The MZ Skorpion is a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

made from 1994 to 2004 by MZ (

MZ Motorrad- und Zweiradwerk Motorenwerke Zschopau GmbH (formerly MZ Motorrad- und Zweiradwerk GmbH) is a German motorcycle manufacturer located in Zschopau, Saxony. The acronym MZ since 1956 stands for ''Motorenwerke Zschopau'' GmbH (German for Zschopau engine factory). F ...

), in former East Germany. The Scorpion is powered by a

four-stroke A four-stroke (also four-cycle) engine is an internal combustion (IC) engine in which the piston completes four separate strokes while turning the crankshaft. A stroke refers to the full travel of the piston along the cylinder, in either directio ...

five-valve 660 cc

single-cylinder engine A single-cylinder engine, sometimes called a thumper, is a piston engine with one cylinder. This engine is often used for motorcycles, motor scooters, go-karts, all-terrain vehicles, radio-controlled vehicles, portable tools and garden machinery ...

with

liquid cooling Liquid cooling refers to cooling by means of the convection or circulation of a liquid. Examples of liquid cooling technologies include: * Cooling by convection or circulation of coolant, including water cooling * Liquid cooling and ventilatio ...

. ''Skorpions'' are lightweight motorcycles, noted for their precise handling and excellent braking, and they remain a popular mount for club racing. Its Yamaha-based engine can be reliably tuned to 150 percent of its original performance. At that stage, it can become competitive in ''

Supermono Supermono is a class in European motorcycle road racing. Supermono class machines have a single-cylinder engine A single-cylinder engine, sometimes called a thumper, is a piston engine with one cylinder. This engine is often used for motorcycl ...

'' as well as single- and twin-cylinder or even already

historic racing Historic motorsport or vintage motorsport, is motorsport with vehicles limited to a particular era. Only safety precautions are modernized in these hobbyist races. A historical event can be of various types of motorsport disciplines, from road ...

classes. The ''Skorpion Cup'' got its own racing series in several countries since 1996. Based in Germany, the low-budget one-make ' amateur racing series for un-, up to mildly tuned ''Skorpions'' celebrated its 25th jubilee in 2021. It dated 19 years after the end of the base model's production and 13 years after the factory's final closure. Presently, this makes the ''MZ-Cup'' the oldest and longest lasting one-brand and one-make cup for motorcycles worldwide. From 2022 on the ''MZ-Cup'' also opened up for off ranking guest participations of other selected single-cylinder bikes. In their review of the Skorpion, Motorcycle News opined: "The MZ Skorpion ... proved a refreshingly able antidote to Japanese fours in the mid-to-late 90s. Light, lithe, affordable, generally reliable and reassuringly practical."

Development history

The Skorpion was the result of an international collaboration, being conceived by British design firm Seymour Powell. The Skorpion's engine, electrics and switches came from the

Yamaha SZR660 Yamaha SZR660 is a sport bike with a single-cylinder engine, produced by Yamaha Motor Corporation from 1996 to 2001. It was built in Italy by the Italian Yamaha importer Belgarda. It shares its engine with Yamaha's XTZ660 Ténéré line of du ...

, with Italian Grimeca parts including brakes, forks and rear suspension. Its prototypes were fitted with a lightweight 500 cc Austrian Rotax engine. The lightweight tubular beam frame was unusual in using aircraft adhesives to save weight but production versions came with a much heavier welded frame. Skorpions were well-specified as standard, with adjustable bars and footpegs, alloy wheels, stainless steel silencer, rear hugger fender, and braided brake lines.

Model range

The "MuZ" Skorpion was launched in 1994 in two versions: * Skorpion Sport, a

café racer A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

with bikini fairing, clip-on 'bars and rear-set footrests; * Skorpion Tour, a

standard motorcycle The six main types of motorcycles are generally recognized as ''standard'', ''cruiser'', ''touring'', ''sports'', ''off-road'', and ''dual-purpose''. ''Sport touring'' is sometimes recognized as a seventh category or integrated with the ''touring' ...

. Both had provision for a pillion passenger, the Tour having a more comfortable dual seat. In 2001, the bikes were rebadged as "MZ", and a third model was added to the range: * Skorpion Traveller, a fully faired sport tourer with Hepco & Becker panniers. The Sport was discontinued in 2002, the other models finishing in 2004. There were two other specialist versions: * Skorpion Cup — essentially a Skorpion Sport stripped of road paraphernalia, but with a full fairing and a single seat. * Skorpion Replica — a rare and much more expensive version of the Cup, with a engine, upside down

forks In cutlery or kitchenware, a fork (from la, furca 'pitchfork') is a utensil, now usually made of metal, whose long handle terminates in a head that branches into several narrow and often slightly curved tines with which one can spear foods ei ...

, upgraded brakes, full fairing and special frame."Essential Superbike" data file 19 section 1 A version of the Replica, with a half-fairing, was also made.

Notes

{{Reflist, 30em Sport touring motorcycles Sport bikes Skorpion Motorcycles introduced in 1994