11-30-2017 Update – 3 years later, commenter “Say what???” notes that this bike is back up for sale with a significant discount down to $8,500 from $15,000. If that price makes more sense to you, find this GS650 for sale here on Cycle Trader, still in Midlothian, Virginia. Here’s an interesting footnote in Yamaha’s history – the question is if …
Quail Gathering Winner – Restored 1976 Yamaha XT500
Restored by Owen Bishop of Moto41 Restorations, this is one of the nicest XT500s I’ve ever seen. I first saw it in person at this year’s Quail Motorcycle Gathering where it won 1st Place in the Japanese category (beating out an awesome Honda CB750 Police Bike that I thought was more interesting), and it’s also won 1st Place at the …
Titled in the US – 1975 Harley-Davidson RR250
Aermacchi – formally known as Aeronautica Macchi – was founded in 1912 by Giulio Macchi and started out making monoplane aircraft and seaplanes for the Italian military. After the second World War, Aermacchi would start producing motorcycles, though it would continue to churn out dozens of different types of airplane models until as recently as 2005. The story of the …
Bonneville Record Breaker in the UK – 1957 Manx Norton JAP 1150cc Custom
When it was originally sold in July of 1957, this was a Norton Manx 30M. But the story gets much more interesting almost 5 decades later, when a racer named Eric Patterson swapped in a 1,150cc JAP Mk2 motor and took it to the Bonneville Salt Flats to set some speed records.
Little, Rare, and Italian – 1991 Gilera CX125
The Gilera CX125 is a really unique little avant-garde motorcycle. Obviously its unorthodox front wheel setup is its most predominant feature, but its space-age full bodywork definitely furthers the adventurousness of the design. The small-bore scoot was built by Gilera, an Italian motorcycle manufacturer founded more than a century ago that was eventually bought by the Piaggio Group. The Arcore-based …
2007 KTM 950 SM
Post Listing Update: This 950 SM was pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown. For many supermoto riders, the KTM 950 SM made no sense – how could a bike that weighs approximately 450 pounds be called a supermoto. But if you were willing to give this KTM a shot, you would be rewarded with one of the greatest …
Capelo’s Garage’s x Elemental Rides – 2017 Yamaha SR400 Custom
I’ll just come out and say it, this is the coolest one-off cafe racers I’ve ever seen. I love almost everything about this build. It’s bursting with noteworthy features – all of which are beautifully executed. This one-off factory-esque SR400 is an interesting combination of old and new, boasting features like LED lighting and upside-down forks as well as old-school …
1989 Honda GB500 Tourist Trophy
Post Listing Update: This GB got no interest at the opening ask of $3,000. Honda’s GB500 was an homage to classic British singles but there was a twist – it was reliable! The average American rider shopping for a Japanese bike at the time was more interested in the bigger supersport replicas, but the Tourist Trophy has become a cult …
ISDT Tribute – 1965 BSA B40 Enduro Star
Post Listing Update: Despite 48 bids up to $3,049, this BSA did not meet reserve. In the 1965 ISDT, BSA’s factory efforts with 350s and 441s had ground to a halt by day four thanks to the Prince of Darkness, Joseph Lucas. That’s obviously a bit of a stretch, but every works bike was knocked out due to electrical problems. …
Boutique Italian Enduro – 2000 VOR EN 400
VOR (or Vertemati Offroad Racing) is a high-end Italian motorcycle manufacturer specializing in – as the name suggests – enduros and offroad scoots. The small Milan-based company was founded by brothers Alvaro and Guido Vertemati, both of whom had prior experience working in the offroad segment, as well as serving as the Italian importers for Swedish manufacturer Husaberg in the …
1991 BMW K1
While this example of BMW’s famous K1 has a few miles on it (45k), it’s in one of the best paint schemes and it comes with the rare factory luggage. Think of it as the great-grandfather of the S1000RR, and an incredible styling experiment. Still, less than 7,000 models were sold, and it wasn’t a sales success.
Restored – 1972 Honda CT70H
Post Listing Update: This CT70H did not meet reserve despite 39 bids up to $3,950. For many CT70 enthusiasts, the “H” models were desirable as they came with 4-speed transmissions and a manual clutch. So this should be an interesting auction to follow as this specific example was recently restored and it’s just about like new.
Still New – 2007 Aprilia SXV450
On paper, Aprilia’s SXV450 was destined to be an all-time great in the world of production supermotos. 60 horsepower at the crank was about 10 more than other 450s were making at a time, and the twin cylinder layout rewarded riders who were willing to play near the 13,000 rpm redline. Unfortunately, it was Aprilia’s first attempt at building an …
1986 Honda Z50RD “Christmas Special”
Post Sale Update: After 22 bids on eBay, this little Honda sold for $4,850. Considered by some as the ultimate Honda Z50, the “Christmas Special” was a limited edition that officially had the model name of “Z50RD” – the D was for “Dealer”. Honda gave two examples to each of their top dealers, though some called it the “Chrome Edition” …
2015 Norton Commando 961 Cafe Racer
It’s been a few years since the new Norton Commando was made available in the US. Known as the 961, it was offered in 4 variants – the SF, Sport, Cafe Racer, and a limited production Special Edition. Here’s one of the first Cafe Racers that made it to the US with just 511 miles. The new bikes are sold …