“Years ago I rode a ’72 Yamaha XS650 from California to Sturgis. I was wearing a Walmart rain suit in...
Yamaha Cafe Racer
Yamaha’s first motorcycle appeared in 1955. The 125cc two-stroke YA-1 went straight to the racetrack and started winning titles. Yamaha has built on those race credentials over the years, winning at the IOM TT and the Paris Dakar. Yamaha continues to run a successful factory race team in Moto GP.
Yamaha’s contribution to the custom motorcycle world includes the highly successful and long loved SR400 and SR500 singles we see in so many café racer builds. Other Yamaha custom favourites include the seventies XS650 twins and more recently their XSR700 and XSR900 Sport Heritage range.
The Yamaha XS-V1 Sakura (Prototype ie coming soon!) oozes Cafe Racer style and should pck plenty of punch based on...
With 200bhp on tap and an astounding 2.5 second 0-60mph time, the Vmax V4 engine is well suited to dragstrip...
Boner…That’s what this custom Yamaha XS650 is called. Not your usual custom build title but Death Spray Customs isn’t your...
The Arcanum build began when I picked up a ‘78 Yamaha SR500 from a guy in Newcastle, it was an...
The red ‘Monster’ which was built back in 2013 for the Yokohama Hot Rod and Custom Show and the blue...
Berry Bads Motorcycles are yet another Japanese custom tuner/builder who’s work has caught my attention. With a gallery full of Bobbers,...
Sadly it looks like Yamaha’s venerable SR400s time is coming to an end. Like so many other motorcycles falling victim...
Cafe Racer SSpirit, located in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, is a motorcycle customization workshop founded in late 2014 by a family...
This 1975 Yamaha RD350 underwent a café racer conversion in 2014. The changes encompassed an orange repaint over a black...
Vintage Steele of Brattleboro, Vermont, transformed this 1975 Yamaha XS650 into a café-racer. The bodywork, featuring the original four-gallon fuel...
This Yamaha XS650 stands out as a captivating and tastefully modified representation of the popular classic Japanese motorcycle. Crafted into...
Moto Nisto of Ypsilanti, Michigan, expertly transformed this 1980 Yamaha XS650 into a stunning Cafe Racer. The modifications done on...
This 1981 Yamaha XV750 Virago has been transformed into a cafe racer, featuring a metallic gray finish with gold accents....
The Yamaha XV920 ‘Double Shot’ is a prime example of Yamaha’s timeless cruising motorcycle, skillfully transformed and rebuilt in the...
This 1982 Yamaha XV750 Virago has undergone extensive customization with a range of unique components. These custom additions include a...
In the early 1980s, Yamaha introduced a new family of four-stroke motorcycles, with the XJ550 being one of them. These...
Auto Fabrica has transformed this Yamaha XJ600 into a one-of-a-kind modern classic sports bike known as the “Type 24”. This...
This Yamaha SRX600 has been meticulously transformed into a bespoke cafe racer with a sleek and unique style. It boasts...
In 2007, Gregg DesJardins of GC Customs crafted an unparalleled streetfighter motorcycle, representing the pinnacle of customization. Starting with a...
Due to the surging demand for nostalgia-infused motorcycles with a retro aesthetic, it was no surprise that Yamaha decided to...
Japanese workshop AN-BU Customs has developed an instantly recognisable style of their own. Their recipe involves mixing tight proportions, with...
The Yamaha SR400 was the poster child of the “new wave” custom scene back in ’08/’09. Thanks to workshops like...
David Gonzalez from Ad Hoc is renowned for customizing Yamaha motorcycles. He gained international acclaim for his work on the...
The story of the TX750 is one that Yamaha would rather we all forgot. The bike, which was set to...
The Yamaha XS650 could easily be labelled as the greatest British motorcycle ever built outside of Britain. Powered by a...
“Purpose Built Moto came about after I started modifying street bikes of my own. I then became frustrated that no...
No sooner had the doors of the 2015 One Motorcycle Show closed for another year, than the brothers Busch and...
