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News September 2026
Random ad for the day: Yamaha XS750, Sep
11
Yamaha's XS750
shaft-driven four-stroke triple was not the quickest
or most powerful thing out there when launched in
1977. Nevertheless it had plenty of fans and won some
awards, such as Machine of the Year from UK Motor
Cycle News.
The Motorcycle
Specs file says it had 48kW (64hp) at
7500rpm for a claimed dry weight of 231kg (470lb) dry.
There was a five-speed transmission and top speed was
171km/h (106mph).
In this double-page
magazine ad, the maker assures us that the XS can
out-accelerate a Porsche 911 Carrera of the day by
covering the standing quarter-mile in 12.8 seconds
versus 15.2 for the car.
See the Cycle
World period road test.
Plus our
profile of its big brother, the mighty XS1100
launched in 1978.
Aston-Brough road bike, Sep 10
A second-gen Aston
Martin-branded motorcycle has appeared, called the AMB
002 Roadster. Unlike its AMB 001 and 001 Pro
predecessors, it is designed to be road legal – the
others were track bikes.
As before the
motorcycle is built in France by Brough Superior.
It runs a new liquid-cooled 1083cc V-twin claiming
97kW (130hp) and max torque of 111Nm (82ft-lb).
That hangs from a titanium main frame while the
engine cases are CNC machined from a billet.
Weight is about 190kg (420lb).
Pricing for the 300 units has yet to be announced. Expect it to be north of Au$150,000 (US$110,000, GB£80,000, €95,000).
See Ian Falloon's
profile of the original Brough Superior SS100.
And our story on
the 2020 Australia launch.
Rotary rocket, Sep 10
From Bikebound.com: The Crighton CR700W is one of those motorcycles whose specifications make you stop and check you’ve read them correctly. In this case, you have. The engine is a 690cc twin-rotor Wankel producing up to 220 horsepower and 105 lb-ft of torque. The entire motorcycle weighs just 129.5 kilograms — 285.5 pounds — dry. That works out to roughly 1.7 horsepower per kilogram, giving this featherweight British superbike a power-to-weight ratio in the realm of modern MotoGP machinery.
See our
brief rotary road bike overview.
Triumph Trident T160 triage, Sep 9
Our 1975 Triumph T160 is
undergoing a workshop 'birthday' thanks to auld mate
Phil Pilgrim of Union Jack
Motorcycles, who is addressing a host of issues.
That's him working on
the bike, jury-rigging a few things after a collision
with a kangaroo back in 2014, with friend Rob
Blackbourn supervising.
See our
Sunday Shed Wrap story, which has a wealth
of links including a video review.
Enthusiast bait, Sep 9
You know that
half-full bookshelf you have at home? Here is a
selection of gear to make it a whole lot more
interesting – via a sale of motorcycle books and
brochures at
Donington Auctions.
Like a Hurricane, Sep 6
Young Chris
Beattie reckoned the best way to exercise a mate's
under-utilised 1991 Honda CBR1000F was to take it on a
good long ride, say from Kingscliff in northern New South
Wales to Melbourne in Victoria, covering some 2000km (1200
miles) in the process.
So, can a 35-year-old sports-tourer still
cut the mustard today? Absolutely!
Mister Sturgis is now live, Sep 6
We promised this feature
a week ago...
Somewhere in the
workshop you see here is a treasure trove of knowledge
on Harley-Davidson's iconic Sturgis series. And the
bloke you see peering into or glaring at the
camera (we're not sure...) holds much of it in his
head.
Meet Kiwi and now
long-term Australian enthusiast Gordon Forrester
who built the logical bike Harley never did plus
his own and arguably better version of a factory
prototype.
We call
him Mister Sturgis – see the story.
Honda's electric subscription, Sep 3
Honda Australia has taken the unusual step of offering its new WN7 electric bike as a two-year rental, rather than a direct purchase, via the Carbar subscription service.
The price is Au$400 per month, and Carbar's arrangements typically cover normal running costs including servicing and insurance.
Honda is
inviting expressions of interest from
would-be customers, and says 50 machines will be
available.
The WN7 is being
sold outright in the UK and Europe. UK MCN
reports they cost Au$24,500 (US$17,500, GB£13,000,
€15,100). The
review is generally very positive.
Testing the motorcycle towing rig, Sep 2
At last! Our long-term
towing rig build, which we've been tracking through Unique Cars magazine
for what seems like eons, is on the road and today
hauled home the Kawasaki Z1A we acquired though Donington
Auctions.
The car, by the way, is a 1985 VK Holden Commodore Berlina with a fresh 355 stroker V8 and four-speed TH700R auto.
As for the Kawasaki,
the plan is to change the oil, make sure it's
running okay, and put a fresh set of exhaust pipes
on it. More to come...
Hailwood championship Honda for sale, Sep 2
Light and jewel-like, the Honda RC173 which took Mike Hailwood to victory in the 1966 350 road racing Grand Prix championship is up for sale.
Forgotten Kawasaki – Z750B twin, Sep 1
This is one of those
machines that we would love to own and suspect the
relationship may turn out to be short one.
Recognising the
immediate appeal of a then big and relatively slim
vertical twin motor, Kawasaki of course had a crack at
the idea in the 1970s.
We reckon the twin-cam
has enormous visual appeal. However it was not an
enduring success as a series.
See the
data and Cycle Magazine review via Motorcycle
Specs.
Plus the
contemporary Cycle World test from 1978.
Are there any
runners out there? Send us a pic and your
thoughts, please, so we can share them.
Mystery bit for the day, Sep 1
What is it? Start thinking Vincent – and it's one of
three projects in our pipeline.
See our latest Sunday Shed Wrap column.
***
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