Alongside the new 701 Supermoto production model comes a pair of scrambler concepts from Husqvarna. Dubbed the 401 Svartpilen (Swedish for “Black Arrow”) and 401 Vitpilen (“White Arrow”), the two concepts draw upon the company’s past while still offering a futuristic styling.

For 2015, the Ducati Monster family – which includes the Monster 1200 and Monster 821 – doubles in size with the addition of the Monster 821 Stripe and Monster 1200 Stripe, both introduced today at EICMA 2014.

It was a good summer, all in all, made better by hanging out with the friendly, fun-to-be-around Harley-Davidson Street 750. We were only supposed to have the little hog for a couple weeks, starting in mid-June, but it wound up being a puppy that wanders into your yard you hope nobody comes looking for, so we asked to keep it around a little longer. It’s supposed to be an entry-level/beginner bike, and my 20-year old son liked it so much he went and got his motorcycle license, something no other bike at the compound had gotten him to do. The Street even got him to do a little work for MO, which nobody and no other thing has ever been able to accomplish.

Although the primary focus of the Suzuki Dealer Meeting is the revealing of the 2015 model line, a special look a year ahead was shared with attendees in the form of the early-release 2016 GSX-S1000, GSX-S1000F, and GSX-S1000F ABS models. Suzuki is well aware that some of the qualities that make an open-class sportbike capable of winning on the race track prevent it from being an ideal street bike. To remedy this issue, today Suzuki introduced its dealers and the media to the GSX-S1000 line of motorcycles.

The 750 Naked bike class has just gained a formidable entry. Suzuki Motor of America as taken the wraps off the 2015 Suzuki GSX-S750 and GSX-S750Z, which our European readers will recognize as the GSR750 that’s been available on the Continent since 2011 but will now arrive in the U.S. for the first time. These functionally identical motorcycles will certainly enliven what has been an energetic class in the last year.

Today at Intermot, Triumph unveiled not one, but three new Bonneville variants: the Bonneville Spirit, Bonneville T214, and the Bonneville Newchurch.

ED: Updated with more pictures!

For 2015, Suzuki has updated the popular Bandit in the form of the Bandit 1250S ABS. Headlining the changes is a refined half-fairing that refines the Bandit’s aerodynamics while providing improved wind protection and rider comfort.

Today at Intermot, Moto Guzzi unveiled a revised V7 lineup with a host of new features. Despite its vintage heritage, the V7 II lineup will receive ABS and “Moto Guzzi Controllo Trazione,” better known as traction control. While the addition of ABS is no surprise considering all motorcycles sold in Europe are required to have the feature starting in 2015, traction control was slightly unsuspected. It makes sense, however, since much of the ABS hardware can perform double duty.

The Honda VFR800X Crossrunner features prominently in almost any discussion of cool bikes that don’t make it to the U.S. For those not already in the know, the original Crossrunner has been sold overseas since 2011. We noted its EICMA debut in 2010 and silently crossed our fingers in hope that this VFR800 framed but converted to a more upright, utilitarian positioned Naked bike would see time in our garages – to no avail.

BMW pulled the covers off a new R1200R featuring the liquid-cooled boxer engine first introduced on the R1200GS and also equipped on the R1200RT and the newly revealed R1200RS.

It’s like Woody Allen says, 90-percent of success is showing up. And the Sportster’s been showing up since 1957. However you feel about it or the Motor Company or post-WW2 America, you have to respect it like you have to respect the `57 Chevy profile or Tony Bennett leaving his heart in San Francisco. Whether TB has gotten better with age is a topic for some late night over a tumbler of fine Scotch, but there’s no question the Sportster’s now about as refined as a motorcycle can get.

When Kawasaki announced its 2015 lineup last week, it outlined its existing models which are returning largely unchanged from their 2014 versions. However, there were a couple of desirable models that were conspicuous by their absence.

When we were introduced to the 2015 Honda CBR300R at its recent press introduction at Honda’s headquarters in Southern California, Honda reps teased us by displaying the 300R’s naked sibling, the CB300F, alongside it. We weren’t able to ride it, but there it sat, ready for the assembled press to sit, ogle and stare. Thankfully, Honda didn’t keep us waiting for long, as only weeks after I rode the fully faired 300R, we were given a 300F to throw around.

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.

Originally launched in 2004, Moto Guzzi’s Griso isn’t new to the scene. The bike’s styling is so uncategorizable and timeless, it looks contemporary whether parked next to a BMW R nineT or KTM Super Duke R. Beauty’s in the eye of the beholder, and whether you love it or leave it, you certainly can’t say it looks dated.

