Weekly Update - Bucket List Bike V2

So that FZR I posted about? Guy sold it out from under me. Even after we had a meeting set up where I would get the bike. Some people just have no moral standards I guess.

Anyway. Onto a bucket list bike. An all original Yamaha FZ600.

The FZ600 was Yamaha's first attempt at a full blown "race replica." Hate it or love it - the FZ600 had the tech which led to the R6 and R1. A buyer could take the blinkers off and show up to a race track and blend right in.

First introduced in 1986, the FZ600 took the motorcycle world by storm. Many magazines tested it. One such magazine wrote that a professional rider made a better lap time on a showroom stock FZ than his competition (AMA I think) FJ600. That's a testament to how much of an improvement the FZ was over the FJ series.

A couple years after it's introduction, Honda entered the 600CC race replica market. The CBR600 of 1987 completely upstaged the little FZ600. Honda managed to squeeze around 85HP from a water cooled 600CC motor while Yamaha had a paltry 58HP from an air cooled motor. They both crossed the scales at ~200KG.

Having owned both a Honda CBR600F1 and a Yamaha FZ600 - the only one I regret selling is the FZ. You can look on your local Craigslist and see 4-5 Honda CBR600F1s listed for various prices in various conditions. But you will rarely see a Yamaha FZ600 listed in ANY condition. If one comes up in my travels that is original paint, I intend on buying it and hanging onto it.

Until next time,
See you on the road!