1981Hesketh V1000

25 fields on record

The 1981 Hesketh V1000 is a British sports bike powered by a 992cc air-cooled four-stroke V-twin making 82 hp and 105 Nm. It has a 5-speed gearbox and a 20.5-litre tank.

Capacity: 992.0 ccm
Engine: V-Twin, four-stroke
Gearbox: 5-speed
Dry weight: 244.0 kg
Seat height: 838 mm
Power: 82.0 HP (61.0 kW) @ 6800 RPM

⇄ Compare with another bike ＋ Add to garage All model years

How it rides

Editorial estimate from the spec sheet - not lab tested

Off-road & trail5%

Cornering80%

City riding25%

Daily riding20%

Touring10%

Two-up25%

Track75%

Best for: Sport bike built for its class - everyday, practical use.
Built for: A sport bike from Hesketh, built around a 992cc engine - a real production model, but this profile is formula-generated from its class and spec sheet rather than individually reviewed.
Not ideal for: Not for serious performance or off-road use.

Scores are derived from the spec sheet using the same model across every bike, so they compare like for like.

Will it fit you?

Worked out in your browser - nothing is sent to us

Your height

Inseam (optional)

Units

At 838mm, a rider of 68.9" with a 31" (estimated) inseam will reach the ground with balls of both feet on the 1981 Hesketh V1000, with a cramped knee angle of around 75 degrees and a forward-leaning riding position.

Assumes about 30mm of suspension sag once seated. This is an approximation from category-typical geometry, not a measurement of this bike or of you - sit on one before you buy.

More bikes at 821-900 mm — Long Legs →

Find bikes that fit your height →

Reliability & safety

Bike Reliability score, safety recalls and owner complaints

Bike Reliability

How the score works →

out of 100Excellent

The Hesketh V1000 passed its annual roadworthiness test first time 92.4% of the time, 6.9 points above expected for bikes of the same age and mileage. That beats 81% of models.

This covers every year of the model.

92.4%Passed first time

2.0%Failed outright

5.6%Fixed during test

12,000Typical miles

249Tests

Pass rate by miles ridden

0-10k

90.7%

10-20k

92.5%

30-40k

94.9%

All years of this model.

Against its rivals · ranks 1 of 6

#	Model (all years)	Score	Tests
1	Hesketh V1000	81 Excellent	249
2	Laverda RGA1000	80 Excellent	105
3	Ducati 900 SS	67 Good	2,720
4	Suzuki GSX 1000SV Katana	48 Average	357
5	Honda CB 900 F Bol D`or	46 Average	136
6	BMW R 100S	44 Average	312

Rivals are the most-viewed bikes on MotorcycleDB in the same category and engine size, from within three years of this model.

From British annual roadworthiness tests, 2005-2025. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (DVSA MOT test data, Great Britain). How Bike Reliability works.