The heavyweight Streetfighter category of motorcycles has exploded in popularity lately, with seemingly every manufacturer jumping on the bandwagon for a piece of the pie. Japan’s represented with the Kawasaki Z1000, Honda CB1000R, and even Suzuki is entering the ring in 2015 with the GSX-S1000. Italy’s three representatives include the MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR, Ducati Monster 1200 and Aprilia Tuono V4R. Germany, of course, gives us the BMW S1000R, and we can’t forget BMW’s Austrian neighbors and their contribution to the party: the all-conquering KTM 1290 Super Duke R, Motorcycle.com’s 2014 Motorcycle of the Year.

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.

Sporting a California plate and looking production-ready, this new Suzuki looks set to expand our favorite class of motorcycles – sporting nakeds – bikes that include the KTM Super Duke R, BMW S1000R, Kawasaki Z1000 and Ducati’s Monsters.

It is approximately 666.74 miles between St. Inigoes, Maryland, and Belgrade Lakes, Maine. This is good, I needed those miles.

Herr Hipster, your bike has arrived. The BMW R nineT impresses with its premium finish details and a pared profile boiled down to its essentials. Seeing the bike in pictures doesn’t do justice to the wow factor experienced when seeing it in the flesh.

The announcement of Harley-Davidson’s LiveWire electric motorcycle sent shockwaves through the moto industry and even made headline news in the general media. Harley’s products, perhaps more than any other vehicle manufacturer, are steeped in tradition, so building an e-bike just seemed so unlikely for the hidebound company.

Since the launch of Ducati’s Monster 1200 S ($15,995) earlier this year, we’ve extensively tested the bike on both the track and the street. What we found is that while the 1200 S is not the best choice for a naked track-day weapon, it is a consummate roadster when set between the yellow and white lines. Now comes the Monster 821 with an MSRP of $11,495. Is the smaller-displacement Ducati Monster a better choice than the base-model Monster 1200 at $13,495?

Honda can’t seem to keep enough Groms on dealership floors, and considering its $3,199 price tag, it’s easy to see why. For those in urban environments, college towns, or both, the Grom represents an extremely affordable way to blast through town on a fun and compact motorcycle. Its appeal widens even further when you take into account first-time riders who want to learn the fundamentals of two-wheeling on a motorcycle that isn’t the least bit intimidating.

The CB500X is the third model in Honda’s 500cc parallel-Twin triumvirate. With stealthy styling and matte-black bodywork, the CB500X positions itself as an Adventure-Touring model compared to the sportier intentions of its brothers.

A weird thing happened to me during the U.S. launch of Yamaha’s latest motorcycle, the FZ-07. As we were rolling through the backroads of Bainbridge Island, just off the coast of Seattle, it hit me. “I think I like this bike more than the FZ-09.” Before the ride, I was expecting a middleweight sporty bike, with performance comparable to the Suzuki SFV650 or Kawasaki Ninja 650. I figured, after riding the FZ-09 and loving its fun-per-dollar quotient, there was no way the 09’s little brother, with one less cylinder and less displacement, could be nearly as fun.

Harley-Davidson’s electrically-powered LiveWire has sent shockwaves throughout the moto industry – and also through the general public. I don’t recall the last time Harley made a bigger splash in traditional media than the news of this electric motorcycle, which I got to ride yesterday on the streets of New York City.

In a bombshell that would seem to be an April Fools joke, we believe Harley-Davidson will be building a production motorcycle powered by electric power, named “Livewire.” Harley filed a trademark application for the name on Nov. 1, 2012 with the USPTO, then also filed for a trademark in the EU on Nov. 2, 2012 which was approved March 13, 2013. This is potentially game-changing news, and if this indeed turns out to be true, it will give a whole new meaning to “The Motor Company.”

In a world of increasing electronic complexity, Royal Enfield’s Continental GT is a bastion of motorcycling simplicity. And that’s just how Enfield’s CEO, Siddhartha Lal, likes it. Over lunch on our Continental GT media ride, he relates how the more simple a motorcycle is, the more reliable the bike and the easier it is to fix if there is a problem. No argument there, but what’s his underlying point?

The west coast of Canada probably offers the country’s best motorcycling. The scenery is magnificent, with cascading mountains along the coastline of British Columbia plunging sharply to meet the Pacific, all the way from Alaska to Washington State.

In the track version of our Super Streetfighter Smackdown, the KTM 1290 Super Duke R won over the BMW S1000R by the narrowest of margins. Which is all well and good for the small percentage of riders who’ll actually take these bikes to the track. For the greater population, riding these motorcycles on the mean streets of America, the streetable personas of these two and the Ducati Monster 1200S and Kawasaki Z1000 ABS are far more important.

