Double-Engine XS650 Land Speed Racer from Japan’s Rocket Motorcycle…
There’s an old joke that the Yamaha XS650 is the best British twin ever (or never) built. It’s a tongue-in-cheek nod to the parallel-twin XS resembling the Triumphs, Nortons, and other British twins in structure and style, but a more modern, reliable, oil-tight design. It’s certainly one of the handsomest Japanese engines of the era, and we’ve seen street trackers, cafe racers, scramblers, bobbers, and choppers all built around this Brit-style twin.
A couple years ago, we featured a gorgeous XS650 street tracker from Yutaka Hoshi of Japan’s Rocket Motorcycle — a bike that was featured in one of the custom world’s longest-running and most prestigious shows, the annual Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show, aka the Mooneyes Show.
For years, Yutaka worked as a professional road racing mechanic:
“While running my own shop, I worked as a mechanic at the All Japan Championship and the Asian Championship. Recently, I’ve been participating in classic bike races with machines that I built myself. My shop also makes custom bikes, but I usually do repairs and vehicle inspections.”
At the 2023 Mooneyes Show, Yutaka’s XS650 street tracker earned the coveted “Gabe Griffin’s Pick” bestowed by the legendary garage builder, rock-n-roller, and author. At the 2025 event in December, Yutaka returned with another XS650-based build…and you can see why it lends a whole new meaning to the phrase double-take.
Yutaka decided to build this twin-engine land speed racer after a trip to the United States in 2024, where he visited with bike-building legend Shinya Kimura of Chabott Engineering, Kiyo from Kiyo’s Garage, Shige from Mooneyes, and attended the Born Free Motorcycle Show…among other adventures.
“On the America Tour last year, I toured famous custom bike builders and other custom bike builders’ shops in America. I was influenced like a young boy, and was driving to the Grand Canyon with a high spirits, and said, ‘I’ll do it!'”
He started with a pair of 1980 XS650 models. As you can imagine, nearly everything had to be custom-built, from the frame to the polished bodywork. Crazily enough, Yutaka completed this build in just six months!
While the language barrier made it difficult to get quite as much detail about this bike as we’d normally like, the photos and videos speak for themselves when it comes to the engineering and fabrication that went into the project. We’ve got a full gallery of build photos below, and the videos attest to how utterly mean the two twins sound in tandem.
The nickname “Double Double” comes from famed burger of the same name at In-N-Out Burger, a favorite stop on Yutaka’s USA trip.
Yutaka plans to take the bike to Japan’s JD-Ster Motorcycle-Only Drag Races in May for a shakedown run. The event specializes in Zero-Yon (“Zero-Four” for 0-400 meter) drag racing — basically a quarter mile. There 12 competitive classes hosting everything from modified V-Maxes and Ninja H2R’s to classic Zeds.
We’re surprised the bike didn’t win any awards at the Mooneyes Show, but possibly the judges didn’t quite understand the mind-numbing cool of a twin-engine, aluminum-clad drag bike / land speed racer among the more style-oriented bobbers, choppers, etc.
But such prizes are subjective, while the salt is not. In the future, Yutaka hopes to bring the “Double Double” to the USA for the land speed trials at El Mirage dry lake and/or the Bonneville Salt Flats. He says he won’t sell the bike until it’s been to one or the other of these legendary land-speed racing destinations.
We’re grateful to Yutaka for sharing the “Double Double” with us, and we look forward to seeing how the bike performs at the dragstrip and beyond.
Below you’ll find more photos of the finished build, a start-up video, and a gallery that traces the build process from two lone engines into the machine you see here.
Double XS650 Land Speed Bike: Builder Interview
• Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop.
I come from a road racing mechanic background. While running my own shop, I worked as a mechanic at the All Japan Championship and the Asian Championship.
Recently, I’ve been participating in classic bike races using vehicles that I built myself. My shop also makes custom bikes, but I usually do repairs and vehicle inspections.
• What’s the make, model, and year of the donor bike?
Yamaha 1980 XS650 x 2.
• Why was this bike built?
Company promotion and race entry.
What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
Land speed racer. Bonneville and El Mirage.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
Equipped with two engines and making a frame to load them. And the creation of a drag racer style.
• Does the bike have a nickname?
“Double Double.”
• Any idea of horsepower, weight, and/or performance numbers?
I haven’t measured it yet.
• Can you tell us what it’s like to ride this bike?
I haven’t raced it yet. I plan to participate in the race in May.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
It’s low and compact.
• Is there anyone you’d like to thank?
I decided to make it when I went to the United States, so I would like to thank my friends who went with me at that time.
Build Process Gallery
A selection of photos from the Rocket MC workshop of the build process.
Follow the Builder
- Website: www.rocket-mc.com
- Instagram: @rocketmotorcycle
- Facebook: @rocketmc
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