Top ten coolest bikes for less than £10k

NOBODY wants to ride a crap looking bike, for the most part, bad bikes come down to budget requirements. But biking on a budget doesn’t mean you have to scrimp on style as these sub-£10k bargains prove!

In no particular order…

Yamaha XSR900 (80s Black edition) - £9,345

Looking every inch the retro machine, this sweet looking XSR900 comes complete with black and gold (did somebody say JPS Lotus??) paint scheme. The XSR900 may look like a full on homage to the retro world of RD350s and two-stroke smokers, but at it’s heart is one of the sweetest engines to grace the sub-1000cc segment – the three-cylinder CP3 that’s also used in the Tracer 900 and MT-09.

With the XSR900 sliding in at £9,345 it’s just under our £10k price cap and still leaves some left over for the naughty sounding Akrapovič end can. A PCP deal on the XSR900 can be had for around £129 p/m on a £1,851 deposit.

Honda CB1100 EX - £9,799

With the CB1100 being around for a while in its current form, there are some seriously tasty bargains to be had on the 1100cc retro roadster. With a list price of £9,799 and Honda running the bike on 6.9%APR, the daddy of all the big retros could be sat in your garage – or carport – for around £116 p/m.

Triumph Street Triple R - £8,900

You may be looking at the R and it’s near £9k price tag and thinking, ‘why not stump another £1,300 and get the RS?’. Admittedly, the RS with it’s blingy Brembos and Öhlins and Showa combo is a tempting bike, but those in the know would rather take the R for everyday riding.

It’s got more grunt in the midrange, comes with just as good suspension and brakes and if you stuck a set of Sticky tyres on one, it’d be nearly as quick on track as the peakier and posher RS version.

At just £8,900 a PCP deal on the restyled Street Triple R is extremely good value for money. We have no PCP example to work on so far, but with the old bike coming in at under £100 a month, we’d expect this bike to fall into a similar bracket.

Moto Guzzi V7 III Special - £8,199

With a discounted price of £8,199 (previously £8,699) the Moto Guzzi V7 III Special comes in well under our £10k budget, and offers rider loads of options to either spec up the machine with some accessories or put the extra towards some insurance or maybe even a nice Euro tour.

Built around Moto Guzzi’s iconic transversely mounted V-twin engine, the bike puts out a usable yet accessible 52bhp and can easily be tuned down to make an A2 compliant 47bhp.

The PCP deals on the Moto Guzzi are not quite as appealing as the list price, with a £2k deposit and 4,000 miles a year returning a monthly price of £211 p/m over 36 months.

Husqvarna Vitpilen 701 - £8,899

Naked bikes don’t come much better looking than the neo-retro styled Husqvarna Vitpilen 701. Adding to the bikes appeal is its basis that is borrowed from the KTM 690 Duke, a bike that stops, goes and handles better than pretty much any other modern day single cylinder machine.

The latest version of the bike is also pretty good value, with a £3,621 returning monthly payments of £169 p/m over 36-months.

Honda VFR800F - £9,999

Coming in a penny under our theoretical £10k limit, the VFR800F is a sports-touring machine that seems distinctly old-school next to the current crop of lanky pseudo adventure sports tourers.

Its DNA may be older than 90% of the Visordown readership, but the VFR800F is still a very capable long distance machine, that can would work as well on your commute, a light European tour and even the odd trackday.

With the current model coming to the end of its life, the VFR has an enticing 6.9% APR deal attached to it at the minute, meaning you can pick one up for around £109 p/m based on a £2,612 deposit.

Kawasaki Z900 – from £8,899

Heavily updated for 2020, the Kawasaki is one of the best equipped and best handling sub-1000cc nakeds we’ve ridden this winter. For 2020 you get the best TFT dash on the market, riding modes, Kawasaki Rideology connectivity and the updated styling that make a the 2020 bike look more aggressive and purposeful than before.

If you opt for Kawasaki K Options PCP, the new Z900 comes back at £104 p/m based on a £2k deposit and 4000 miles per year.

Royal Enfield Continental GT - £6,399

If you want to ride something that is so unashamedly retro most people won’t know it isn’t a classic bike; the Royal Enfield Continental GT is the bike for you.

Built around Royal Enfield’s newest engine configuration, the Continental GT is powered by a modern 650cc, twin cylinder unit that produces an easy to ride and A2 compliant 47bhp.

At well under the £10k cap, the Royal Enfield Continental GT is also one of the cheapest bikes on this list to own, with PCP deals coming in at an attractive £93 p/m on a £499 deposit.

Suzuki V-Strom 1000 (2020) - £9,999

Landing in UK Suzuki dealers this spring, the revamped V-Strom 1000 is currently on offer with a launch price of £9,999. Admittedly, this isn’t the one you want – that would obviously be the DRBig inspired XT version with its iconic red and white – did somebody say ciggerettes? – paint scheme.

The trouble is, that bike is £11,299, well outside the budget so you’ll have to settle with this one!

Paint scheme and bike envy aside, the big V-Strom is probably one of the best value full size adventure machines on the market, coming in at £99.73 p/m with a £2000 deposit – try getting an R1200 GS in your garage for that much money!

KTM 790 Duke (2019) - £8,999

With the 890 Duke R about to land, the old stock of 790 Dukes are being but on some aggressively priced finance and OTR deals to try and shift the old outgoing model. With a price that’s been reduced to £8,999, the 790 Duke is one of the best handling naked bikes on the market.

With a £2,094 deposit, you could be carving our apexes on the 790 Duke for just £99 p/m.