Teleportation awaits… In the early ’90s, Yamaha needed a big-bore muscle bike to compete with the likes of the Honda CB1000 and Suzuki Bandit. Thus the mighty XJR series was born — a ’70s-inspired, big-block […]
Tag: Yamaha
Handbuilt in Texas: Jackson 5AM V2.0
“We don’t build custom Yamahas, Hondas, etc. We build Jacksons.” The XV750 Virago, launched in 1981, was Yamaha’s first entry into the V-twin cruiser arena. It was a slightly funky machine, with an air-cooled 75° […]
Yamaha “SR534” Cafe Racer by Yuya Ueda
“Mechanical vibes like an old piston engine fighter…” Few motorcycles have garnered the cult following of the air-cooled, single-cylinder Yamaha SR series. Part of the appeal must be the straightforward, no-frills nature of the SR’s […]
“Dusty Classic” Yamaha SR500 by Le Motographe
The Yamaha 500 singles are some of our favorite air-cooled thumpers ever built. The street-oriented SR500, introduced in 1978, was available in the US until 1981 and Europe until 1983, though it remained available in […]
“Fat Boy” Yamaha TW125 Scrambler by Candy MC
The Yamaha TW (Trailway) series, with their fat tires and four-stroke engines, have been called “two-wheel quads” or “beach bikes.” In 1987, famed Japanese motorcyclist Shinji Kazama rode a TW200 to the North Pole, and […]
Yamaha “SR534” Cafe Fighter by Hilt’s Chopper’z
The Yamaha SR500, introduced in 1978, was an air-cooled, big-single street bike powered by a 32-hp version of the XT500 engine. In order to make the SR as easy to use as possible, the […]
“La Gypsy”: Yamaha XS400 by Kacerwagen
The Yamaha XS400 was built from 1976 to 1982, offering a 36-hp parallel twin engine and 6-speed gearbox, along with some nice features like an automatic petcock and self-canceling turn signals. The bike came in […]
Yamaha Virago 750 “GTS” by 074 Customs
When Yamaha engineers were designing the XV750 — aka the Virago 750 — they surely didn’t realize that this funky V-twin cruiser — Yamaha’s first! — would be resurrected as a cafe racer some forty […]
Yamaha XSR700 “Cafe Tracker” by Espiat
The Yamaha XSR700 was designed with the help of none other than Shinya Kimura of Chabott Engineering, one of the world’s most esteemed custom builders. Yamaha wished to build from the classic aesthetics of the […]
Track Racer: Yamaha RD350 by Moto Exotica
The Yamaha RD350 is one of our favorite two-stroke street bikes, a 39-horsepower parallel twin that featured Autolube oil injection and a similar frame to the Yamaha TZ350 racer. In most countries, the bike was […]
