Motorcycle Investor mag
Subscribe to our free email news
You again!
by Guy ‘Guido’ Allen, Feb 2021
The good, the bad and the ugly of factory clones
Do really good motorcycles ever go out of fashion? That’s up for debate, but there’s no doubt that assorted factories around the globe have seen potential gold at the end of the historical rainbow.
There seem to be a couple of approaches to this, including trying to come up with a dead-set doppelganger but with modern mechanicals. That however is almost doomed to failure as expectations from regulators and customers alike dictate very different engineering.
Sometimes the maker is just as happy to use a few styling cues from the toy while wrapping a thoroughly modern motorcycle under the paint. And then there are the completely out-there attempts that fit neither category.
Let’s got a bit of a wander and rate the top contenders…
(Ed's note: we're bringing you the 10 contenders over 10 days from Feb 14.)
1. Triumph Bonneville
Rebuilding a legend – see it here
2. Kawasaki Z900RS
Jaffa Revival – see it here
3. Ducati MH900e
The replica’s replica – see it here
4. BMW R NineT
Retro mystery – see it here
5. Suzuki Katana
It is all about appearances – see it here
6. Royal Enfield Continental GT
More grunt, Vicar? – see it here
7. Indian Chief Vintage
Lifting the cruiser game – see it here
8. Yamaha SR400
Opportunity Knocked – see it here
9. Vespa GT60
Coming in to land
10. Honda CB1300
Channeling the UJMs
What have we missed? Email me your nominations!
-------------------------------------------------
Produced by AllMoto abn 61 400 694 722
Privacy: we do not collect cookies or any other data.
Archives
Contact