What was Yamaha's Touring Bike before the FJR

[bvail]

The first Touring Yamaha, IMHO was the 1976/77 XS750D. Came naked, but many options available from Yamaha for bags, fairing, lowers, touring seat, etc. This bike was as sporty as they came in 77 and was a real mile eater. And what a great sound from the 3 into 1 exhaust system. First double wall exhaust for no blueing of pipes and second modern shaftie out of Japan. 3 cylinders with quite a bit of torque.

Soon after the XS1100 powerhouse followed with similar options.

Then:

Venture

Venture Royale

FJ1100/1200

GTS1000

Royal Star Tour Deluxe

RS Venture

Recently the Royal Star was reserected as a stripped RS Venture. No fairing or tail trunk, but same old RS Venture, sans radio, etc. It does have a real cruise control though.

 

[turbodave_98]

Bob, IMHO, you got it right. I remembered the bikes you mentioned which I have owned over the many years<

1976 Yamaha XS 750(Japanese version with spoked wheels, I lived in

Tokyo when I rode it)

1976 XS 750(USA model) shipped to USA from Japan, bought in Navy BX.

1980 XS 1100G(bought new in Nebraska and it still am riding it)

1996 Royal Star Boulevard ( RedBrute and still riding it)

1999 Royal Star Venture(great bike for IBs but sold it as it was too heavy for me to move when not riding)

2005 FJR 1300( BlueJay) bought in July 2004 new and has 35.5K tick-free miles

2006 FJR 1300 AE( Hope it turns out to be as great as the 05 FJR( ordered it to have a NEW FARKLE opportunity.

Take care ole buddy. FYI, I go in for heart surgery on Dec 28, will be down for riding for a while but hope to make it to WFO 6 and BS somemore with you.

Happy Holidays!!

 

[FJRZON]

Really like the old GTS. Does anyone remember what year(s) this bike was produced (I believe early 90s)? Performance stats? A very good looking bike and way ahead of its time for the States. IMHO, the GTS still looks modern in todays market.

 

[bvail]

Dave,

Since you have such a big heart, I'm sure you will have no problem with your surgery.

See you in Reno...

 

[MCRIDER007]

Really like the old GTS.  Does anyone remember what year(s) this bike was produced (I believe early 90s)?  Performance stats?

The red model came out in 1993, I think they had a blue one in 1994. Motorcyclist listed its top speed at 141 mph, with a 11.67 quarter mile time, and a top gear 200 yard acceleration from 50 to 84.1 mph. Its wet weight was 637 pounds. I rode one about 15 miles and while it was fun to ride with a very smooth engine I couldn't figure out what market it was trying to appeal to. It was way to heavy to be a sport bike, even in 1993, and didn't seem anywhere near as comforable as my ST1100 as a touring bike -- and $13000 was pretty expensive in those days.

 

[Skippy]

Didn't the TDM 850 fill many roles for Yamaha?

I am sure one of them would have been considered sport touring as it was and still is a very competent bike.

Especially when fitted with the Givi Luggage?

Skippy

 

[PapaUtah]

I think BBIII may be referring to the 1981 Yamaha Venturer. IIRC you could get it in the 850 or 1100c flavor. It was at its core the inline-4 XS series bike with a pointy fairing and bags added.

The Venture and it’s up scale brother the Venture Royale didn’t make their debut until 1983. Those early Ventures, ’83-’85, were based Yamaha’s 1200cc V-4 powerplant that eventually found its way in to the venerable V-Max in 1985. The only differences between the early Venture motor and the V-Max are the heads, cams, carbs and the mythical V-Boost. The Venture motor was biggie-sized to 1300cc in 1986 to continue to bring the battle to the GoldWing. The Venture withdrew from the battle in 1993 to regroup and reappeared in 1999 as the Royal Star Venture.

