How the scoring works
Every bike gets a score out of 100, computed by the same deterministic formula from published spec data. No editorial adjustment, no sponsored thumb on the scale. This page is the entire system; if you can read a spec sheet, you can reproduce our numbers.
The six categories
| Category | Points |
|---|---|
| Engine and performance | 25 |
| Handling and chassis | 20 |
| Value | 20 |
| Practicality | 15 |
| Technology | 10 |
| Reliability and ownership | 10 |
| Total | 100 |
Normalization: bikes only compete inside their class
Raw numbers are never scored directly. Each input is min-max normalized against the other bikes in the same class (we call it a segment): the best value in the class scores highest, the worst lowest, everything else lands proportionally between. A commuter single is measured against commuter singles, not superbikes. Where lower is better, like weight or price, the scale flips.
Small classes get smoothing. Raw min-max in a two-bike class is winner-take-all: every metric would score 0 or 1, which overstates real gaps. So every normalization blends in two neutral pseudo-entries at 0.5. A two-bike class scores between 0.25 and 0.75 per input, a large class approaches pure min-max, and the ranking inside a class never changes. If a class has no second bike at all, the input scores a neutral 0.5.
What goes into each category
Engine and performance (25 points)
- Power to weight40%
- Peak power35%
- Peak torque25%
Handling and chassis (20 points)
- Wet weight (lower is better)40%
- Suspension tier35%
- Brake tier25%
Value (20 points)
- Price vs segment (lower is better)65%
- Service interval35%
Practicality (15 points)
- Fuel range45%
- Seat height (lower is better)30%
- Pillion and luggage tier25%
Reliability and ownership (10 points)
- Valve check interval35%
- Warranty25%
- Known issues (fewer is better)40%
Technology (10 points)
Technology is a weighted checklist rather than a class-relative metric, so a bike is rewarded for what it ships with, full stop.
- dash20%
- abs20%
- traction control15%
- quickshifter15%
- ride modes10%
- cruise control10%
- connectivity10%
The tier tables
Hardware that resists a single number, like suspension or brakes, scores through fixed tiers. These tables are imported from the same code the scoring engine runs, so what you read here is what the engine executes.
| Spec | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Non-adjustable | 0.25 |
| Preload only | 0.40 |
| Preload and rebound | 0.55 |
| Compression and rebound | 0.65 |
| Fully adjustable | 0.85 |
| Semi-active | 1.00 |
| Spec | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Axial 2-piston | 0.30 |
| Axial 4-piston | 0.50 |
| Radial 4-piston | 0.75 |
| Monobloc 4-piston | 1.00 |
| Spec | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Standard ABS | 0.40 |
| Switchable ABS | 0.70 |
| Cornering ABS | 1.00 |
| Spec | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| LCD | 0.50 |
| TFT | 1.00 |
| Spec | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| standard | 1.00 |
| optional | 0.50 |
| none | 0.00 |
| Spec | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| none | 0.00 |
| minimal | 0.35 |
| adequate | 0.70 |
| good | 1.00 |
Warranty scores linearly up to full marks at 4 years. Each well-documented reliability issue costs 25% of the known-issues component.
Worked example: KTM 390 SMC R
Applying all of the above to the KTM 390 SMC R inside its class produces 68.3 points. The component detail below is the engine's actual output, not a copy.
Engine and performance
18.8 / 25Handling and chassis
10.3 / 20Value
15.0 / 20Practicality
9.8 / 15Technology
8.3 / 10Reliability and ownership
6.1 / 10| Component | Value | Normalized | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine and performance: 18.8 / 25 | |||
| Power to weight | 0.28 hp/kg | 0.75 | 7.5 |
| Peak power | 45 hp | 0.75 | 6.6 |
| Peak torque | 39 Nm | 0.75 | 4.7 |
| Handling and chassis: 10.3 / 20 | |||
| Wet weight | 161 kg | 0.25 | 2.0 |
| Suspension spec | WP APEX 43 mm open cartridge | 0.60 | 4.2 |
| Brake spec | 320 mm disc | 0.81 | 4.1 |
| Value: 15.0 / 20 | |||
| Price vs segment | 6,999 EUR | 0.75 | 9.8 |
| Service interval | 10,000 km | 0.75 | 5.2 |
| Practicality: 9.8 / 15 | |||
| Fuel range | 250 km | 0.75 | 5.1 |
| Seat height access | 860 mm | 0.75 | 3.4 |
| Pillion and luggage | minimal | 0.35 | 1.3 |
| Technology: 8.3 / 10 | |||
| Dash | TFT | 1.00 | 2.0 |
| ABS | cornering | 1.00 | 2.0 |
| Traction control | yes | 1.00 | 1.5 |
| Quickshifter | optional | 0.50 | 0.8 |
| Ride modes | yes | 1.00 | 1.0 |
| Cruise control | none | 0.00 | 0.0 |
| Connectivity | yes | 1.00 | 1.0 |
| Reliability and ownership: 6.1 / 10 | |||
| Valve check interval | 20,000 km | 0.25 | 0.9 |
| Warranty | 2 years | 0.50 | 1.3 |
| Known issues | none documented | 1.00 | 4.0 |
What the score does not capture
Feel. A spec sheet cannot measure how an engine builds revs or how a chassis talks to you at lean. The points tell you which bike wins on paper and by how much; the verdict text on each comparison adds the judgement calls, clearly separated from the math. When specs are updated or corrected, scores recompute automatically.