Top 10 modern classic motorbikes to buy now

With the new biking season temptingly close at hand it’s only natural to start scanning the ads for the bike of your dreams. Which means we’re not talking a daily bike for commuting, touring or sociable Sunday rides with your other half. These are the bikes that were icons of their age, perhaps the hero bikes of your formative riding years and liable to drag you out to the garage to admire and take you on an emotional journey more thrilling than anything measured in miles per hour or supported by the latest electronic gizmos.
And, for motorcyclists of a certain age that often means landmark bikes of the 1980s and 90s, the ones we aspired to – or, if we were lucky, actually owned – and can, quite literally, take us back to a golden age. But which are the best, what’s currently available out there and what should we look out for? From the heart here’s our selection of 10 you might want to consider…

The legendary Yamaha EXUP can now be yours for well under three grand, which is ridiculous when you remember this was the boss superbike between its launch in 1989 where it replaced the FZR1000 Genesis and the game-changing arrival of the Honda Fireblade in 1992. Its five-valve engine was powerful, relatively flexible thanks to that EXUP exhaust valve, the bike was gorgeous looking and it handled way better than rivals like the Suzuki GSX-R1100 thanks to features like its Deltabox aluminium frame. Best of all if looked after properly it’s a solid buy and can still be picked up for a snip.
Search for a Yamaha FZR1000R EXUP on Auto Trader

Today celebrated as the bike which gave reborn Hinckley Triumph its mojo, the original 1994 Speed Triple may not have looked special on paper given it was seemingly little more than a parts-bin love child of the Daytona 900 sports bike and Trident 900 roadster. In reality, though, it was a real-world sportster with bags of character that became the catalyst for a best-selling family of bikes. Yes, it’s tall, quite heavy and has less than 100 horsepower. But it’s also handsome, distinctive, has a great triple ‘vibe’, decent durability and is admired by virtually everyone. And it’s still a bargain.
Search for a Triumph Speed Triple 900 on Auto Trader

Despite the change in the UK learner laws in 1983 spelling the end of L-plate 250s in favour of a new 125cc restriction, sporty 250 two-strokes made a comeback in the late 1980s fuelled by their popularity in Japan. In Britain bikes like Yamaha’s TZR250 and Suzuki’s RGV250 became popular on both road and track, and one of the fastest and best handling of all was Kawasaki’s parallel-twin KR-1, which later was updated to become the KR-1S. Great looking, light, exquisitely nimble and with a shrieking top end nearly all were thrashed to death in racing or on the street, meaning survivors are rare. It also means prices are on the up but at under £7K it’s still more affordable – and arguably far more fun – than a modern Yamaha MT-07.
Search for a used Kawasaki on Auto Trader

History rightly celebrates the 1992 FireBlade as a game changer, for the fact up to that point Honda wasn’t known for its litre-class sports bikes and the likes of the Yamaha EXUP (see above) and Suzuki GSX-R1100 were big, heavy and often intimidating machines. The ultra lightweight and compact FireBlade, with its mantra of being ‘a 1000cc superbike in a 600cc package’ changed all that and delivered nimble, exciting handling and hilariously lively acceleration despite putting out little over 120 horsepower. Again, clean, original examples are becoming rare and are appreciating as a result. But this one’s about as good as you’ll find, is still affordable and remains a great fun reminder of sportsbikes from the pre-digital age.
Search for a Honda CBR900RR FireBlade on Auto Trader

If you’re hankering for an 80s era 250 and want the best of all this is it. Launched in 1980 along with a 350cc bigger brother, the RD250LC with its sophisticated liquid-cooling (hence the LC moniker) and race-developed monoshock rear suspension became the ultimate 250, and poster bike for a generation. It was the fastest 250 available, handled well, looked better and was a proddie racer’s dream. The latter means few survived, but they’ve long been less desirable as modern classics than the more powerful 350 despite delivering much of the same nostalgic thrill. The near-£10,000 one we found was about as expensive as they come but worth every penny for the memories it will revive.
Search for a Yamaha RD250 on Auto Trader

BMW is rightly credited for its 1980 R80G/S being the father of the modern adventure bike but, in truth, it was probably the larger, third-generation R 100 GS with its Paralever rear suspension and frame-mounted fairing that really nailed the template. That bike was then joined by the larger-tanked, more rugged Paris-Dakar version which lay the foundations for the GSAs that are such a fixture in the modern age. The 1990 version we found was probably among the best around, and even more desirable for its period Krauser panniers so surely an appreciating classic.
Search for a BMW R 100 GS PD on Auto Trader

Back in 1994 Bimota’s SB6 was about as desirable, fast, exotic and sharp as superbikes got. It was also the last Bimota to be held in such lofty esteem, given the pace of development in more mainstream Japanese bikes meant they were often better than the Italian specialist’s more bespoke offerings. Bimota itself arrived in the mid-70s and became known for its high-end superbikes using reframed Japanese engines, peaking when its Yamaha-powered YB7 challenge for the inaugural world superbike championship. As such the GSX-R1100 engined SB6 with its huge power, underseat exhausts and beautiful finish was something of a last hurrah and also the brand’s best-selling bike. Good ones today can still be found for around £10,000, which is about what they cost 30 years ago!
Search for a Bimota SB6 on Auto Trader

Another landmark motorcycle – this time for being generally recognised as the first true race replica, even if some of the anoraks may beg to differ. The first GSX-R750 was launched in 1985 inspired by Suzuki’s 1982 XR41 endurance racer, with the ultra-light chassis to match and powered by an all-new, high-revving, oil-cooled four with around 100 horsepower. An instant hit on track, it proved the catalyst for the whole GSX-R family which followed. As with other production racer favourites, good original examples are now rare and prized making the mint 4,000-mile example we found on Auto Trader worthy of its five-figure price.
Search for a Suzuki GSX-R750 F on Auto Trader

Ducati’s legendary 916 needs no introduction, such is its significance. With beautiful looks styled by Massimo Tamburini – who later went on to design the equally exquisite MV Agusta F4 – the 916 was the lighter, more compact and better handling successor to the liquid-cooled 851 which had propelled Ducati into the superbike era with three World Superbike titles. The 916 was even more successful, bagging four of its own and then another two in uprated 996 guise. For that, and the looks, the 916 remains one of the most desirable modern classics of all, the original and very low mileage one we found on Auto Trader for just shy of £17,000 one the best you’ll see.
Search for a Ducati 916 on Auto Trader

It wasn’t that long ago that you could have snagged a good RG500 or its Yamaha RD500LC rival for well under £10,000 but not anymore, such is the desirability of these 1980s GP replicas. Which is slightly ironic, seeing as they were never really that popular or valued when new. Both were launched in the mid-1980s during a brief but frenzied fashion for two-stroke grand prix lookalikes. The Yamaha came first and built on the success of the 250 and 350LCs but with a more complex V4 inspired by the factory race bikes ridden by Kenny Roberts. The anticipation was such many sold on for a premium but its 88 horsepower and £3,999 asking price were soon beaten by a new generation of cheaper supersport 600s. Meaning when Suzuki’s equivalent arrived in 1985 its number was up and sales only lasted two years, even though it was lighter and faster than the RG. Today, however, it’s regarded as the pinnacle of road-going two-strokes, the best of the short-lived 500cc GP replicas and the dream bike for those of the Barry Sheene/Kenny Roberts generation. All of which goes to explain the £20K-plus price of the one we found on Auto Trader.
Search for a Suzuki RG500 on Auto Trader