After my recent purchase of a Yamaha TW200 I have rediscovered my love of “little” bikes. While I’m not about...
But, dear reader, should you? Is it worth tracking down one of Yamaha’s cheerful little runabouts for your next custom...
It’s getting easier and easier to build a cafe racer. It used to be that you’d either have to pay...
Here’s a great segment from the cutting room floor of Cafe Racer TV. In this online episode they reveal the...
Not content with simply building a tidy Yamaha SR based Cafe Racer, the crew at Rocker Classic Cycles decided to...
When great minds come together, great things happen. Often in the world of custom motorcycle building workshops keep to themselves....
Back in 2016, Yamaha bit itself off a decent-sized chunk of the modern retro market with the release of the...
This may sound ridiculous, but sometimes I wish I lived in a place where riding during winter wasn’t an option....
Most custom motorcycles rolling out of workshops tend to be polished to perfection or feature paint jobs more expensive than...
Santi García has been contributing to the build portfolio at the Barcelona workshop of La Carono motorcycles for the past...
If you happen to be near The Dues Ex Machina store in Camperdown Sydney this week a quick visit is definitely in...
“Raw & Rough. I´ve always wanted a little Cafe Racer for the urban and offroad section. It’s a kind of a...
Shaft driven motorcycles have been around since the early 1900’s, but Yamaha’s shaft driven debut didn’t come until the late...
We love cafe racers trimmed to perfection. Bikes built for a narrow purpose. A ride with lights removed, brackets cut...
Deus Bali appeared on the scene only a few short months ago and it seems they are already wheeling some...
Established by Dare Jennings, Rod Hunwick and Carby Tuckwell, Deus ex Machina in Camperdown, Sydney, produces motorcycles for the post-modern world. What the hell...
Deus ex Machina came on the scene around about the same time I set up Return of the Cafe Racers...
On a recent trip to Sydney I stuck my head in at Deus (as always) and grabbed a copy of...
I spent the weekend in Sydney celebrating a mates Birthday (which I am still recovering from!) and while I was...
Since launching Return of the Cafe Racers back in 2006 I have only come across two builders who have managed...
A collaboration with El Solitario seemed like the perfect pairing for Yamaha’s next Yard Built project, but as El Solitario’s...
“We want to challenge the trope of nostalgic and aesthetically led custom motorcycles by encouraging others to experiment with the...
There was always a motorcycle in our house when I was growing up, but my father’s real passion was collectible...
If you’ve been following Enginethusiast for a while, you’ve probably noticed that Anthony Scott has a soft spot for vintage...
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know there are very few commonalities between nautical craft and motorcycles. Infact the...
A couple of years ago I had the pleasure of meeting the Muharremi brothers, the duo behind the United Kingdom’s...
When I think about Bobbers my mind conjures up images of cruising along a winding coastal road, sitting comfortably atop...
The custom Yamaha SR250’s are taking over! After last week’s C59R “Little Blue” custom Tracker build from Barcelona we’ve headed...
Yamaha’s legendary XS650, it’s reputation precedes it. The XS is one of the most widely customised bikes in the world so to...
Yet another outstanding issue of Fuel Magazine is just about to hit the shelves. Grab a copy to see my...
Just got home after spending the day out with the guys from Fuel Tank TV and Christian from Modern Motorcycles....
After one full day of owning the 1979 XS650 Special Giancarlo’s called it quits. Stranded on the side of the...
Gold Rush is Daniel’s 3rd XJR1200 based build. As you would expect by now he’s become somewhat of an XJR...
This Cafe Racer thumper hails from the Japanese workshop Gull Craft. It’s an extensively modified Yamaha SR400 Cafe Racer complete...
This bike was built by George Woodman, a carpenter slash furniture designer slash interior architect from Biarritz, France. Yes, his...
“Building motorcycles is probably the only thing I am good at.” professes Aseem. “The FS350, my first custom motorcycle, was...
Over in the UK Shaun & Carl of custom workshop ‘Down and Out’ Cafe Racers usually play with parallel twins, but...
