Best scrambler motorcycles

Scramblers are the slightly more rugged, off-road-inspired, ‘bad boy’ brothers to conventional, retro-styled roadsters, such as Triumph’s best-selling Bonneville. In fact, it was the British firm that got the whole scrambler trend going back in 2006 with its first Bonneville Scrambler, a modified version of the 900 Bonneville twin inspired by its 1960s TR5 with off-road wire wheels and semi-knobbly tyres, taller handlebars, raised exhausts and other detail changes. That bike proved so popular it inspired a host of rivals, a whole Triumph Scrambler family and established the formula that remains the template for most scramblers today. What most deliver is a middle-range bike that’s stylish, unintimidating, reasonably versatile, affordable and yet with a more rugged appeal than a conventional road retro, even if the trade-off is a slightly more exposed riding position due to the higher handlebars and marginally less secure road handling due to the larger, semi-knobbly tyres. Here's our pick of the current best.

The latest incarnation of Triumph’s original 2006 Scrambler, the Triumph Scrambler 900 now has a more modern, liquid-cooled, 64 horsepower twin cylinder engine, ticks all the scrambler styling boxes, has lots of quality details and arguably the most ‘badge appeal’ of any. Performance is a little ‘soft’ compared to some rivals (which is why Triumph now also offers a 1200 version) but that also makes it unintimidating and accessible.

Fantic is one of the better examples of a lauded Italian brand revived under new ownership, having established itself as a builder of off-road machines in the 70s and 80s before going out of business in 201 and then reborn with a range of Chinese-built bikes. See also the likes of Benelli and Moto Morini, both of which have followed a similar path. Fantic’s bikes retain that essential Italian style, meanwhile, and are reasonable performers. Its flagship is the Fantic Caballero, a retro-styled trailie powered originally by a Chinese-built ex-enduro single-cylinder motor, and more recently by the 73 horsepower 689cc twin from Yamaha’s MT-07. Both are cute, fun, easy to ride and reasonable value but the newer 700 is more long-legged and perkier, if a little less authentic.

Italian exotica expert Ducati is now so committed to scramblers it has created a whole new sub-brand under that name. Launched as four different models in 2015, the Ducati Scrambler is more modern and performance-orientated than most being powered by an 800cc 80 horsepower V-twin recently updated with power modes and a TFT dash. It also has a sweet-handling, monoshock chassis. The first rung on the ladder into Ducati ownership, it has enough retro touches to satisfy scrambler fans and there’s a variety of different versions to choose from.

Another revived historic Italian brand now selling Chinese-built bikes, although, to be fair, like Fantic and Moto Morini, they’re styled and designed in Italy, of decent quality and good value. The Leoncino 800 is currently Benelli’s flagship model and is available as a roadster or, here, as the more scrambler-style Leoncino 800 Trail. At currently just over £7,000 it’s got a lot going for it with its sturdy, Kawasaki-derived 80 horsepower parallel twin, full size proportions, ‘proper’ scrambler wire wheels, knobbly tyres, upswept pipes, TFT dash and so on. Some may think the styling a little odd and it lacks the refinement of a Triumph or Ducati, but at the price, maybe that doesn’t matter.

And, yes, yet another revived Italian brand now building its bikes in China – not that we’re complaining. Since its ter its 1970s heyday then brief noughties revival Morini was bought by Chinese giant the Zhongneng Vehicle Group and has since set about an ambitious reincarnation. The Seiemmezzo 650, launched in 2022, is among the first fruits and again comes in street STR or scrambler SCR guises, both powered again by a derivative of Kawasaki’s aging 649cc ER6 twin. Although its power delivery is a little raw, the rest of the bike makes up for it. It’s great-looking, well-proportioned for both novices and more experienced riders, decently equipped (the TFT dash and Brembo brakes stand out) and the SCR ticks all the scrambler boxes of semi-knobblies, wire wheels, high bars and suchlike without compromising handling. At under £7,000 at the time of writing it’s also fabulous value.

If you fancy something a little bit leftfield with your scrambler, you could do an awful lot worse than Husqvarna’s quirky but fun Svartpilen 401. The historic Swedish brand is now an offshoot of KTM and the scrambler Svartpilen (and its roadster/café racer sibling, the Vitpilen) are basically restyled versions of the KTM Duke 390. And there’s not much wrong with that. You get a punchy, 42 horsepower single-cylinder motor, a fine-handling, slim and lightweight chassis and a semi-scrambler style with knobblies, wire wheels and high bars. It may lack the scrambler authenticity of a Triumph and have limited practicality away from B-roads or city centres, but it’s great fun – and very cool!

A surprisingly impressive spin-off of the revived US brand’s 1200cc Scout cruiser, the Indian FTR1200S puts an American flat-track slant on the retro roadster scrambler genre and pulls it off brilliantly. Its V-twin motor is tuned to a perky 120 horsepower, the chassis is uprated and result in a lively upright naked sportster. It’s well equipped, especially in S trim, and it’s got bags of all-American style and attitude. True scrambler? Maybe not, but as a thrilling US take on the theme, it’s certainly worth a long look…

Another one that pushes the strict definition of genre, the MASH X-Ride 650 is arguably more 1970s trail bike than 1960s style scrambler but what’s a decade’s nuance between friends? If it’s reminiscent of a mid-1970s Yamaha XT500 trail bike that’s entirely deliberate – and part of the appeal. The lumpy, single-cylinder air-cooled engine is, however, a derivative of Honda’s old 644cc Dominator unit. Being a single it’s a bit lumpy and breathless. Being a budget Chinese-built bike means it’s a bit crude and its equipment is basic. It’s also got limited practicality and we certainly wouldn’t fancy taking it down the motorway. But as a retro-style dirt bike that’s plenty of fun and useful around town, there’s not much better for its current £5K price.

One cylinder or two? A single-cylinder motor is more in-keeping with the 1960s originals but gives a lumpy delivery and limits performance. Twins tend to be smoother and more powerful but wider and heavier, too. No true scrambler should have any more than two cylinders.
Style or substance? if you go too far down the line of an authentic scrambler you can limit performance and practicality. Triumph’s Scrambler 900 brilliantly recreates 1960s style but is far outperformed by Ducati’s more modern take on the theme, by way of example. European or Chinese? Budget Chinese-built bikes have rapidly improved in terms of specification and build quality but still can’t match more expensive European offerings from, say, Triumph and Ducati. The Euro-designed but Chinese-built Fantic, Benelli and Morini to some degree give the best of both worlds.

Is a scrambler practical?

It depends on what you want to use it for. If you’re planning lots of two-up touring miles, the lack of weather protection, luggage capacity and big engine power counts against them. But as a fun, Sunday or round town toy, they’re brilliant.

Scrambler or roadster?

Many scramblers are variants of retro roadsters and often appeal for their added style or, for some, slightly larger proportions. But they’re also usually more expensive, may not suit smaller riders and their road-holding and sports handling at the sportier end of the riding spectrum isn’t quite as good.

Are they all 500-800cc?

No. Although most fit into this category anything bigger generally suffers off-road, should you be tempted. Increasingly there are bigger, more powerful versions, though. BMW offers its 1200cc RNineT in scrambler form and Triumph has its very potent Scrambler 1200 in both full off-road XE form and more road-biased X trim. The Triumph’s appearance in James Bond’s in No Time To Die does its heavyweight image no harm at all!