Suzuki’s RG500Γ “Gamma” didn’t actually use a detuned version of the racing RGB500’s engine, but at least shared that machine’s square four two-stroke configuration, so it looked and felt like it could have been developed from the real thing. The specifications were certainly unlike anything else on the road: twin cranks, disc valves, four cylinders…
Suzuki’s RG500Γ “Gamma” is a modern classic, a bike from the tail end of the two-stroke sportbike era, at least here in the USA where lightweight, smoky strokers were gone by the mid-80s. At the time, it offered significant on-paper advantages over something like a GSX-R750: it was lighter and the 498cc engine made similar…
This time of year, really interesting sportbikes can be a little thin on the ground, so our online searches naturally take us farther afield. In this case, all the way to Japan for a 1983 Suzuki RGB500 that was the Grand Prix racing inspiration for the two-stroke RG500Γ. This Mk8 version was highly-developed, although the…
Update 10.27.2017: SOLD! Congratulations to buyer and seller! -dc Like Ducati’s MotoGP inspired Desmosedici, the square four in the Suzuki RG500Γ “Gamma” in today’s Featured Listing wasn’t actually a detuned version of the race bike’s engine. Race bikes engines are built for power, not longevity, and simply “de-tuning” is probably not going be enough to…
Update 8.24.2017: Dean has notified us that this bike is sold. Congratulations to buyer and seller! -dc Update 8.18.2017: Price dropped $10k to $35,000 or BEST OFFER. -dc Update 7.31.2017: Dean has contacted us to upgrade this post to a Featured Listing. Dean mentioned that he’s working to help a deceased friend’s family, and that…
For a very brief period in the mid-1980s the Grand Prix racing fans were able to sample two machines of singular purpose: Yamaha’s V4 RD500LC/RZ500 and Suzuki’s wild, square-four powered RG500Γ “Gamma.” Each was intended to showcase the style, performance, and feel of a two-stroke GP motorcycle in a road-legal package, although they went about…
With prices of Suzuki’s RG500Γ “Gamma” through the roof right now, fans of 80s two-stroke exotica have had to look elsewhere for their smoky thrills, and today’s Featured Listing RG400Γ might be just the ticket for collectors seeking two-stroke performance on a less extravagant budget. Certainly, values of the Japanese-market RG400Γ have been below those of…
Update 2.17.2017: Last posted in August of last year, this bike reached $34,101 reserve not met. Back on eBay and closes on Sunday. Links updated. -dc Prior to the RG500, two-strokes were found only in the smaller racing classes, and Suzuki was breaking new ground with this bike: no one had ever really built a…