Zinging sports bike power, a trail bike chassis and rally-raid styling. Is Yamaha’s two-stroke a curious oddity, or way more than the sum of its disparate parts?

With the new bearings, piston rings and seals fitted into the 850 block (at last), it was time to pull the old 700cc engine from the Vegemite Special so certain other parts could be swapped over. Firs

Motorcycle history is littered with landmark V-configuration engines, plus some astounding alternatives packing from two to eight cylinders. Here are some of our favourites...

Classic Bike, Media House, Peterborough Business Park, Lynch Wood, Peterborough, Cambs, PE2 6EA

Pinning down the cause of the recurrent engine trouble that affected multiple cruises took patience and perseverance for Justin Morton

Pick up the phone, call your local railway, offer to volunteer, and it could be the start of a whole new adventure, says ALEX ALDER. You might even go the whole hog and buy an engine…