The seller of this little scoot built a homemade sidecar for his wife’s dog, who apparently loved to ride in it. It was ridden every summer for the last eight years but now the rig needs a new owner.
Well-Preserved Survivor – 1984 Honda XL350R
Cycle World said the XL350R was 1985’s best Dual Purpose bike, and Cycle named it one of their top 10 motorcycles of the year, saying it “may be the best-balanced dual-purpose bike ever.” Here’s a lovely example that just happens to be number 52 off the production line in 1984.
320 Miles – 2007 Honda Interceptor 25th Anniversary
The trouble with collectable vehicles is that one never knows for certain which vehicles will actually end up being collectable. Some are more obvious candidates simply by nature of low production numbers or astronomical price (or both) but it’s often a crap shoot with more pedestrian cars and bikes. Honda’s Anniversary Edition VFR800 is a perfect example.
1967 Yamaha YR-1 Grand Prix
Here’s a first year example of the Yamaha Grand Prix, also known as the YR-1. It was the biggest bike in their line up, and Yamaha’s first 350cc production engine. Despite the relative diminutive size, this bike was highly competitive with British 650s. Thanks to a chassis and engine that was suitable from road racing from the factory, it was …
RC45 – 1994 Honda RVF750R
Post Listing Update: This Honda was pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown. Built so Honda could meet WSBK homologation rules, the RC45 was a competitive racer – it won the Daytona 200 in 1996, the WSBK championship in 1997, and the AMA Superbike Championship in 1998. Yet in the history of Honda’s race bikes for the street, it …
1975 Suzuki RL250 Exacta
Post Sale Update: This RL250 sold for $2,605 after 24 bids on eBay. Suzuki introduced the Exacta (aka the RL250) in 1974, and nowadays it’s considered a solid vintage trials bike (though there were some issues with frames breaking above the swingarm pivot). They were only imported in the US for 1974-1975, and the main difference was an aluminum tank …
Jay LaRossa’s Own Ride – 1970 Honda CL450
Post Listing Update: This CL “sold” for $7,100 after 31 bids on eBay but the sale did not go through. It’s not often we ordinary mortals get a shot to buy a famous builders personal ride, and it’s even less common that it’s an unusual custom. Jay LaRossa built this bike for himself as therapy from his second bout with …
1989 Suzuki GSX-R 750 Slingshot
Post Sale Update: This Gixxer sold for $7,600 after 22 bids on eBay. In 1988, Suzuki released the 2nd generation of their legendary 750 Gixxer. It was dubbed the “Slingshot” due to the slingshot carbs. A year later, Suzuki made some minor revisions, yielding the bike you see here. The seller says it’s a former JDM model but the gauges …
1979 Kawasaki Z1300
Post Listing Update: This Z1300 did not meet reserve with just one bid up to $5,000. The ‘fuel crisis’ of 1973 put an end to the rapidly developing horsepower wars from motorcycle manufacturers. Everybody went to lighter, more efficient bikes that got better gas mileage with less emissions. It was the beginning of the end for the two stroke road …
Finish a Restoration – 1966 Yamaha YL1 Twin Jet
Post Sale Update: After 9 bids on eBay, this YL1 sold for $1,026. Yamaha was certainly a player in the two stroke motorcycle market of the 1960s. Their two stroke twins began with the YD1, a 250CC parallel twin manufactured in 1957. By 1966 the Yamaha twins were ‘tried and true’. The little two stroke twins were quick, handled well …
No Reserve – 1997 Yamaha Royal Star Palomino
In 1996, Yamaha took the V-Four motor from their Venture Royale tourer and built a cruiser with it. It was the first of what has become Yamaha’s Star cruiser line, and it stood out from the competition in a few ways. Most notably was the engine – it looks like a V-Twin but it packs four cylinders with DOHC. It …
1975 Kawasaki KX250
The Kawasaki KX250 still exists today, though the actual model name is the KX250F because it’s now a four-stroke. But from 1974-2007, the KX250 was a successful two-stroke MX bike that won several AMA Championships over time – especially with Jeff Emig and Ricky Carmichael in recent years. This is claimed to be a fully restored example from very early …
1980 Kawasaki KZ1000 A4 MkII
Post Listing Update: This Kawi was pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown. An evolution of the KAZ900, the KZ1000 was the fastest production bike when it was released in 1976 (as a ’77 model) thanks to its 83 horsepower, 1,015cc inline four motor. The bike might be most famous for the police variant, which gained popularity on the …
Bellaria in Italy – 1991 Bimota YB9
The YB9 was Bimota’s first two-seater. Offered in three generations, just 145 of the Bellarias were built between 1990 and 1993. Here’s number 112.
2 Owners – 1983 Suzuki GS750ES
In 1976, Suzuki debuted their first four stroke machine in over 20 years, the GS750. An “E” model debuted in 1980 with 16 valves and Suzuki’s TSCC – Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber. The “E” bikes had a chin fairing while “ES” models got a half fairing. Here’s a clean 2-owner ES from the last generation of the model run.