The internals of the original Venture V-4 live on in that motor, however, it has been significantly chromed and restyled on the outside.

rc:

 

[charismaticmegafauna]

TDM850: I don't think so. In deference to those who might own one and really like it or those who still want one and think they ("tediums") are the dog's bollocks -- I suffered thru 34K miles with one (w/hard luggage) trying to do sport-touring. It did neither (imo) and made no noticeable power while trying. The engine never convinced me of its long-term reliability; but, it *did* handle fairly well due (in part) to its hell-for-strong steel beam frame. They pretty much died on dealer's show-room floors. I thought my dealer was going to adopt me or put me in his will or something -- he was that glad (after 3 years) to see it leave. Much the same story can be said for other abortive attempts by Yammie to put-over Euro bikes in America. 'Till the FJR, that is!

 

[BBIII]

FYI, I go in for heart surgery on Dec 28, will be down for riding for a while but hope to make it to WFO 6 and BS somemore with you.
Happy Holidays!!

Thanks everyone for your posts. I have been on one ride with TurboDave and IMHO he is one cool dude. Please say a prayer for a proper procedure and a fast safe recovery. Pinheads like me don't get to meet a man of his distinction very often.

 

[rdfrantz]

The first Touring Yamaha, IMHO was the 1976/77 XS750D.  Came naked, but many options available from Yamaha for bags, fairing, lowers, touring seat, etc.  This bike was as sporty as they came in 77 and was a real mile eater.  And what a great sound from the 3 into 1 exhaust system.  First double wall exhaust for no blueing of pipes and second modern shaftie out of Japan.  3 cylinders with quite a bit of torque.
Soon after the XS1100 powerhouse followed with similar options.

Then:

Venture

Venture Royale

FJ1100/1200

GTS1000

Royal Star Tour Deluxe

RS Venture

Recently the Royal Star was reserected as a stripped RS Venture.  No fairing or tail trunk, but same old RS Venture, sans radio, etc.  It does have a real cruise control though.

I agree with your assessment of the genesis and progression of Yamaha's "Touring" lineage. Thanks for such accuracy and detail.

I want to add something about Sport Touring. That began, in earnest, with the XS1100. The XS750 was indeed able to be equipped with a "touring package". In California, we either never saw it, or it was not made available before the XS1100 was made avaiable delivered with "the package". None the less, my circle of riding acquantences never much considered the XS750 as a viable option.

By 1971, parts of the crowd that met at the Griffith Park Observatory began equiping the extant four-cylinder bike, the Honda 750 with Wixom handlebar fairings. Along with many riders, we did "sport rides" in the local mountains - giving rise to such places as The Rock Store. There were no "sport bikes" back then, and racy guys owned mostly Truimphs, outfitted as Cafe Racers. The occasional Ducati and MV showed up - along with the outrageous 1200cc Munch Manmut. Twelve hundred cee cees (Simca water-cooled). Can you imagine!

My crowd didn't quite get on down the road as quickly as the Cafe Racers, which as a new guy excited me, and I wanted to ride with them. However, they seldom rode, and when they did, they never went very far. Sixty miles of Angeles Crest was often too much for them.

We rode The Crest, and moved on to visit Big Bear, 50, a whole 50 miles further on. And then Mt Palomar which produced 350 mile days. I'm certain you get the idea. The Sierra Passes were next, and then Colorado, Montana, Calgary and Banf, and Mexico City.

Saddle bags got added, and seats got modified for comfort and Farkles abounded. Despite "outsider's" views, I don't recall thinking of ourselves as Touring folks. That was done on Harleys, and taken up by guys on the soon introduced GL1000 Gold Wing... with an add-on "touring package", by Vetter.

Our bikes morphed across the Z1, XS1100, GS1000(G), and such. They were called, and got marketed as Litre Bikes, later to be called The Unlimited Class.

