Bolt Motor Co. builds a 500cc weapon… The Yamaha RD350 is one of the most iconic sporting motorcycles ever produced. The original air-cooled 350cc two-stroke parallel-twin was produced from 1973-1975, and the RD quickly became […]
Tag: Yamaha RD350 YPVS
40th Anniversary Edition: 2023 Yamaha RZ350!
What if Yamaha and Bimota teamed up to build a 40th anniversary RZ350? That’s the question San Francisco-based engineer and road racer Julian Farnam asked himself. Of course, that would entail combining the legendary liquid-cooled, […]
Hooligan’s Dream: Yamaha “RD375LC” Street Tracker
FLATTY: Vic Shield’s 375cc Two-Stroke Street Tracker… By the late 70s, Yamaha’s air-cooled RD250/400 two-stroke street bikes were due for an update. In order to galvanize the supersport class, Yamaha decided to go all-out, creating […]
The Mutant: 421cc Two-Stroke Skorpion!
Vic Shield’s RZ421-Powered MZ Skorpion! In 1994, former East German motorcycle maker MuZ — aka MZ — introduced the Skorpion, a single-cylinder sport bike with a race-style chassis and 660cc Yamaha engine. This crossbred machine […]
Gulf Special: Yamaha RD350 YPVS F2 Café Racer
Bolt Motor Co. builds a stunning two-stroker… At its unveiling in 1982, the Yamaha RD350 YPVS — known as the RZ350 in North America — was called “the nearest thing to a road going racer […]
The Cosmic Rider: Yamaha RD350 YPVS
For Sale: Blechmann’s Two-Stroke Stunner! Bernhard “Blechmann” Naumann is one of Europe’s most highly regarded builders, known especially for his metal-shaping skills. Hence his nickname, “Blechmann” — The Tin Man. Bernhard grew up in a […]
Blue Smoke: Yamaha RD350LC Hybrid
Andy Underhill’s resto-modded RD350, boasting YPVS power… Introduced in 1980, the Yamaha RD350LC was the next evolution in two-stroke street performance. Though it succeeded the larger displacement air-cooled RD400, the LC — aka the “Elsie” […]
Orange Crush: Yamaha RD350LC Hybrid
Dusty Miller builds an electric orange giant-killer… The Yamaha RD350LC was the first liquid-cooled evolution of the RD series, which appeared in 1980 to succeed the air-cooled RD400. It had the same bore and stroke […]
Two-Stroke Hybritza: Yamaha 350 YPVS Cafe Racer
A project dream for 30+ years! At the Cologne Motorcycle Show in late 1982, Yamaha unveiled their new RD350 YPVS, featuring the breakthrough Yamaha Power Valve System, which utilized a servo motor to change the […]
