Ask any long-term motorcycle enthusiast, and they’ll tell you there was something special in the air back in the 2000s. Manufacturers were way more liberal with experimentation, resulting in some impressive creations across segments. This wasn’t just in context with performance, but motorcycle design held importance, too. As a result, some bikes from the 2000s have aged incredibly well and still promise to be head-turners today. We’re talking about 10 such examples, even though we could’ve probably added 10 more. Design is–after all–a subjective thing. Harley-Davidson CVO Screamin’ Eagle Fat Boy Power: ~90 HP Bring A Trailer In the long history of Harley-Davidson, the Fat Boy moniker has only received the CVO treatment once. That alone is a good enough reason to add this cruiser here, but the aesthetics backed up the hype. There was an endless collection of special parts, such as: Chrome front axle nut covers Chrome swingarm pivot bolt covers Smoked turn signal lenses with amber bulbs Chrome master cylinder Chrome front and rear master cylinder reservoir covers Chrome front brake and hydraulic clutch levers Chrome license plate bracket Chrome lower belt guard Chrome sprocket bolt covers Chrome valve stem caps 17-inch forged aluminum wheels Topping all these were three stylish color options, namely Nebula Yellow Pearl and Cobalt Blue, Autumn Haze and Abyss Blue, and Canyon Copper and Concord Purple. All of them had color-matched frames. The current Fat Boy simply looks vanilla compared to this. Honda VFR800 Power: 107 HP Bring A TrailerThe modern-day sport-tourer space is crowded with sports bike-derived bikes that dial things down. In 2008, though, Honda’s VFR800 followed an entirely different approach. It upped the swagger compared to the brand’s flagship superbikes by including design elements like dual under-seat exhausts (finished in chrome), a single-sided swingarm at the rear, and fairing-integrated turn signals.Honda Another highlight was the unique engine. While the CBR1000RR of the time had an inline-four, the VFR one had a unique V4 powerhouse. It had a 90-degree layout, 781 cubic centimeters of capacity, and Honda’s iconic VTEC system to produce 107 horsepower and almost 60 pound-feet. Harley-Davidson V-Rod Muscle Power: 122 HP Bring A Trailer The V-Rod serves as one of Harley’s most iconic experiments. While die-hard enthusiasts disliked the non-Harley-like appeal, there’s no denying the design is rather lip-smacking compared to what we get today. Harley whipped up quite a few different versions of the power cruiser during its life, among which the V-Rod Muscle serves as one of the head-turners.Bring A Trailer That is down to plenty of small but significant bits, such as: LED turn signals embedded into the mirror stems Satin chrome two-into-two exhausts 240 mm rear tire Drag bike-style saddle Polished forged aluminum triple clamps Black chassis Muscular radiator shrouds Ducati 999 Power: ~140 HP Ducati The 999 marked a massive shift in Ducati’s superbike journey. It abruptly ended the iconic 916-based design language from a certain Mr Tamburini, starting the new line of Pierre Terblanche-designed machines. Horizontally stacked lights made way for vertically stacked units, dual rear exhausts were replaced by a chunky single-piece unit, and there was no single-sided swingarm.Bring A Trailer While all that stirred up a mini controversy, the design has aged brilliantly over the years. It is one of the sexiest bikes money can buy in the used market, promising to turn more heads than a new Panigale V4 R would. A lot of it has to do with the stellar nitty-gritty design elements, such as the fairings with integrated air scoops, air intakes besides the headlights, aerodynamic mirrors, and a racebike-like fully covered belly section. Ducati 1198 Power: 170 HP Ducati A long time before the ‘Panigale’ name came, Ducati used to call its superbikes by their engine displacement. The 1198 was the flagship in the late 2000s, and it looked every bit like one. It was an uber-clean design, which remained edgy in the right places. One of the highlights was the set of under-seat exhausts–something we never got to see on Ducati superbikes after the 1198 series. Another rarity by today's standards is the single-sided swingarm.Ducati As beautiful as the 1198 was, the S took things to a different level. Much of it was down to the extra carbon fiber touches, MotoGP-style golden wheels, and blingy Ohlins suspension. The chassis had a contrast finish to round things off. We’d take this design over the latest Panigale V4 any day of the week. Yamaha YZF-R1 Power: 180 HP Yamaha The YZF-R1 has always been one of the sexier superbikes from Japan. The 2004-2008 model was a prime example, but the 2009 version was arguably sexier. It replaced the multi-element lights with dual projector lamps, while also adding more prominent triangular exhausts at the rear. The cockpit was sexier as well.Yamaha All this while, the ‘09 R1 marked a big step in Yamaha’s superbike journey. That was because this featured a MotoGP-derived crossplane crankshaft, which gave the bike a stonking power delivery and a V4-like angry exhaust note. Since then, Team Blue has stuck with this tech on its R1. MV Agusta F4 RR 312 Power: ~190 HP Bring A TrailerMV Agusta has always set a design standard in any of the segments it has entered, and all of that somewhat started with the F4. The F4 RR 312, in particular, was one of the sexiest editions. Credit went to its brilliant triple-tone livery, blacked-out front forks (in a time when Ohlins were the ‘gold’ standard), and multi-spoke Marchesini wheels. The iconic quad exhaust undertail setup rounded things off.While the design certainly turned heads, the performance elevated the package. You see, the F4 RR featured a 1,078cc inline-four engine with around 190 horsepower. That enabled a top speed of 312 kph (193 mph), which made the F4 the world’s fastest motorcycle on debut. Kawasaki Ninja ZX-12R Power: ~190 HP Kawasaki The ZX-12R is from the era of the Japanese speed wars. It was built to beat the Hayabusa in nearly every way, and design was one of those. As a result, the ZX-12R broke the silky smooth aerodynamic design language norm with its more radical superbike-style approach.Kawasaki It was edgy from head to toe, complete with stylish elements like a dedicated air intake under the headlight and a four-into-one exhaust. You also had small wings on the fairings–yes, in the early 2000s. Punchy colors like shiny green, blue, and red upped the ante further. Park it alongside a new ZX-10R, and we feel the 12R will still turn more heads. BMW S 1000 RR Power: 193 HP BMW What you’re looking at is the first-generation S 1000 RR. It kick-started BMW’s superbike story, and it did so in full style. Asymmetrical headlights, razor-sharp fairings, and an uber-sleek tail section all made this a beautiful machine. BMW also threw in shark-inspired gill-type vents on the fairing to improve heat dissipation.BMW After all these years, the design still looks brilliant by superbike standards. This remains a pure aerodynamic masterpiece with brilliant attention to detail and no protruding wings to ruin things. The color options were quite bold for the time, too—particularly the red and white (a subtle attack at Team Red?). Yamaha V-Max Power: 197 HP Yamaha Motorsports What happens when you give Yamaha engineers a freehand to build a bonkers cruiser bike? Well, you get the V-Max that remains unbeaten in terms of design or performance decades after its debut. While the first-gen was good, the final model took things to the next level. The design was ahead of its time, thanks to elements like quad air tanks on the tank, quad exhausts, a shaft drive that put the rear wheel on display, and a distinct black-silver livery. The tail was amplified by the 200-section rear tire.Yamaha Contributing to the overall oomph was the V4 powerhouse. Not only did it look serious in the center of the machine, but it also had serious performance (197 horsepower). In fact, the output was higher than Yamaha’s flagship WSBK-inspired YZF-R1 superbike. Ever more surprisingly, even the latest R1 has a similar output.Source: Various Manufacturers