What we have in these five bikes: BMW S1000R, Ducati Monster 1200S, Kawasaki Z1000 ABS, KTM Super Duke R, MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR, is an assemblage of pretenders to the throne. What throne? The literbike streetfighter throne upon which Aprilia’s Tuono V4R APRC ABS has comfortably resided since its introduction in 2012. Truth is, two of these five have a real chance of dethroning  the reigning champ on-track, so once we’ve identified the most worthy contenders in this shootout, first and second place will get a chance to meet the Tuono on the field of battle. 

The manual transmission is well on its slide into obsolescence within the automotive world. Meanwhile, every major motorcycle manufacturer is developing fresh bikes to appeal to a new generation of riders, with a renewed focus on looking at ways to lower inhibitions of entry-level riders.

As we previously noted, Kawasaki organized a “Bike Nite in the Daylite” on Friday, March 14th at the Daytona Int’l Speedway. With around 40 bikes assembled for the four prize category, all those involved with the show felt like it was a success.

We say it every time we test one of these things, but electric motorcycle technology really is advancing at an astonishing pace. For proof of this, look towards the Isle of Man TT, where the fastest e-bikes are averaging more than 100-mph laps – something impossible just five years ago. In fact, it took gas bikes over 50 years to do a “ton up” lap. E-bikes? Four. How’s that for progress?

I’ve formed a love/hate relationship with the MV Agusta Rivale. In its element, which, let’s be clear, is tight and twisty ribbons of asphalt, it is an absolutely sublime machine, ready to attack a corner with precision and honk a wheelie on its way out, its three-cylinder wail filling your ear holes with pure auditory bliss.

Well, I didn’t really expect the Aprilia Mana 850 GT to be much of a sportbike, but it is. Amazingly enough, when we set off into the sunset back down Ortega Highway toward civilization after a nice day riding, we didn’t get stuck behind a single cement mixer or weaving pickup or any vehicles at all – completely unprecedented – which meant we could set our own pace through all those fast, smooth sweepers. The Mana settled into a surprisingly swift one.

When it comes to newly pressed Russian-made motorcycles imported to the United States, there’s Ural and then there’s Ural. Renown for its rugged line of sidecar models, specifically the 2WD Gear-Up and Patrol, Ural also manufactures the lesser-known Solo sT. Sans sidecar, the Solo sT is the only two-wheel counterpart to the variety of three-wheelers in Ural’s 2014 model lineup.

When Honda released the 2012 NC700 series of motorcycles with an optional Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT), some members of the riding public scratched their heads. To an experienced rider, operating a well-engineered clutch and gearbox is seen as an asset, not a negative. What the naysayers couldn’t wrap their heads around was that Honda was trying to attract new people to the ranks of riders.

Time has come for the most brutal Brutale, and the only thing it likes to drag is your knee sliders. The Dragster 800 features the same 800cc Triple engine as the Brutale 800 and Rivale 800, and this means 125 horsepower (at the crankshaft) and plenty of fun. Add a fat 200mm rear tire and revised ergonomics, and you have the meanest MV Agusta to date, the Dragster 800.

MV Agusta hosted a media launch for its new Dragster 800 this week in France. Although the weather wasn’t ideal for motorcycle riding, our Euro correspondent, Tor Sagen, brings us the following quickie ride report. Stay tuned for the full review.

It’s gonna be a good year for moto-nudity. A damn good year. We already tasted the KTM Super Duke R and are still savoring its flavor while salivating like a bloodhound hot on the trail of riding BMW’s fairingless S1000R. But before we sink our teeth into the naked Bavarian, there’s the matter of Kawi’s newest unclothed hooligan, the 2014 Z1000 ABS.

The CB500X postures to be the Adventure-Touring model in Honda’s 500cc parallel-Twin triumvirate. Sharing the majority of components with its CBR500R and CB500F siblings, the X’s distinctions are the styling of its stealthy, matte black bodywork and a one-inch increase in fork travel and seat height.

After 90 years, BMW wants to send a message. Yes, the company’s representatives and press releases said that the 2014 BMW R nineT is a present for the company, its customers and motorcyclists – which is to be expected. Doing anything for 90 years is admirable, and being, arguably, at the top of your game as you celebrate the anniversary is even better.

Newer riders have a fresh choice of quarter-liter funsters with Suzuki’s GW250. Known as the Inazuma when it debuted in Europe last year, the liquid-cooled twin-cylinder entry 250 is targeted at entry level riders looking for options beyond sportbikes, dual-sports and cruisers.

Turn off the switchable ABS and Motorcycle Traction Control (MTC) and KTM’s new 1290 Super Duke R slips, slides, wheelies and stoppies just like in the promotional video released a few months ago (certain skillset required). Leave these two rider aids on, however, and the “Beast” (as KTM affectionately refers to it) is as genteel as a 1301cc V-Twin boasting 180 horsepower and 106 ft-lbs of torque can possibly be.

