1985 Yamaha RD500 YPVS *Sold £20,000*

MAKEYamaha
MODELRD500 YPVS
REGISTRATIONC725 HFM
ENGINE SIZE492
TRANSMISSIONManual
MILEAGE14,000
CURRENT V5
COLOURRed & White

1985 Yamaha RD500 YPVS *Sold £20,000*

In stock

  • One previous owner
  • Less than 15,000 warranted miles
  • Extensive history file including original bill of sale
  • Probably the best example currently available
  • Ground breaking design
  • Looking for an RD500? – we’ve one for sale HERE
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Description

  • One previous owner
  • Less than 15,000 warranted miles
  • Extensive history file including original bill of sale
  • Probably the best example currently available
  • Ground breaking design

In a world of Superbike racing we’ve all become used to the idea of running a road bike that’s based heavily on the racers we watch on TV. And in the last 35 years we’ve seen a handful of ultra-expensive road legal Moto GP replicas from Ducati and Honda. But back in the early 1980s Yamaha stunned motorcycling by announcing what looked very much like a road legal version of their then-new V4 GP racer for a price that pretty much any 25-year-old rider with a full-time job could afford.

Yamaha already had the lightweight two-stroke market sewn up with their LC range. The introduction of the second generation YPVS models in 1983 had cemented their dominance.

Launching the V4-engined Yamaha RD500 just six months after Kenny Roberts and Eddie Lawson debuted the race bike was a master stroke for the company. Demand for the new bike was massive with all stock sold well in advance and some customers re-selling their place in the queue at well above RRP before they’d even arrived.

Our vendor is an avid collector and knows his bikes, reluctantly it has now come to be that time where his collection needs to be reduced and so this phenomenal example of the spectacular RD500 comes to market for some lucky bidder.

Coming to market with one previous owner on the V5, this UK example has a warranted 14,000 miles on the clock.  The Owners Manual and service book which has the important first and second stamps is in place along with approximately ten previous MOTs. In fact our vendor will supply the new owner with a brand new one at the end of this auction.

The Bike

Our vendor is rightly proud of the quality of this wonderful machine, it would be easy to type a thousand words but you will see from the images that this really is at the top of its game aesthetically.  Virtually everything on the bike is in perfect condition, the famous quadruple exhausts, two under the seat and two in the more common position along each side of the bike are immaculate, you could eat your dinner off the engine it is so clean. The front end looks spotless and the rear swingarm is just as impressive.  We certainly have not seen one this impressive in many years and as you know we are massive bike fans and go to more car and bike shows than you can count.

The tank is perfect and the rear side panels are gorgeous with the famous YPVS RD500 stickers looking brand new, moving on to the fairings is where you will find the only obvious issues.  Although very minor, the vendor knows they are there and if he were to keep the bike he would have them rectified, we would possibly live with them but hey ho.

There is a very small crack, the vendor believes it to only be in the paint, not the plastic itself, on the left of the top fairing where it meets the left centre fairing and the right hand side of the fairing has had a blow in on the white section where it meets the right hand centre fairing.  Unfortunately in certain lights you can notice how the lacquer has aged and has ever so slightly yellowed.  Our vendor made sure that he took the image so it shows as it is genuinely, along with the crack the only areas that are not perfect, either way neither detracts from how stunning this bike is.

Considering most of these bikes spent their lives getting “ragged” about you will be pleasantly surprised on how spotless this fantastic example is.

The Engine (Wow, that engine…)

The technology that went into developing this bike was extremely interesting and pretty much re-wrote the rules on engine design. The RD’s V4 motor had some clever thinking and was essentially a pair of 250cc twin-cylinder engines, each with its own crankshaft, linked by a central mainshaft.  Yamaha’s YPVS Power Valve system added low-rev driveability as did the use of reed valve induction.

The attention to detail in getting the engine’s weight down while giving both power and flexibility was phenomenal. From the mating of cylinder to crankcase surfaces to the varying thickness of the casings to the cylinder castings and much, much more, there was much development of previous RD technology in the engine, all of it designed to increase port areas and gas flow while reducing weight.

All of that technology led to a breathless ride, the Yamaha Power Valve System was what everybody talked about, they still do. Who doesn’t lust after that two stoke surge of power that kicks in when the power valves open, ahhh we can smell that two stroke now, and feel our eyes pushing into our brain as that sudden surge of power exhilarates every fibre of your being.  A truly remarkable engine in a truly ground breaking bike that has stood the test of time like now other.

The Wheels Tyres Suspension and other

With modern Bridgestone tyres fitted to the original, and as with the rest of the bike, immaculate wheels and with the rear suspension, forks and every bush working perfectly the ride is just like it was when it left the factory. It even has a new battery.

Our vendor has ridden the bike to local meets and shows quite recently and tells us that it is always the most crowded bike at the meet, like we mentioned previously we go to a lot of shows and know how popular these bikes are so have no reason whatsoever to dispute that, especially when this one could win bike of the show nine out of ten times should it be entered.

The only downside with such a stunning example of such a ground breaking iconic bike is that it takes too long to get anywhere on such a fast bike.  You guessed it, everyone either wants a photo with the bike or wants to talk about it, and why not we say, these are getting to be rare beasts so you can’t blame them.

Our view 

For those with or starting a motorcycle collection the Yamaha RD500 is very likely to be the first on your list, at the very least they really do have to be in your top five of bikes as they are genuinely a ground breaking iconic bike that pretty much started the race replica movement.

Personally, if we bought it we would struggle not to ride it such is the exhilaration that is delivered as the power band opens but also accept that this example may be classed as “too good” to ride, that’ll be for the winning bidder to decide, either way how can you not envy that choice….

We genuinely believe that you are going to be very hard pushed to find a better example with such low mileage, such a great document pack and so fastidiously maintained.  We fully expect this to have a lot of action so feel free, do your research and then come back and buy the best Yamaha RD500 on the market, yes we accept that may be a very big claim but hey, this example really is at the top of its game.

This one sold but if you’re looking for an RD500 – we’ve one for sale here

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