A halo motorcycle for any Yamaha fan or collector, and a sure show-stopper at any vintage Japanese bike show, this beautiful, partially restored 1985 Yamaha RZ350 can be found here on Facebook Marketplace in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The seller is asking $13,500, and it isn’t perfect, but it sure looks great overall. Here is the original listing, and thanks to NW Iowa Kevin for the tip!
Kenny Roberts is still around, thankfully, at 74 years of age, and he retired from an incredibly successful 13-year motorcycle racing career in 1983. He jumped right into being a team owner the following year, and his ride of choice had been Yamaha for years, after first racing a Tohatsu and then a Hodaka in his teens. Dropping out of high school, he placed fourth in his first official race a day after his 18th birthday, and the race was on, so to speak. For Yamaha fans and motorcycle racing fans, in general, his name ranks pretty high on the list.
While never having officially raced a Yamaha RZ350, the company created this model to pay homage to him, and his signature adorned the cafe-racer fairing. This example looks like an absolute jewel, but there is one area with a couple of visual cosmetic glitches. The seller says the paint is original, and that’s amazing that these are about the only flaws in this one that I can see. Some road rash of some sort, and part of the black and white decal is missing.
Yamaha offered customers this special model from 1983 through 1985/86 (some sources say 1984 and 1985 only), at least for U.S. customers. The RZ350 was made until the late 1990s for other markets, but went away here due to emissions regulations for two-strokes in the mid 1980s. The RZ350 is reported to be the last two-stroke motorcycle sold in the United States. This example has just 9,162 miles. Hagerty gives a #3 good-condition value of $9,400 and a #2 excellent value of $14,900. For such a nice refurbished example, the seller’s asking price is in line with many others that have been sold in the last few years.
The engine is Yamaha’s 347-cc liquid-cooled two-stroke twin-cylinder with Yamaha’s Autolube oil injection. Backed by a 6-speed manual, it put out somewhere between 50 and 60 horsepower. The seller’s list of work done on this one is extensive, so please check out the listing to read everything that’s been done. They’ve also included a video showing it starting on the first kick. Have any of you owned or ridden an RZ350?
Here we go… love these bikes…Had some seat time on an RZ350… didn’t expect much considering the size… boy was I wrong. Absolutely love Kenny Roberts and those yellow Yamahas. Scotty check out this awesome video if you haven’t seen it…celebrating Kenny’s success on that wicked 750 2-smoke flat tracker.. many years later. 😎 🏁
https://youtu.be/8cS3ou7AOzM?si=rYGmgg5Pm9hHHKKs
Good stuff, Stan. Saw him at Laguna Seca-an amazing artist, challenged there on different occasions by the likes of Wayne Rainey, Freddie Spencer, John Kocinski, Eddie Lawson, Randy Mamola, and Dave Aldana. Never forget the wheelie festival between he and Mamola in 1985.
Yes, Scotty. A friend bought one of these in yellow and his boss thought it cool so he bought a white/red one. Rode my friends bike and like Stan it was a shocker; it was unexpectedly so fast and flickable it’d slap you if you didn’t stay on your game!
Love these.
Is it in your garage yet, NW Iowa Ken??
Nevada… Roberts is just too cool 😎. He hadn’t ridden a bike all year he said prior to that ride back on the 750. Lol. what a master, true legend 👏 🏆 🏁
What has not already been said about Kenny Roberts quite possibly the best rider ever. And regarding the RZ350, the absolute pinnacle of 2 stroke development. I own a 76RD400 and while not as powerful as the RZ, it reminds us of just how good these bikes are. First kick starts are the norm. Brakes are way more powerful than the weight and power requires. Self cancelling turn signals, a first in 76. These can be ridden for miles at 80+ without issues. My 77 RD ran 1440 troubles free miles in a 24 hour race at Palm beach. Nothing feels, sounds or smells like these. Wish I could afford this nice example!
The bike originally had a dual cat set-up and air injection system(not to mention a different YPVS control box that opened the valve at a different rate from the Canadian and Europian spce RZ’s) and now has a set of expansion pipes: is it legal to ride outside of the track in the US?