1984 YAMAHA RZ350, BASIC SPECS: A two-stroke, power-valve-equipped 347cc parallel twin with 26mm slide-valve Mikuni carbs, oil injection and six-speed transmission. A steel-tube frame with an aluminum swingarm rolls on 18-inch wheels with triple disc brakes. Its simplicity allowed it to be a light 371 pounds with the 5.2-gallon gas tank half full.Back in the day …When the original RZ350 hit the streets in the early 1980s, it was the closest thing to race bike money could buy. Weighing in around 350 pounds and producing 50 shrieking two-stroke ponies, the water-cooled parallel twin came wrapped in a cradle-style frame and featured mag wheels with triple disc brakes. It had race-inspired graphics on the bodywork and a small bikini fairing to duck behind at speed. Spawning a burgeoning cottage industry of go-faster parts, heavily modified RZs ruled the back roads of Europe for many a year. Though they never attracted quite the same level of enthusiasm here in the U.S., they did enjoy a period of popularity with local club racers.
