Built in the style of the British twins of yesteryear, the Yamaha XS650 makes a great cafe racer platform. For the pro and semi-pro builder, the design and lines lend themselves to such builds. For the hobbyist, a vast aftermarket awaits.
Back from the Dead: Yamaha TX650 Cafe Racer - RAAF Veteran's 1974 Yamaha 650... In 1973 and '74, Yamaha renamed the XS650 the "TX650" in order to maintain a uniform designation for their four-stroke models, as they'd just introduced a new flagship model,… ...read more
Ill-Fated Kustom: Yamaha XS650 Café Racer - Yamaha XS650 from Calgary's Ill-Fated Kustoms... There are those dark moments in life when misfortune strikes and fate seems against us, fixed and irreversible. But such moments, if we're open to them, can also be… ...read more
Cosmic Café: Yamaha XS650 Café Racer - Space-Gray Café from MacVittie Motorcycles... Over the years, the Yamaha XS650 has earned a tongue-in-cheek nickname as "The Best British Bike Never Built." Introduced in 1969, this Japanese parallel-twin owed much to the style and… ...read more
The Dark Horse: Yamaha XS650 Custom - Yasashii Garage's Yamaha XS650 Custom Roadster... According to the Merriam Webster definition, a dark horse is "a usually little known contender (such as a racehorse) that makes an unexpectedly good showing." You could make a… ...read more
Racer Reborn: Yamaha XS650 Café Racer - Purpose Built Moto builds a 700cc vintage twin café... Tom Gilroy of Australia's Purpose Built Moto has climbed into the elite echelons of the custom bike world over the past several years, and his Signature… ...read more
Yamaha XS650 Cafe Racer by Magnum Opus - The Yamaha XS650 is one of our favorite bikes of all time. The 650cc parallel twin, recalling the British twins of old, is simply one of the handsomest motors of the era, and sounds terrific… ...read more
Yamaha XS650 Scrambler by Ironwood Motorcycles - We've always been big fans of the Yamaha XS650. It's simple, well-built, has good grunt and sound, and it just lends itself to customization, whether it be bobber, tracker, cafe racer, hard-tail, or scrambler. On… ...read more
Faves: The Minimalist XS650 By Auto Fabrica - The Type 6 By Auto Fabrica: Minimalist Beauty The Japanese aesthetic design theory Kanso embodies simplicity within the Wabi-Sabi approach--not only to material, but life itself. The basic belief is that... ''Virtue and civility can… ...read more
