From the poster boys of the 1990s to a niche sector in the 2020s, so called sports tourers have been replaced by adventure bikes as the popular all rounder these days, but is the class making a quiet revival?
Bikes like the Honda VFR800 and Triumph Sprint ST were all over the place two decades ago, but these days it’s the Africa Twin and Tiger ranges that sell in the big numbers.
The millennial Tigers are a case in point. By 2007, Triumph had fitted its 1050cc triple motor to both the Sprint ST and Tiger models and, to many, they were two peas from the same pod. The previous models had been quite distinct in their differences and character but the 1050 Tiger blurred those lines. A switch from 19” to 17” wheels (shod with pure road tyres, rather than semi knobblies), significantly reduced wheel travel and a lower seat height (from 860mm to 835mm) made the Tiger more accessible to more riders. Given a choice between the upright adventure bike and the less comfortable/practical sports tourer, riders moved to the adventure bike in their droves. It wasn’t just at Triumph too, BMW’s GS continued to prove an unstoppable force in the sales charts while the whole generation of adventure bikes from the likes of Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha were all road bikes first and foremost.
Of course, this did not go down well with all riders. The solution was to make multiple variants of the adventure models, inevitably one model with a cast 17” wheels and road tyres, and another with spoked wheels, more suspension travel and a taller saddle. BMW didn’t even sell a sports touring RS version of its famous boxer, while the Sprint was quietly phased out of the Triumph range.
That hasn’t been the end of the sports tourer though.
Tastes have changed. Where the motorcyclist of 20 years ago typically rode a race replica, sports tourer or custom bike, these days he or she is far more likely to be seen on a streetfighter, retro or adventure bike – none of which were really even a thing two decades ago.
Choices for a modern day sports tourer are few and far between. BMW’s R1250RS has been out for a few years now, providing a simpler alternative to the GS and RT tourer, while Ducati has the SuperSport and Honda the VFR range, in 800 and 1250cc variants.
Despite this fall in popularity, there’s still a small-but-loyal following for these practical all rounders – bikes which can be loaded with luggage for a trip or the daily commute, but which can still be up for a scratch on the weekends.
The term ‘sports tourer’ has been around since the 1980s. The 1970s had seen the expression UJM, or Universal Japanese Motorcycle, coined and this referred to the fairly typical style of four-cylinder four-stroke machine punted out by the big four manufacturers.
By the mid-1980s fairings were becoming the norm and we were seeing a move away from UJMs, in favour of more focussed machines. Race replicas like the Suzuki GSX-R750 and two-stroke 500s became popular, while big tourers also appeared with all-encompassing bodywork and new levels of comfort.
From this emerged the sports tourer, a faired bike that wasn’t a race replica nor a bulky tourer. With a level of sportiness unimaginable in a road bike a decade earlier, and a dash of practicality brought on by a fairing, the sports tourer was born.
The early 1980s saw machines like the Kawasaki GPz750/1100 and Yamaha FJ1100, essentially sporty UJMs with a half fairing, but it was in 1986 that Honda built the bike that defined the genre – the VFR750F.
The Honda was a ground up new design. Powered by the company’s soon to be iconic gear driven V4 motor it was a proper sports bike, albeit one with great manners. From 1987 Honda had the RC30 as its racebike so there was no need to give the VFR an extreme edge, although one of the most recalled VFR750 stories is of the 1986 Transatlantic Road Races at Donington Park, when Ron Haslam famously took a brand new VFR750F road bike from a dealership (after his race bike blew up in practice) and put it on the podium in a wet race.
Put into context, it’s easy to see why the VFR was so successful. Five years earlier the world was riding around on clunky big air-cooled inline fours. The chassis and engine of the Honda was light years ahead of anything before it and marked a turning point between the bikes we had back then and the ones we know today.
The VFR750F was superbly popular and had few competitors in those early years. Kawasaki brought out the ZZ-R600 and 1100, rightly idolised for their staggering engines but nowhere near as rounded a day-to-day ride as the Honda.
Unlike race replicas, which were by their nature designed to be extreme, sports tourers tended to cross the lines between the two genres. Aprilia softened its RSV models to create the still-sporty Futura, while BMW’s R1100RS was a sportier version of the company’s big RT touring model, but still lay at the more comfortable edge of the market. With shaft drive, the BMW was the odd one out in a class where a chain was more commonplace. Some bikes, like the Suzuki GSX1250F and the original Kawasaki Z1000SX, were essentially parts-bin specials that added fairings to naked bikes to broaden their appeal.
Suzuki GSX1250F
In recent years the sports tourer has been making a quiet revival. Ducati brought out its SuperSport in 2017 while Kawasaki has refined the Z1000SX concept over the past decade and created one of the sleeper hits of recent years. The Z1000SX has moved away from its naked roots to become Europe’s best selling sports tourer and Kawasaki’s top model in the UK.
Best sports tourer of all time
Honda VFR750F (1986)
Arguably the bike that created the class. Back in 1986, the first VFR was unlike anything else out there. The bulletproof V4 motor has sportsbike heritage and it was fast for its time, but the relaxed ergonomics and easygoing nature meant that it was a bike you could do pretty much anything on. It sold by the shed load.
Triumph Sprint ST955i (1999)
By 1998, Honda’s VFR had grown to an 800 and was one of the most popular bikes on the market. Sensing an opportunity to muscle in on a hugely lucrative market, Triumph took the frame and engine from the T595 superbike to create the more practical Sprint ST. The result was a peach and considered by many as better than the class-leading Honda.
Honda VFR800 VTEC (2003)
The VFR750 was a hard act to follow. After four generations across 11 years, it was replaced by a bigger capacity VFR800F in 1998. In 2003 Honda brought out the VTEC version, with variable valve timing. Underseat exhausts looked good but proved less practical for riders who liked a bit of two-up touring. Its arrival coincided with the emergence of adventure bikes and despite a drop in popularity, its 11-year run ensured plenty remain on the road.
Triumph Sprint ST 1050 (2005)
The 955i was a tough act to follow for Triumph. The Hinckley company shuffled its pack with the introduction of the 1050cc triple. Out went the Daytona 955i superbike, while the Tiger was given more of a road going focus. The Sprint ST 1050 was made sportier, but features like the high pillion seat, underseat exhausts and plastic fuel tanks (on the earliest models) dulled its effectiveness on the touring side of things. Great motor, and the chassis wasn’t bad too.
Ducati SuperSport (2017)
Eyebrows were raised when Ducati released the SuperSport in 2017. The sports touring market was considered pretty much dead at the time, but that didn’t deter Ducati – who pitched the SuperSport as bike you could ride to work during the week, and have some fun on at the weekend. Unsurprisingly it was never a big seller, but a decent bike nonetheless.
Kawasaki Z1000SX Ninja (2020)
Updated for 2020, the Z1000SX has emerged from the shadows of the Z1000-with-a-fairing to great value all-rounder that combines day-long levels of comfort with a 140bhp motor that wouldn’t have been out of place on a superbike 10 years ago.
