Yamaha XS650 vs Kawaski KZ650

trianglelaguna wrote:

this was my first bike...it was a great bike and was way too much fun for a 17 yr old.....a guy rode by me while i was in my car today on this same paint and year ...i about shit......it was super clean and shiny....imo...this is a about as timeless japanese bike as they come....a kz 650 is just a small kz imo....not a true ZED

the xs has a true racing history too.....imho

I used to ride one identical to that one except it had a Windjammer fairing. It was my Moms boyfriends bike and when my two stroke would breakdown he would let me borrow it so I could get to my dishwashing job, I too was 17 years old at that time...

i should also add that i'm not really calling kz650's a p.o.s....it's just that imo these early xs650 were bullet proof torquey...twins that really put the feeling of that hard to express ,somthing special about a bike....i also had some smaller kz's for a period and can't fault em ....kz550 was a blast....but about half as fun as the yam650....
and today does not stir the emoitions to see one as much as a xs650 does

in my opinion the three best bikes that yamaha ever buit are the rd series ,the new yz 400 plus 4 strokes, and the xs 650. all fantastic bikes the v-max would be in there to if it didn't have shaft drive and wasn't such a heavy pig of a bike. other than that they are great. i have owned many rd's over the years had a lot of fun on all of them also owned many xs'esseves including my hardcore rightous bro chopper phase for about 5 years but unless the right one fall's in my lap i wont go out of my way to hunt one down the same can't be said for the z1's and kz's i would drive a 1000 miles to get one even a parts bike.

Yes the RD's were very nice but don't forget the RZ's.

Neighbor had one and wow nice!
A few Seca's were nice too.
Todays R series has a pretty wide rabid following too. Not my cup of tea but plenty of others.

Here is a cool one




tampa.craigslist.org/hil/mcy/1439079023.html

here's an example of one around my parts....been listing it for a year about....once in a while others turn up that are all jerked with and come with a it's a tracker...or it's got a remote headlight ect....not often stock and unmolested that i've seen......






1978 Yamaha XS650E - $2300 (Carmel Valley)

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Date: 2009-10-26, 12:23PM PDT
Reply to: sale-qvcpk-1438625728@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

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Very nice example. Almost completely stock with too many new parts to catalog here. New charging, wiring, and timing system.
Kick and electric start. Top end rebuilt 10K miles ago 45,xxx on bike. Paint and decals just redone.

Looks as good as the pics below, starts and runs flawlessly. Needs nothing major, only small stuff to get rid of rattles and smooth out ride.
Rides like an old Triumph, looks like one too, only without Lucas issues and more power. Looking to move on to a Vstrom 650.

Price Firm: This is the bottom, so if its too much, please let's not waste time.



Location: Carmel Valley
it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

XS650 any day. As somebody mentioned the only negative thing about an xs650 is the ignition, which can be replaced with Pamcopete's Ignition.

It was way back in 1971 I lusted after the XS650. I think it had a different model designation back then, but it was a nice cycle, then in 1975-76 they had that better styling like in the previous posted pictures. Later they went to the XS650 Special in 1977 or 78 styled ala the KZ900-1000LTD and it was ruined in the styling department and by then the KZ650 was out, so Yamaha had no redeeming qualities by then in the XS650 for me and I see no desire to own one now.

cootersandwich wrote: "XS650 any day. As somebody mentioned the only negative thing about an xs650 is the ignition.."

Sorry, but having ridden numerous XS650's when they were new and having owned a KZ650C1 since it was new I disagree. The Yammys were/are slow compared to the KZ and wobbled big time at speed (once you eventually got them up to speed). The KZ will blow them away every time in every way.

The XS650 weighs roughly the same as the KZ650; has 50HP vs. the KZ650's 64HP; has a top speed of 112 VS 119 for the KZ; and the KZ handles better.

Having owned a BSA twin with a full race motor I understand the fun of riding a twin. I agree, they are fun. But, they don't stand up in an objective comparision with a 4 cylinder bike and they aren't so much fun on a long ride.

Don't take my word for it; take a look at a couple of road tests written at the time:

KZ650

Yammy