POWER TO THE PEOPLE! T

The GPZ900R was the first Japanese production motorcycle that broke the 150mph barrier. This benchmark speed figure wasn’t the end of willy-waving by the Japanese, it was very much the beginning of the modern power struggle to produce a bike that could utter that immortal line ‘the fastest production bike in the world’ within its sales blurb. By the end of the 1980s Kawasaki had kicked the ball further into the grass with the all-new ZZ-R1100, with claims of 170mph being tossed about. Entering the 1990s and the previous gentleman’s agreement to sell bikes in the UK that only pumped out 125bhp was in tatters. The power capping was mostly achieved by nothing more technical than the equivalent of sticking a sock in its mouth (carb tops/ web intack restrictors) besides the parallel imports on sale for considerably less than official UK spec bikes came with their full quota of poke. The ZZ-R1100C went on to became the polished product that was the ZZ-R1100D; it had sleeker looks, twin ram-air snouts and a better finish, so it’s no surprise that there’s plenty available on the used market, even better you don’t need to dig too deep to buy one. Below £2000 there are stacks to choose from, prices peak at £2500 for stunners. Now that’s a lot of bike for your buck, especially when you see how much people want for a 900R these days! They’ve also shot up in value: budget over £2000 for a complete bike that’s not perfect, if you want a good one you are talking at least £3000 with pearlers advertised beyond £4000. It’s okay though, because there are still bargains out there if you want to own a deposed king of speed. Honda even got dragged into the hype in the 1990s and built one of the finest machines of the decade. They were so proud of it they even put two kisses on the fairing! It kicked the arse of the ageing ZZR1100 with ease, but failed to live up to its 200mph hype, oh is that what the pair of XXS are all about? Blackbirds are the ultimate machine if you want cheap speed. Prices start at around £1500 for an early carb model that’s ready to Will they ever be a true trouser-twitching Maybe, but the crown for the fastest production bike of the last millennium belongs fairly and squarely to the Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa. For an original bronze and silver model that carries the 220mph speedo pod you are looking at £4000 plus for an original bike in tip-top condition. Even scruffy examples are expensive; they rarely dip below £2500, mostly because kit car builders will happily pay around £2000 for just the engine with its sucks and blows. Kawasaki did have one last roll of the dice: their answer was the ZX-12R. It’s a big bike that makes huge power, but somehow it’s often overlooked when in the company of the CBR1100XX and the Hayabusa. This is a shame as they aren’t bad bikes in their own right, but – compared to the Bird and Busa – probably a bit sportier-feeling, heavy on the juice and less comfy. They start at about £2500. With a fresh gentleman’s agreement in later years that restrict new machines to only 187mph (300km), the 19-year-old Busa gets to hold on to the tag of the world’s fastest motorcycle!