Top Ten Best Sounding Motorcycle Engines

Honorable Six-Cylinder Mentions: BMW K1600, Honda CBX, Laverda V6, Benelli Sei

2. Ducati World Superbike V-Twins – This spans a lot of Ducati models (888, 916, 996, 998, 999, 1098, 1099), and while the dry clutch can be an audible nuisance to some, a 90-degree V-Twin Ducati engine with pipes and a rattling dry clutch is unmistakably, in-your-face, two-wheel, Italian aggression. Hearing these high-performance V-Twins booming down a straightaway is a visceral, ground-shaking event never forgotten.

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3. Honda V-Fours (with gear-driven cams) – This engine configuration is found on the roadracing RC30 and RC45 as well as the street going VFR 700/750s of the late ’80s to the mid-’90s. The race bikes have a 360-degree crank whereas the road bikes fired on a 180-degree rotation, but regardless, the gear-driven camshaft whine in concert with the booming V4 exhaust note is a music chain driven cam engines do not play.

Honorable V-Four Mentions: Yamaha V-Max, Aprilia RSV4

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4. Yamaha Inline-Four with Crossplane Crankshaft – The inline Four-cylinder is the most ubiquitous engine in motorcycling, but the crossplane format of Yamaha’s recent MotoGP YZR-M1 MotoGP machine and street-legal R1 models sets it apart from other inline-Fours. It growls unlike any other inline-Four, pleasing eardrums with a roar reminiscent of a V-4 yet a sound distinct from anything else.

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6. British parallel-Twins – Just as Harley has a lock on the quintessential sound of the 45-degree V-Twin, Triumph, Norton, BSA and decades’ worth of other British motorcycle manufacturers are the marquees most closely related to the Parallel-Twin engine. From Triumph’s original Speed Twin to the last Norton Commando, these Parallel-Twins produce a garbled "thumpity-thumpity" tone that’s more athletic than a loping V-Twin. Thankfully, you can still hear the note today in motorcycles from Triumph’s Classic line.

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7. Honda NR (New Racing) – If the sound of a sweet V-4 perks up your ears, you need to know about the only engine in existence constructed with oval pistons; the NR750. Originally designed in the late ’70s as a four-stroke competitor to the 500cc two-stroke engines dominating Grand Prix motorcycle racing, the oval-piston V-Four engine is decidedly unique. With eight valves per cylinder and eight connecting rods, it’s nearly a V-8, but it was never able to match the lightweight two-strokers in GP competition and was replaced by the two-stroke NS500 in the early ’80s.

8. Top Fuel Drag Bikes – If you want to feel the sound of an engine reverberate through your chest cavity, look no further than a Top Fuel drag bike. With upwards of 1500 horsepower, they are the fastest accelerating machines on two wheels. Each individual component is custom-made to withstand the immense punishment of trying to get through the quarter-mile as fast as humanly possible. These things are loud, frightening, and blast through the quarter-mile just a tick past six seconds.

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9. Inline-Triple – The wail of a modern Triumph three-cylinder is the kind of sound you can’t help but fall in love with. It combines the raspy, throaty tones of a parallel-Twin at low rpm with the high-pitched, fast-action scream of a four- cylinder once you really get it spinning. In doing so it creates a symphony all its own. From the original BSA Rocket lll and Triumph X75 Hurricane to Triumph’s latest Street and Speed Triples, an Inline-Triple makes a sound like no other.

10. Ducati Desmosedici – Raw, unencumbered performance. That’s what the bark of the Ducati Desmosedici tells those within firing range. Thumb the starter and it instantly commands respect. Even at idle the V4 rumbles with a note that says, “I’m pissed.” If you’ve ever attended a MotoGP race, you understand how loud those racebikes are. Now imagine Ducati deciding to make a street-legal version and the sound should start to make more sense. It’s loud, it’s intense, and it’s fast. That’s really all you need to know.