#retro

BMW added yet another model to its R nineT lineup with the Urban G/S joining the previously revealed Scrambler, Pure and Racer models. The slash in the name is significant as the Urban G/S is designed as a throwback to the BMW R80 G/S which helped kickstart the adventure segment. Although it sports adventure-style longer-travel suspension and larger wheels, the Urban part of the name reminds us it is still designed primarily for use on city streets.

Here’s another rare old beast that never made it to America, not officially anyway. Produced from 1981 to ’83, the CB1100R was Honda’s first “homologation” special, meaning a bike that had to be made available for sale to the public to qualify for racing. According to various sources, 1050 were produced in 1981 (CB1100RB), followed by 1500 in 1982 (RC), and a final 1500 more in ’83 (RD). The bike pictured above, owned by our friend and top geezer Grant Hellinger, is CB1100RC number 1500 – the last one to roll off the line in ’82.

The term “hipster bike” gets tossed around fairly liberally these days, mostly at any motorcycle with classic or retro-inspired styling. The presence of fork gaiters or a single round headlight tends to bring on this label. As cliched as the term has become, it seems impossible to look at the Sterling Countryman Deluxe without the word “hipster” coming readily to mind.

Honda revealed a new concept model based on the CB1100 at the Osaka Motorcycle Show. The new concept, dubbed the Concept CB Type II, is described as “a new direction in air-cooled CB models.”

Yossef Schvetz is right in his review of the 2006 Ducati Sport Classic Paul Smart 1000LE – evaluating this bike on purely subjective criteria really isn’t the point. At a time when both the automotive and motorcycle industries were looking towards their pasts to create vehicles for the future, Ducati arguably was the most successful in its execution. At least in my eyes. No, the Sport Classic line didn’t sell in high numbers, but as far as rolling works of art are concerned, Ducati definitely succeeded. Of course, a review needs at least a little subjective judgement, and Schvetz provides that too. Through the lens of his rose-tinted glasses, anyway. Read on to see what he thinks of the Paul Smart tribute bike, and be sure to read to the end to catch his interview with the bike’s namesake. And if you want to see more pictures, be sure to visit the photo gallery.

It’s sunny and 65 here today in SoCal, but that doesn’t stop us lusting after the new 900cc Triumph Bonneville, spotted testing near Triumph HQ in Hinckley in the UK on what doesn’t look like a very pleasant day.

Wow, this is sort of dangerous ground Triumph is treading with its new Hi-Torque-engined Street Twin: Its all-new bigger, more modern, liquid-cooled 900cc parallel-Twin actually makes, ahhhh, less peak horsepower than the previous generation 865cc unit. That’s why they insisted we journalists ride the bike before the tech presentation, and kept the cocktails flowing the night before. Savvy marketing on their part. Triumph claims just 54 horsepower (at 5900 rpm) for the new motor, which is at least 10 hp less than I’d have estimated from my butt-clench dyno after a day’s spin around Valencia and environs on the new bike.

Today, Yamaha unveiled the 2016 XSR900, the latest model based on the company’s popular FZ-09 platform. Catering towards riders who want an “authentic and honest” motorcycle, the XSR900 draws its styling inspiration from XS models of the past, with features like a hand-buffed aluminum fuel tank cover (for the Matte Gray color), single round headlight, instrument gauge, and brake light.

Yamaha has released images and a video of its new retro-styled production model, the XSR700. The XSR is a variation of the FZ-07 platform, a retro roadster slightly reminiscent of Ducati’s successful Scrambler. As of this writing, the XSR700 has only been announced by Yamaha Motor Europe, but we expect it will also be sold in North America; we’ll provide an update when we hear back from Yamaha Motor U.S.A.

Cause the players gonna play, play, play
And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate
Baby I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake
Shake it off
—Taylor Swift, “Shake it Off”

What’s a scrambler? In decades past, a scrambler was a street motorcycle stripped down and optimized for off-road use by way of swapping-in high-pipes, wider handlebars, semi-knobby tires, and differently styled fenders, seat and tank. Sometimes, it was an unmodified street model given a scrambler or street scrambler designation. In essence, it’s a cool name meant to convey agile sportability regardless of the bike’s dirt or street intentions.

Today we’re getting our first crack testing Ducati’s new Scrambler, one of the most talked-about motorcycles of 2015. Some say its all-purpose design perfectly suits their requirements for a retro-themed-but-modern motorcycle, and Ducati tells us initial demand has been huge. Naysayers, however, deride the new Scrambler’s inadequacies for use on dirt trails, asserting that its 800cc V-Twin makes it too heavy when compared to Ducati’s single-cylinder Scramblers from the 1960s and ’70s. So, as we enter a new era of Bologna-built Scramblers, we’re taking a look back at the first-generation models to gain some historical perspective. -Ed.

One of these three motorcycles is commemorative, the other retrospective, and the third, uniquely orthodox relative to the company’s ethos. Probably not hard to ascertain which bike is being referenced. They seem equally comparable yet disparate in the same moment.

Honda’s homage to itself was a big hit for 2013 with all those fans who still can’t get enough of the original earth-shattering 1969 CB750, even though the bike picked up design influences from a few more CBs as it rolled along Memory Lane: 1100F-ish fuel tank shape, 400F-like right-side four-into-one pipe … In any case, its style definitely pushed a lot of the right buttons for vintage Honda enthusiasts.

Your giant corporations can be a little slow to respond to trends, but sometimes they surprise you. Yamaha started teasing the idea of bringing back its old SR400 a couple years ago, and now they’ve gone ahead and done it. This is not a modern interpretation of the old bike, this is the actual old bike it’s been building and selling in other markets since the ’70s – though it does have modern fuel injection and a charcoal canister to meet current emissions requirements.