The FJ1100 began life as a Litre Bike. As that class became dominated by the latest Suzuki, Yamaha warped the bike into a kinder and gentler ride. A low bar, faired bike with power, good brakes, deft handling, and moderately good suspension laid the groundwork for a class of bikes that became Sport Tourers in the European mold.

The XS11-style bikes sold in moderate numbers (Honda 900/950, Suzuki 1000 and 850 shaft drives), and emerged, and stagnated into the Kawasaki Concours. I see that class of bike being revived in the FJR, rather than the FJR stemming from some other "lineage".

I note that Sport Touring, in the US anyway, actually has not followed the "old Sport Bike" theme, many mangazines seem to foist off on our consciousness. The VF1100, as the V65 Sabre was a naked/standard bike with an ST package, much like the bikes we started doing long distance rides to then get sporty on.

BMW acually coined the Marketing Term, Sport Touring. The term was in use prior to that, but BMW adoped it, and gave it great life (and Thanks for that). BMWs, in the minds of the company, and by extension to the bike owners and onlookers were built to do Touring. Hoping to overcome some of the "stodgy" feeling about their bikes, BMW added Sport as a marketing term. Certainly, BMW had won the US Superbike championship, and yes the R90S was a great, if underpowered, sporting mount. But the "Averrage BMW" was seen as most folks as just a slug, and ugly with all that touring stuff hanging off it.

BMW changed that perception, if still offering only modest performance motorcycles until just recently. It's upcoming K1200GT is configured and dimensioned so much like the FJR1300 as to shock those accustomed to the Bavarian firms determination to do things differently if only to distinguish itself so as not to come off last in any (performance) comparisons.

I hope it's not taken as rude to point out to the originator of this thread that the FJR1300 is indeed a Sport Tourer, with a distinct lineage, if not exatly as I've portrayed, at least one that is not the lineage of "A Tourer". Yamaha, and others, indeed do make and have made fine Touring Bikes, but the FJR is not one of them. It certainly does Tour well, and deserves consideration by anyone interested in a Light Tourer (Concours, R1200RT), or Fast Touirer (ST1300). But it is indeed a (Super) Sport Tourer. With it's own lineage.

What do you think? Is it even important, or interesting to you?

Best wishes.

 

[GunMD]

There was the Venture Royale...

What year is that thang?

I think it was a 1983...not mine. Not sure.

 

[PapaUtah]

Here is what I believe to be one of the finest remaining examples of the 1st Generation Yamaha Venture Royale. I admit to being a little biased, it resides in my garage. 36K miles. Could be rolled onto many showroom floors. Styling is timeless.

 

[SkooterG]

Puuuuuurty. A fine example of a classic design.

I'll buy it from ya for $500.

 

[twowheelnut]

Here is what I believe to be one of the finest remaining examples of the 1st Generation Yamaha Venture Royale. I admit to being a little biased, it resides in my garage. 36K miles. Could be rolled onto many showroom floors. Styling is timeless.

I do declare, that piccie leaves me pitching an oh so minor tent!

 

[Rogue]

Here is what I believe to be one of the finest remaining examples of the 1st Generation Yamaha Venture Royale. I admit to being a little biased, it resides in my garage. 36K miles. Could be rolled onto many showroom floors. Styling is timeless.

That is clean.

 

[BBIII]

Here is what I believe to be one of the finest remaining examples of the 1st Generation Yamaha Venture Royale. I admit to being a little biased, it resides in my garage. 36K miles. Could be rolled onto many showroom floors. Styling is timeless.

I hope that isn't "Goldwing chrome" (chromed plastic). BTW I can't believe one of my posts didn't get re-directed into the NEPRT ****-bin. They all seem to, whether I intend that or not. Gotta give the forum masters something to do, right?

 

[PapaUtah]

1989...most of the bits are metal covered in a nice thick coat of nickel chrome. Only plastic pieces are the mole(below the windshield), fairing vents and fender extender up front. I like to think of it as tastefull chrome accents vs the chrome and light barges that many of the GWs get transformed into.