5 Of The Fastest Four-Cylinder Motorcycles In 2024

Speed is often aspirational. Buying a motorcycle that can go 200 miles per hour is all well and good, but finding a track or a private road where you can achieve that kind of speed is another matter. And even if you have access to exceedingly long runways, few riders will ever max out a modern production motorcycle — especially the fastest ones. That doesn't mean we can't dream, though, and buy motorcycles that give us a piece of that dream. When we see heroic riders at the limit, blasting around the Isle of Man or taking the podium at a MotoGP event, we want a piece of that dream. So, we lust after the fastest bikes, many of which are powered by four-cylinder engines capable of incredible speeds.

Some of the fastest production bikes you can buy today come with four-cylinder engines, producing horsepower numbers that are scarcely believable. Before we take a look at some of those bikes, a quick note about motorcycle acceleration, horsepower, and top-speed numbers. The Gentleman's Agreement is an unspoken agreement between motorcycle companies to keep speed under control and electronically limited to 186 miles per hour. It's not official, and many manufacturers have broken through the 300 kph (186 mph) barrier, but you'll see that number pop up more than once on this list. Now, on to the bikes.

The Kawasaki Ninja H2R is a dizzying array of numbers. Its top speed and acceleration times are some of the most impressive stats you'll see paired with two-wheeled, street-legal transportation. The standard Ninja H2 is powered by a 998cc supercharged four-cylinder engine that produces 228 horsepower. That's already more than most compact cars, but the H2R ups the ante to 300 horsepower – outclassing almost every motorcycle on the road today. Acceleration is, as you'd imagine, blistering. Kawasaki doesn't release official figures regarding zero to 60 mph, but most estimates put the H2R's time at under 3.0 seconds. To go much quicker than that, you'd need more than just one tire's worth of traction.

The H2R's quoted curb weight is 476 pounds – a bit heavier than most liter bikes, but respectable considering the performance levels. Just how high the H2R's top speed is varies depending on the rider and the surface, but several tests have shown that it's possible to reach over 200 miles per hour in a relatively short distance. If the road stretches out a bit (and if you're brave enough) the H2R's speedometer will indicate a speed of nearly 250 mph. For all that speed, you're gonna pay a pretty penny. The standard H2 checks in with an MSRP of $32,100, with the Carbon edition raising that price to $35,600. The H2R won't be outdone, with a starting price of $58,100. It's expensive, but the H2R is unlike anything else on the road today.

The Ducati Panigale V4 is a single-seat bike that's meant built with impressive racetrack performance in mind, and it's available in a number of different configurations that prove that point. Standard versions include the V4, V4 R, V4 S, and V4 SP2 — all of which are desirable in their own right. The top of the heap, however, is the limited-production Superleggera V4. The V4 is limited to just 500 production units, so getting your hands on one might prove difficult, but if you have one in your garage, it'll be the crown jewel of almost any collection. Ducati painstakingly went over a list of 600 engine components from the standard V4, changing steel bolts out for titanium ones, thinning out various parts of the engine and even redesigning pieces of the oil pump assembly to save weight.

Like the H2R, the Superleggera is powered by a 998cc engine, but the Ducati doesn't use a supercharger. Instead, it uses a 90-degree V4 engine that produces 224 horsepower (234 hp with the full racing exhaust) and has a top speed of 186 mph. The Ducati uses all sorts of lightweight materials, including titanium suspension components and carbon fiber wheels, making it one of the lightest superbikes on the road. The bike's dry weight is just 350 lbs, going as low as 335.5 lbs with the available racing kit — an incredibly low figure for a bike with such impressive power.

Bikes like the Suzuki Hayabusa are known for their dedication to speed — especially in a straight line. The Busa is powered by a 1340cc four-stroke, four-cylinder engine paired with a six-speed transmission. It has four-piston Brembo brakes up front and single-piston brakes in the rear, as well as a relatively large 5.3-gallon gas tank. The Hayabusa is a big bike though, and its size keeps it from being the most agile machine. Its curb weight checks in at 582 pounds – over 100 pounds heavier than the H2R and 247 pounds heavier than the lightest version of the Ducati Superleggera V4.

The Hayabusa engine has evolved over the years, starting life with a 1298cc engine back in the late 1990s, evolving into the big 1340cc unit it uses today. The current Hayabusa produces nearly 200 horsepower from its 1340cc engine, giving it a top speed of 194 miles per hour in Cycleworld testing. The 25th Anniversary Edition of the Hayabusa is currently available with a starting price of $19,599, making it considerably more affordable than even the base-level Suzuki H2. It might be a bit heavy by sport bike standards, but the Busa is still one of the fastest bikes on the road, even after all these years.

According to BMW, the S 1000 RR has a top speed of 186 miles per hour. It's an impressive bike by any standard. But there's an even more precision-focused version of the S 1000 RR waiting in the wings — the M 1000 RR. According to BMW, the M 1000 RR is a superbike homologated for racing. It uses additional aerodynamic enhancements compared to the standard model and more carbon fiber, with a higher top speed of 189 miles per hour. The 999cc inline four-cylinder engine that powers the M 1000 RR is rated at 205 horsepower. Equipped with the optional M Competition package, it weighs 422 pounds.

The base model of the S 1000 RR is certainly fast enough to keep up with many of the world's fastest bikes, and it has a base price of $18,295 which is relatively reasonable when you consider its performance. In the same way that the Ducati Superleggera V4 uses lightweight materials and construction to set itself apart from the standard model, the M 1000 RR has all sorts of weight-saving measures like lightweight forged pistons, titanium valves, and titanium connecting rods all to save just a few ounces. Carbon fiber aero covers reduce turbulence at the wheels to increase high-speed stability and brake ducts bring down brake temperatures significantly — something that will certainly come in handy at the racetrack. With all this extra racing equipment, though, the M 1000 RR is significantly more expensive – starting at $33,345.

Powered by a 1000cc inline four-cylinder engine, the Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP produces 214 horsepower. Like many of the other bikes on the list, the Fireblade is an upgraded version of the standard CBR1000RR, with all sorts of upgrades meant for improved performance. The standard CBR1000RR starts at $16,999, but if you want all the extra performance provided by the Fireblade, it'll cost you nearly double the standard bike's price with a base price of $28,999.

The Fireblade includes features like lighter forged pistons, a longer swingarm, Brembo brakes, a titanium exhaust, and upgraded suspension all in the pursuit of faster times around the track. Honda designed the Fireblade with the MotoGP-winning RC213V bike in mind, even using the same bore and stroke. And while the Fireblade isn't exactly an ultra-light performance bike, weighing in at 445 pounds, it is still worthy of consideration for speed-obsessed track rats. Like the standard bike, and like several other bikes on the list, the race-ready Fireblade has a top speed of 186 miles per hour.