuki Kozaka.
Operating as Switch Stance Riding from a workshop in
Amakusa—a series of small islands off the coast of
Kyushu, Japan—Kozaka-san has a particular affinity for
bevel-driven Ducatis.
See the
full story at
Bike Exif
See the Switch Stance
Riding Facebook page
And the Ducati Mike Hailwood Replica Mille in our shed
Tough
times for Peter Stevens retail, May 19
The Peter
Stevens retail group has entered voluntary
administration.
It's
been part of the motorcycling scene in Melbourne for
more than five decades and then spread interstate,
representing most of the top-selling motorcycle brands
in Australia. They include Harley-Davidson, Yamaha,
Honda, Suzuki, Kawasaki and Triumph.
It has a network of dealerships across Victoria, New
South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia, with
annual turnover estimated at $250 million and employing
around 400 staff.
KordaMentha
Restructuring has been appointed voluntary
administrator.
The business was established in 1970 by three of the
Chiodo brothers: Steve, Vince and Peter.
Its
retail and wholesale arms were split four years ago,
while the retail business was sold in 2023.
Back
in 2020, the company went into and survived voluntary
administration when it was dealing with the fallout of
the Covid pandemic.
Meanwhile
the wholesale business (PS Importers) – which is the
local representation for Triumph, Moto Guzzi, Aprilia,
Vespa et al – continues as usual.
(The pic is from 2020 when the company still ran the Elizabeth Street store in central Melbourne, that was for decades network's HQ.)
Oddball
for the day – Batavus, May 19
This stylish gem is none
other than a 1951 Batavus Bilonet JLO F48 Combisport –
snappy name! See a little
more on this and the oh-so-seventies Mobat, here.
Turbo
time, May 18
What's a Honda CX500 Turbo worth?
The ground-breaking model in theory should be a
highly-collectible classic by now, but none of the
factory turbos – perhaps with the exception of the
USA-derived Kawasaki Z1R TC – have hit the big
time.
The
ultra-clean example shown here, with 12,199
miles (19,600km) on the odo, sold recently via
Mecum in the USA for Au$11,140 (US$7150, GB£5400).
Bikesales
in Australia has another listed, showing
102,425km (63,600 miles), offered at similar
money.
Job
done – Triumph Thruxton 1200 R, May 17
Recalls sorted and a pukka check-over. We finally ticked off the 'to be done' list for the lovely Triumph Thruxton 1200 R twin...see the update.
Fat
boy goes grey, May 15
Harley-Davidson has
released a new Fat Boy Grey Ghost, designed as a
premium tribute to the first from 1990. See our
story, with an overview on the original Fat Boy.
Yamaha
news – sixties style, May 14
It's 1967 and Yamaha has
released a bulletin announcing a new set of two-stroke
performance twins, led by the YR-1 350, along with
race news and an intriguing shed-built four. See the story
here.
New
hotrod triple for Triumph, May 14
Triumph motorcycles is releasing an up-spec version of the Speed Triple 1200, called the RX. A total of 1200 are being made, featuring different ride position, graphics and suspension when compared to an RS.
According to the factory: "The state-of-the-art Öhlins electronic suspension is enhanced with the Öhlins SD EC steering damper. The control of the electronic damper is integrated seamlessly with the Ohlins Smart EC3 system to deliver light, agile handling and optimum stability, and it can be adjusted via the Öhlins Objective Based Tuning Interface on the instruments. The pressurised design of the damper ensures no free-play in the system.
"Just
like the new Speed Triple 1200 RS, the RX delivers
unmatched triple power and torque, peerless handling and
top of the range rider-focused technology. Triumph’s
1160cc triple engine delivers relentless acceleration
and performance with 180hp (135kW) at 10,750rpm and
128Nm at 8750rpm."
The RX
is priced at Au$34,490 (US$22,000, GB£16,700) on the
road and deliveries are expected from June. More at Triumph
online.
See the
first-gen Speed Triple that was in our shed.
Gassit
returns, May 13
The legendary Fred Gassit is making a return to Australian Motor Cycle News (AMCN) with fresh material for the first time in years.
The character first made
an appearance in AMCN circa 1983 and soon
became a must-read section of the magazine.
His return has been marked with a
quick encounter with creator Simon O'Leary. See the
story here.
American
sweetheart, May 10
It's
often all too easy to dismiss older machinery as
outdated and incapable. However living with a
1940s Indian Chief proved you need to be careful
about making judgements without the benefit of
experience...see the
story.
Two-speed market, May 10
Recent
auction results suggest there is a two-speed
market for local classics. Absolute gems still
get good money, while otherwise decent examples
don't score so well. See our
story.
Flashback:
Trevor the T150, May 9
"It was not a
comfortable ride. An icy sidewind, plus a
weather front which turned the world dark grey
as sheets of rain hauled in to drown any sense
of vision or grip, made sure of that."
Having
a good time sometimes takes dedication...see
the circa 2009 story here.
Pic by Lou Martin
Prepping
a record-breaker, May 5
Video for the week: Allen Millyard gently walks us though
some of the preparation of his Viper V10-powered
motorcycle, so it could break the two-up land speed record
with TV presenter (of the Motorbike Show in the UK) as
pillion.
How fast did they go? 183mph or 295km/h.
Allen reckons the monster was still accelerating as they went through the traps...see the video here.
200
for Heavy Duty, May 5
Congratulations to Mick Withers and his
team at Heavy
Duty magazine for hitting the 200-issue
landmark, which is a big feat.
The mag was founded by Chris Beattie
somewhere back when Harleys still ran Evo
powerplants. The dynamic duo of Neale and Viv Brumby
took over and became long-term publishers, until the
former passed away much too young in 2020.
Mick has since taken the mag on to its
next journey in a particularly tough publishing
environment. A huge effort...
Beattie has been good enough to
pen the odd (sometimes very odd) story for us over
time – see them
here.
Mick's
Excellent Adventure, May 3
Like a lot of us, Mick Hone has an ambition to do a big cross-continent ride, taking in country that many never get to experience. Join us for a quick pre-trip chat and an insight into the preparation.
Singular
decade, May 3
Buying and sorting a much-loved mate's Yamaha SR500 has been a bumpy and rewarding decade-long road. We reckon he'd like the result. See the story.
Kawasaki
GPz900R – random brochure for the day, May 1
Slick, fast and a
ground-breaking bike for Kawasaki back in 1984. The
GPz900R and later variants are great things to ride,
particularly when looked at as a modern classic.
However they have never
(so far) really gained traction in the classic
motorcycle auction market, despite their historical
significance for the marque.
See the
first-gen example that was in our shed.
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