We’ve loved watching the rise in popularity of restomod builds in recent years. Generally, restomods are considered to be vintage bikes that remain relatively true to their original aesthetics and silhouette, but have been brought into the 21st century with upgraded suspension, brakes, wheels, tires, and engine management / performance.
A few years ago, we mainly saw this kind of customization applied to vintage superbikes, such as the builds of AC Sanctuary and dB Customs, but we’re happy to see more builders giving the same treatment to vintage dirt bikes, dual sports, and roadsters.
Here is our list of the Top 10 Restomods we featured in 2022, based on traffic and engagement, listed in alphabetical order by builder.
• AC Sanctuary: Kawasaki Z1-R
• Atlanta Motorcycle Works: Kawasaki GPz1100
• Bald Anthony: Yamaha RZ350
• Bandisca: Yamaha XS650
• Kevin Borough: Honda CB750
• ForPlay Racing: Yamaha RD350
• Loko Dream Factory: Honda XR600R
• Steel Bakery: Honda CB750
• Roy Welton: Kawasaki Z1000
• Workshop43: Yamaha XT500
BikeBound’s Latest Restomods…
Mark II Missile: Kawasaki KZ1000 MKII Restomod - AC Sanctuary’s MKII Missile… In 1979, Kawasaki introduced the KZ1000 MKII, which offered new angular styling and a slight power boost out of the 1015cc DOHC inline four engine, now making 93 bhp. The crank […]
Yamaha SR400 “Café Scrambler” - In 2021, Yamaha ended the incredible 43-year production run of the SR400 — a bike that’s remained remarkably unchanged through those four decades of production. Introduced to the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) back in 1978, […]
Déjà Vroom: Kawasaki “KZ1165” Restomod - RCM-554: 1165cc Zed from AC Sanctuary… The Kawasaki KZ900 was the direct successor of the mighty Z1. At the time of its introduction in 1972, the original 903cc Zed was the largest, most powerful four-cylinder […]
Top 10 Restomods of 2022 - We’ve loved watching the rise in popularity of restomod builds in recent years. Generally, restomods are considered to be vintage bikes that remain relatively true to their original aesthetics and silhouette, but have been brought […]
Ripsnorting Restomod: Suzuki RG500 Gamma - “The Dragon on an RG500 is the closest you can get heaven…” Introduced in 1985, the Suzuki RG500 Gamma was one of the most faithful two-stroke street-legal replica racers ever produced. It was derived directly […]
Resto-Monster: Honda CB1100F Restomod - 1123cc Honda Restomod from AC Sanctuary… In 1983, the Honda CB1100F arrived as the company’s king sport bike, designed to battle head-on with the 1100-class superbikes from Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha — bikes that were […]
Monster Zed: Kawasaki Z1-R Restomod - AC Sanctuary’s “Radical Construction Manufacture” Z1-R… In the world of high-powered Japanese restomods, one name has long stood apart: AC Sanctuary. Founder Hiroyuki Nakamura opened his shop in the 1990s. Since then, they’ve built a […]
Viva Vinduro! Yamaha DT400 Restomod - Purpose Built Moto builds a two-stroke ripper… The Yamaha DT400 is one of our favorite two-stroke enduros of the 1970s — a wolf in wolf’s clothing and a howling fury to ride. The factory bike […]
Retro Muscle: Kawasaki “GPz1136” Restomod - A Blood Red Big Block from Atlanta Motorcycle Works… In 1981, Kawasaki introduced the GPz1100, which would be the ultimate evolution of the mighty air-cooled Zed fours born from the legend itself, the Z1. Before […]
Gelände / Straße: BMW R80GS Restomod - Meccanica Serrao d’Aquino resto-mods a 90s adventure bike… The BMW R80GS is widely known as the grandfather of the modern adventure bike. At the time of its introduction, BMW Motorrad was at risk of going […]
Ultimate Two-Stroke: 421cc NSR-D Project! - 110-hp, 240-lb NSR-RD Hybrid… The Honda NSR250R remains one of the most legendary bikes of the 1990s, a street-legal two-stroke weapon built in the image of Honda’s 250cc Grand Prix racers. Along with the Suzuki […]
Original Superbike, Reborn: 1973 Honda CB750 - A Navy helicopter pilot restores his father’s CB… In 1969, Honda stunned the motoring world with the introduction of the CB750 Four, the “Original Superbike.” It’s tough to overstate how revolutionary Honda’s 750/4 was at […]
Modified RC03: Honda CB650 Café Racer - A Black Beauty from De Palma Cycles… Introduced in 1979, the Honda CB650 Four (RC03) would be the last of Honda’s air-cooled SOHC fours — an illustrious lineage that began with the 1969 CB750 and […]
Yellow Hornet: Yamaha RZ350 Hybrid / Restomod - For Sale: 1983 Hybrid RZ350… The Yamaha RZ350 was one of the last, most advanced two-stroke street bikes of all time, incorporating decades of two-stroke research and development. Known as the RD350 YPVS in the […]
Two-Stroke Giant-Killer: Yamaha RD443LC Hybrid - Mark Goulding builds one wicked “Elsie”… In 1980, the Yamaha RD250LC arrived, a liquid-cooled 247cc / 35-bhp two-stroke street machine destined to become one of motorcycling’s great hooligan machines. In the UK, the “Elsie” satisfied […]
