Post Sale Update: After 17 bids, this Aprilia RS250 sold for $9,950 on eBay. The Aprilia RS250 is by far, the most race-oriented of the street-legal 250s sold in the US. Built from 1995-2002, it was designed to pay homage to Aprilia’s success in the 250 GP championships. Powered by a modified Suzuki 250cc originally designed by Rotax, Aprilia made …
Tricolore – 2006 Bimota DB5R
The Bimota DB5R represented an interesting shift in corporate philosophy for the niche Italian motorcycling manufacturer. Instead of trying to create the ultimate track bike – the DB5R was built to be more of an upmarket street bike that’s at home carving canyons or doing track duty. The engine donor was easily identifiable by the first letter in the model …
1 of 500 – 2006 Yamaha R1 Limited Edition
The Yamaha R1 Limited Edition was Yamaha’s celebration of its 50th anniversary. Taking their incredibly popular 1000cc sportbike as a platform, Yamaha produced a very limited run of only 500 bikes that were full of incredible extras and turning them into near-production racers. Specific changes made for the Yamaha R1 Limited Edition include an homage to Kenny Roberts and the …
2008 Aprilia Bol D’Or RSV1000R
Post-Sale Update: This Aprilia Bol D’Or RSV1000R has sold, final price unknown. The Aprilia Bol D’Or was a very limited production bike built to commemorate Aprilia’s particpation in the Bol D’Or, a 24 hour endurance race that occurs every spring at Le Mans. I have to admit, the idea of creating a bike to celebrate participating in a race as …
2006 Ducati Paul Smart LE
This Ducati Paul Smart LE was a limited edition bike inspired by the Ducati race bikes of the 1970s – one of which was piloted by Paul Smart to a win at the Imola 200 in 1972. Limited to only 2,000 units worldwide, this is one of the more desirable modern classics to come out of Ducati – and prices …
1982 Suzuki Katana
The Suzuki Katana is a very distinctive bike designed by Hans Muth (the fairing might remind you of a similar Muth creation – the BMW R65LS). In the late 70s and early 80s, Japanese manufacturers were selling standard bikes as fast as they could make them. And while most of the bikes were technically sound, they all started to emulate …
1996 Ducati 916
The Ducati 916 needs no introduction, but for a teenage boy who didn’t know much about motorcycles, it was a revelation. The dual projector headlights, the SSSA, and the underseat exhausts all caught my imagination and even to this day, have never let go. Designed by Massimo Tamburini, the 916 has become an icon in the sportbike world. I’ll leave …
1983 Honda CX650 Turbo
In the 80s, Japanese manufacturers started to throw turbos onto a lot of their bikes as they saw it as the future of motorcycling. Kawi, Yamaha, and Honda all had turbo options, though the Honda CX650 Turbo was arguably the best. For varying reasons, the market never panned out, and so only 1,200 were ever imported into the US and …
1975 Kawasaki H1 500
Known as the ‘Widowmaker’, the Kawasaki H1 series were a range of triples famous for being incredibly quick and terrible to handle. The Kawasaki H1 500 was the mid-size model, and was easily the fastest 500cc bike around. By keeping everything cheap, Kawi was able to market this bike to young gentlemen who wanted the fastest bike possible for less …
1988 Ducati 750 F1
I’ll open by saying I try to avoid listing bikes currently available at dealers, but this is an exception worth sharing. One of the most stunning creations of its time, the Ducati 750 F1 remains one of the most highly sought after bikes in Ducati history. So while you’ll have to pay the dealer premium to get your hands on …
1984 Yamaha RZ350
The last two-stroke officially imported into the US, the RZ350 is very much a sought-after collectors bike in the US. Only sold in the states from 84-85, these bikes were incredibly fast for 350cc, and absolutely look the part. Estimated production of these bikes was around 20,000 – accidents and time have worn down that number significantly, though you can …
1997 Moto Guzzi Sport 1100i
Moto Guzzi fans are few and far between in this country, but they’re a passionate group. Big bikes with lovely, torquey V-Twin engines, Guzzi typically makes cruisers and standard bikes. But the Moto Guzzi Sport 1100i was a beautiful deviation from the norm.
1 of 200 – 1988 Yamaha FZR750RU
Built specifically to meet AMA racing homologation rules, the FZR750RU was only made for one year and cost $6899 at the time – more expensive than even most liter bikes of the time. Though fully street legal, this bike was intended to be a fully fledged road racer. This specific example has covered 36k miles, and comes with spares as …
2004 BMW R1100S
Nowadays, thanks to the S1000RR, the idea of BMW making a true sportbike is no longer a laughing matter. Back in 1999, however, BMW took the most powerful boxer engine it had at the time and made their most aggressive looking bike so far, the BMW R1100S. Despite the looks, this is more of a sport-tourer than an outright sports …
2010 KTM RC8R
KTM does not have much of a street presence in the United States – but with bikes like the RC8R it’s hard to understand why that’s the case. This distinctive-looking Superbike is full of high-end components and makes around 170hp.