Back in 2006 one of the first motorcycles that really got me excited about the custom scene was a Yamaha...
During the early 1970s, Kenny Roberts shot to stardom as a rider in the American Yamaha racing team. In 1973...
Yamaha’s Yardbuilt series is the brainchild of the companies visionary project manager, Shun Miyazawa. The series kicked off back in...
With a workshop name like “it roCKS!bikes” the Portugese builders Osvaldo Coutinho and Alexandre Santos have set the bar high...
At the end of World War 2 many British motorcycle manufacturers were on the verge of closure or had already...
For the Yardbuilt 2017 XSR700 project, Yamaha selected 7 workshops from different European locations to take part in the event. Representatives from Italy,...
This post apocalyptic road warrior is Icon’s Kawasaki ZX-7 ‘Thunder Chunky’. It’s the latest addition to Icon’s series of custom...
Adrián Campos and the crew at Spain’s Bolt Motor Co. are back again with yet another impressive build. This time...
Few motorcycles have the cult status of Yamaha’s SR400. During the past decade, the SR has come into the spotlight...
The quick turnaround on this build was made possible when Pat acquired the Virago as an unfinished project. “The previous...
I recently stumbled across the Instagram profile of Cyu-G and his Yamaha SR400 cafe racer. Despite a language barrier we...
There’s beauty in simplicity. Apple have proved that with their design approach and in the custom motorcycle world that...
The saying ‘to bite off more than you can chew’ is one that many budding bike builders can relate to....
Trevers father, John Scales, was a 2 stroke road racer during the 1970s. “I heard so many stories from my...
“My name is Teguh Setiawan. I’m a 23 years old and studying at a university in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. In 2012...
Feast your eyes on Jay LaRossa’s 1978 Yamaha SR500 “Solus” in this short video by Ricki Bedenbaugh. This video reminds me of...
In Osaka, Japan 28-year-old cafe racer enthusiast Yuya Ueda has been riding his SR400 for 8 years and it’s lead...
The Skorpion Sport was produced by German motorcycle manufacturer MZ (Motorrad und Zweiradwerk) between 1994 and 2004. Although you may have never...
Greg Hageman, aka Hageman Motorcycles, aka Doc Chops may not have been the first to build a Virago cafe racer,...
When you are the organiser of what is arguably the biggest custom motorcycle event in the world it goes without...
I never thought I was a fan of muscle bikes until I rode a Yamaha XJR1300. It was in 2015...
Neo-retro cafe racers have certainly become “a thing”. Merging retro styling with modern engineering is a very appealing proposition for...
What’s not to love about two-stroke motorcycles? The alluring smell, the exhilarating sound and the white-knuckled terror of an unpredictable...
As with the other Yamaha XJR1300 Yardbuilt bikes the Botafogo-N was constructed without performing any modifications to the bike’s frame....
To improve the v-twin’s power and torque Yamaha fit the SRV with a beefier cam profile, two carburetors rather than...
Tim Kills BSA A65 Bobber On November 3rd & 4th I co-hosted a custom motorcycle exhibition in Melbourne named Oil...
Back in 2005, when I first became interested in the Japanese custom motorcycle scene, finding insights into their world took...
Some people find it a real struggle to sit still. Take Stu Lloyd for example. It hasn’t even been 4...
Yamaha’s ‘Race Developed’ series of motorcycles from the early seventies left a lasting impression on the motorcycling world. The 1973...
I met Michael Capraro some years ago at a communal motorcycle workshop I was involved in. His enthusiasm for bikes...
The old saying ‘practice makes perfect’ rings true in the custom motorcycle community. Over the years I’ve seen many builders...
Mark Bliss is a man of many talents, but it’s his work with motorcycles he’s most proud of. Both of...
Despite its 43-year production run ending in 2021, the SR400 remains a hot favourite amongst riders in Japan. The SR400’s...
I hate to say it but there is a downside to riding a classic British cafe racer. Sure you’ll revel...
The Varkain (“Finnish for By Stealth”) Yamaha SR400 is one of my favourite creations to come out of Raider Motorsports...
