Yamaha’s two-stroke Grand Prix replica went by a few different names, depending on where it was sold: RD500LC in Europe, RZV500R for the Japanese market, and RZ500 in Canada and Australia. You’ll note that nowhere do we mention which version we got here in the USA. The reason? We didn’t: this wild, two-stroke four-cylinder was…
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…
Sometimes, the very final version of a car or motorcycle is a pale shadow of the original, as the years inevitably add pounds and dilute the purity of what made the original example so desirable. But the Honda NSR250R went out with a bang instead of a whimper, at the top of its game, and…
Many of the most iconic race replicas are rolling billboards for tobacco products: Marlboro, John Player, Gauloises, Lucky Strike. Of course, that’s no longer the case, with tobacco manufacturers largely banned from advertising on race bikes and cars, but it’s hard to deny that those designs are memorable. But what if you’re a racing fan,…
The 1980s were a very exciting time in the motorcycling world, especially for fans of Japanese bikes, and a huge variety of machines were available in a dizzying array of configurations: two-strokes and four-strokes, singles, twins, triples, fours, and even six-cylinder engines. And it wasn’t just engines that saw the application of innovative new technologies:…
During the 1980s and early 1990s, the Japanese manufacturers engaged in heated competition in the quarter-liter class, creating some of the most exciting small-displacement motorcycles of all time. They were lightweight, highly-developed, and looked great. Unfortunately here in the USA, we didn’t really get to experience them at the time, as ever-tightening emissions regulations effectively…
eBay has been awash this summer in rare and exciting two-and four-stroke quater-liter bikes from Japan, a testament to the collector market for these bikes, which are neither common nor terribly easy to import. This 1990 Suzuki RGV250SP is at least the third of its kind we have posted this summer, and it is offered…
The days might still be hot here on the East Coast, but they’re steadily getting shorter, and the evenings have the familiar cool snap. Summer is nigh over, but here at RSBFS we are just gearing up for one of the best seasons to get out on a sportbike and relish the crisp temperatures and…