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 Yamaha - 750 XS
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Photo ou archives : F-M. Dumas
1118

Capacity : 750
Model : XS
Production : 1976 - 1979
Category : (R) Street Bike

Yamaha

XS 750-1976

Outstanding achievement, modest success

Already famed for its two-strokes, Yamaha had evely intention of continuing its growth cycle. The firm's ambition in the late Seventies was to challenge the giant Honda on its home ground, the big four-stroke multi.

A Difficult Task

It was a difficult task for Yamaha to implant a new image on the big four-stroke market - already dominated by Honda, followed by Kawasaki and Suzuki - without being tagged as a copycat. Yamaha chose, with varying degrees of success, to go for technical originality, calling on outside designers to develop the technologies in which the firm was not yet experienced.

An XS of Originality

Yamaha chose the prestigious Porsche to develop the twin-cylinder engine of the TX 750 and the shaft drive of the XS 750. Porsche was as good as its reputation; the XS was the sole motorcycle whose transmission incorporated a perfectly homokinetic tripode joint behind the gearbox rather than the normal cardan joint. Moreover, the Yamaha was also the only modern Japanese bike equipped with shaft final drive since Lilac had gone out of business in 1961. Another original feature of the XS 750 was its engine, whose three cylinders had firing intervals of 120 degrees. With balance virtually equal to that of a four-cylinder engine (but more costly to achieve at this time), this type of engine has the great advantage of being more narrow. But no matter how technically successful it was, it could not make headway against its fourcylinder rivals. XS750 is replaced by XS850 in 1980.

SPECIFICATIONS

Engine: 747cc (68x68.6mm) air-cooled threecylinder four-stroke; wet-sump lubrication

Power Rating: 64 hp @ 7500 rpm

Valves: twin overhead camshafts driven by chain; 2 valves/ cylinder

Fuel System: three 38mm carburetors

Transmission: 5-speed; shaft final drive

Suspension: telescopic fork (front); swinging fork with twin spring/dampers (rear)

Brakes: twin disk (front); disk (rear)

Wheels: alloy 19 inch (front); 18 inch (rear)

Weight: 496 lb

Maximum Speed: 115 mph

The XS 750 was, along with the Laverda 1000, one of tbe few three-cylinder four-strokes to go into series production.

 




Le fichier Moto Passion réalisé par François-Marie Dumas réunit près de deux mille photos accompagnées d'un historique très complet des machines présentées.
Il sera progressivement mis à jour ici et toute information complémentaire est la bienvenue sur info@moto-collection.org.

Cette documentation unique, qui constitue sans doute l'encyclopédie la plus exhaustive jamais écrite sur l'histoire de la moto, a été réalisée avec l'assistance de nombreux spécialistes dont principalement Didier Ganneau, Christophe Gaime, Mick Woollett, Jean Goyard, Bernard Salvat, Christian Rey, Yves Campion, Helmut Krackowizer, Michael Dregni, Michel Montange, etc. que je remercie ici.

Disponible sur demande :
- Les fiches originales sur papier
- Les photos et archives signées de mon nom en haute définition ou les documents originaux.
Me contacter sur info@moto-collection.org pour les conditions et droits d'utilisation.