| 1982–2010 Hesketh V1000 & V1200 |
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| Performance |   |
|---|
| The Westlake-developed V1000 was powerful enough, but nothing remarkable; nothing like the British world-beater it was supposed to be. Additionally, it made an unholy clatter when running and had terrible gearbox problems. |
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| Handling | |
|---|
| Nothing special in 1982, antiquated today. Broom Engineering has updated the chassis lately, but it's still cumbersome and top-heavy. |
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| Looks | |
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| A mixture of crudeness and divine elegance: it looks like it was cobbled together in a old laundry shed...on the estate of an enormously wealthy man. This is because — not coincidentally — it actually was. (Lord Hesketh wasn't nearly so wealthy after attempting to build a production motorcycle from scratch.) |
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| Reliability | |
|---|
| Heskeths fall somewhere on a sliding scale: 3.5 points for a new 1200cc model from Broome Engineering, 2 points for a well cared for used one that's been fairly well sorted-out, down to half a point for them as they were originally built at the Easton Neston Estate. |
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| Practicality | |
|---|
| It's a horrifically expensive, hand-built roadster of which there are only a few hundred in the world (very likely no two identical), and it does nothing any better than any number of mass-produced bikes. |
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| Desirability |  |
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| It has a remarkable backstory and intriguing looks, but in terms of functionally as a rider, it falls flat. |
