Nostalgia is at an all-time high in motorcycling, as manufacturers delve into their histories and their heritage to inspire today’s models. More than reviving memories of older buyers, these retro models are finding a new audience with younger buyers who are attracted by the style, while the performance of some of these so-called ‘modern classics’ leaves very little to be desired, either.
Ever since Triumph popularized the whole movement at the beginning of the 21st century, every manufacturer worth its salt has jumped onto the bandwagon to the point where retro models are rapidly becoming some of the more successful models in their line-ups. Some models are thinly-disguised modern motorcycles while others have copied not only the style but the engineering of past models, albeit with a modern twist.
10 Triumph Speed Twin 1200: Triumph's Fastest Retro
You could argue that, without the very first Speed Twin of 1938, the whole modern classic movement wouldn’t exist, as this was the model that introduced the Triumph parallel twin engine to the world, and it is this engine that is the mainstay of Triumph’s modern classic range. Through the 40s, 50s and 60s, the Speed Twin was definitely not the sporty model, but fast-forward to 2023, and the Speed Twin 1200 sits atop the Bonneville range as the sportiest roadster version. Powered by a 1200cc, 100 horsepower, 83 foot pounds of torque engine, it uses Marzocchi forks and Brembo brakes to give a beguiling mix of 60s style and modern performance and handling.
9 Ducati Scrambler: Italian Style
No-one really saw this one coming but, thinking about it, it was completely logical and has been hugely successful for Ducati, giving it the financial shot in the arm that the Monster gave back in the 90s. As with the BMW R nine T, the Ducati Scrambler gave the old air-cooled V-Twin engine a stay of execution, and it has turned out to be the perfect engine for this application, where mounting an unsightly radiator would have completely spoiled the effect. Original models were 800cc and included Scrambler and Café Racer, while the 1100cc models have given the platform the power it always deserved.
8 Triumph Scrambler 1200 XE: Style And Ability
Triumph has the unerring knack of taking an existing model and then, for the next generation of that model, knocking the specification out of the ballpark to create yet another milestone design that has retro style but completely modern riding characteristics and ability. The Scrambler 1200 XE has all the dynamic qualities of modern adventure bikes wrapped up in a style that owes as much to a tall enduro bike as it does the so-called ‘scramblers’ of the past.
The 1200cc parallel twin engine is the perfect power unit for this application, being full of characterful punch all the way through the rev range. The presence of Showa, Brembo and Öhlins show that triumph means business and the build quality has to be seen and felt to be believed.
7 BMW R nineT: BMW's Blank Canvas
Proof that, lurking behind the Teutonic efficiency, BMW engineers do have a sense of fun. Not only that but, for the first time, BMW decided to offer a motorcycle that wasn’t necessarily the best it could be. Instead, it’s a blank canvas waiting for you to paste your individuality onto, with a large catalog of styling options.
The R nineT is not even a copy of a previous BMW model, although the name is a nod to the R90S of the 70s as well as celebrating 90 years of BMW motorcycle production. If you lack the imagination to create your own R nineT, BMW also offers several ready-made versions, in the form of the Pure, Urban G/S, Racer and Scrambler. It has proved so popular, that BMW even extended the life of the old air-cooled boxer twin by ten years to cope with demand.
6 Indian FTR1200: Flat-Track Inspiration
Here’s an odd concept. Indian was already building thoroughly retro cruisers in the American idiom, complete with large displacement air-cooled V-Twins and swoopy styling. For their next trick, Indian launched the flat-track racer-inspired FTR1200 which was a nod to their racing past, but at the same time, completely modern.
Even the styling was a mix of old and new, with the emphasis on new rather than old. The 1200cc V-twin pushes out 120 horsepower and 87 foot pounds of torque, and if the original models took most inspiration from those flat track racers, especially in terms of wheel sizes, more street-biased versions have appeared since, creating America’s only current roadster model.
5 Kawasaki Z900 RS: Back To Its Roots
Excellent bit of thinking from Kawasaki: take the completely modern Z900 model, with its inline four-cylinder engine and combination steel tube and cast aluminum chassis and modern styling and clothe it in Z1-style bodywork, and you have an authentic-looking motorcycle with completely modern underpinnings, re-creating the past perfectly.
In the early 70s, the Japanese were just starting to make their presence felt and the likes of the Honda CB750 and Kawasaki Z1 were clearly the future of motorcycling, as evidenced by the fact that the template is still informing motorcycle design to this day. The Kawasaki Z900 RS is the best way of re-living the past of Japanese domination of the motorcycle market with modern levels of performance and handling.
4 Triumph Thruxton 1200 RS: Speed Never Looked So Good
A third Triumph model and why not? After all, Triumph is getting it right every time and largely informing the whole modern classic movement. The Thruxton is a brilliant mix (as is every Triumph) of style, performance, quality and desirability that is so hard to resist. As with the Scrambler, Showa, Öhlins and Brembo provide the canvas upon which the punchy 103 horsepower engine can paint its lines on any road, while the detailing and quality is perfection. Even the riding position isn’t overly extreme: for those who remember the good old days of doing ‘the ton’ on their home-built café racers, it is a whole dose of nostalgia wrapped up in modern accessibility, and dare we say, comfort. One of the great modern motorcycles.
3 Royal Enfield Interceptor: Solid Nostalgia
In the immediate post-war period, British motorcycle manufacturers were rushing to keep up with Triumph and its parallel twin engine, introduced before the war. Royal Enfield might be better known today for its single-cylinder Bullet model - still in production in India - but the company also revealed its own parallel twin engine in the Interceptor, Meteor and Constellation models.
Today, it is the Interceptor name that has been resurrected, complete with a brand-new parallel twin engine of 650cc. Perhaps the most honest of recreations, the Interceptor won’t burn up the road, nor does it incorporate much modern technology, but it looks the part and is the closest thing you will get to the 50s in the 2020s. Royal Enfield has watched motorcycle fashions come back round to its way of thinking and doing things, which is one of the best stories in motorcycling today.
2 BSA Gold Star 650: Bringing A Famous Name Back
The original BSA Gold Star was such an iconic motorcycle - possibly even more desirable in its day than a Bonneville - that to resurrect it was a brave undertaking. Cleverly, Classic Legends (a branch of the Mahindra empire) didn’t try to copy the sporting pretensions of the original Goldie, but chose to go down a pure nostalgia route and turn it into a much softer roadster, perfect for the type of customer BSA is hoping to attract. If it lacks any of the dynamics of the Triumph Bonneville range, that doesn’t mean that it's not a lovely ride. If it lacks electronic sophistication, then that means it's not overly complex, and if it’s not terribly fast, it has an over-abundance of character and charm.
1 Yamaha XSR 900: The Modern Alternative
As authentic a retro copy of an older model as the BMW R nineT, which translates as ‘not at all.’ You could look at the XSR 900 as a cynical attempt to cash in on the retro craze, but that would be to ignore its undoubted talents. Look at it instead as a way of moving the ‘modern classic’ movement on a little by being inspired by the past but with a clear eye on the present and future.
Of course, the XSR 900 is basically the MT-09, complete with its 117 horsepower triple cylinder engine and modern electronics but dressed up in a modern interpretation of classic styling. It’s just that that styling happens to be more from the 80s than the 60s, which makes the XSR 900 sufficiently different to merit inclusion on this list.