Maybe it’s a sign of my, ahem, maturity, but as much as I love riding sportbikes, quite frankly they’re a chore to ride during the daily grind. The low bar, high peg, racer crouch is great on a racetrack, but impractical for the street. Plus, they’re not great at carrying things, either. I’m not saying I don’t like riding sporty bikes on the street, but these days I want my sport with a bit of practical and comfortable, too. That’s why I gravitate towards standard/naked bikes. With similar power to supersports, only marginally less performance, and an upright seating position, these really are sportbikes for the road.

If you’re reading this, we’ll assume by now you’ve also read my review of the 2014 Honda Grom in which you’ll note how much fun I had riding it. The 125cc urban commuter brings back that youthful enjoyment we can all remember from the first time we swung a leg over a motorcycle. Its light weight (225 lbs) and tall handlebars makes it a comfortable machine for most average-sized riders to learn the skills of motorcycling. And with its four-speed transmission — and a real clutch! — operating the Grom is identical to a full-size bike, too.

While choosing this year’s MOBO selections we noticed that the Best Standard category was awash with bikes such as Aprilia’s Tuono and Triumph’s Speed Triple R – last year’s Best and Honorable Mention, respectively. This year adds models such as MV Agusta’s Brutale 675 and 800 as well as a revised Triumph Street Triple R. How is a true standard such as Honda’s new CB1100 to compete with bikes such as these high-performance nakeds? To solve this conundrum we created a new category for 2013, Best Streetfighter/Hooligan.

Honda rang our heartstrings when it introduced its nostalgia-tinged CB1100. Hearkening back to the iconic air-cooled CBs of the 1970s, this reinvention of the UJM (Universal Japanese Motorcycle) screams “Standard” to our eyes.

MV Agusta produces four renditions of its inline-Four powered 1078cc naked streetfighter: Brutale 1090, Brutale 1090 R, Brutale 1090 RR and Brutale Corsa.  The two Triple models, Brutale 675 and Brutale 800 brings the total Brutale count to six.

If we told you that you could purchase a brand-new urban performance bobber with a blacked out V-Twin engine and components, a stripped neo-industrial appearance and a low seat height that’s ideal for new-ish, female or those “short of leg,” all for under eight grand, would you bite? There are two motorcycle manufacturers producing such a bike. Your choice is between the proven machine with a few well-documented idiosyncrasies, or the upstart contender that’s eager to take on the champ.

We mostly bought in to Honda’s creative line of thought. That is until we realized that Kawasaki has had the 649cc parallel-Twin-engined Versys in its lineup since its 2006 European launch, eventually arriving on our shores in 2008. The Versys (VERsatility SYStem) was updated in 2010 with cosmetic upgrades, an adjustable windshield and vibration-reduction efforts you can read about here.

Whether it’s a restored CB, a classic BSA or even a stripped-down Sportster, retro bikes are downright ubiquitous. Yes, friends, a good look around is all the proof one needs to know that vintage is all the rage, if not in actual iron then certainly in appearance and form. And it’s more than just tastemakers like Jesse James and Roland Sands jumping on the retro wagon. Garage builders are ordering clip-ons and rearsets by the pallet-full.

For more than 20 years the V-Max was part of the motorcycling lexicon. Reborn in 2009 with the first full overhaul since its introduction in 1985, the VMAX (note the tweaked nomenclature) boasts a nearly 500cc increase (from 1,197cc to 1,679cc) in engine capacity and a massive bump in power (see dyno chart). A modern cult bike without equal, the VMAX not only owns the power-cruiser class, it’s the bike that created the species.

For some riders it’s not enough to ride just any bike. The cookie-cutter sportbike or run-of-the-mill sport-tourer no longer satisfies. Oddballs and brands with limited or low production numbers are much more tempting. If you’re ready to step outside motorcycling mainstream, if even just a little bit, but can’t bankroll a Confederate Hellcat and still want a modicum of comfort and utility, we may have your ticket.

For one, witness the return of Kawasaki's Z1000 as an all-new model for 2010. Putting aside opinions about the new Z's styling, most enthusiasts could agree that, from what we know about the bike thus far, it should be a great machine.

“Hey man I saw you pull in on that little racer bike. What is that anyway?”

(By the way, all CCW bike names are prefixed with “tha” to prevent copyright hassles –Ed.)

Bajaj Auto Ltd. is India's second-largest two-wheeler manufacturer, consistently selling over 200,000 motorcycles per month. A household name in India, Bajaj operates from three sprawling manufacturing facilities, with an in-house R&D center. At the helm of the company sits a hands-on managing director, Rajiv Bajaj. The company recently increased its stake in KTM to 47% after starting out with a 14.5% share in 2007.