SDR owner here. 35hp to whatever you want to port it to 100kg two-stroke. What’s not to love? 90% of a TZ125 on track, reliable enough to use regularly on the road. Best bike I’ve ever owned.
@@TheCh4s3 SDR200 owner here too. I agree, best bike in my collection. My first choice when I head up to the local canyons. It's a tiny bike for sure. I've heard it's nick-name was "The Whippet" It would be the last bike I ever sell.
I think the reason BSA and Triumph produced a scooter in the early 60s was that, in the UK, at that time we had a huge influx of Italian scooters from Vespa and Lambretta because of the 'Mods and Rockers' era ( someone of your age might need to look it up ) but it was huge among the teenagers at the time in the UK. The British bike manufacturers like BSA and Triumph must have seen how many scooters were being imported and tried to capture some of those potential sales for themselves, but didn't have the Italian 'cool', so failed miserably.
And also the Velocette Viceroy. Another failed scooter. I have ridden a Norton Commander , it looked a bit odd but it handled well with the smoothest engine I have ever used with tremendous torque and quite a comfortable riding position.
And the Ariel 3 of 1970! Remember them being demo'd in the Doncaster market car park - zero interest. The proper bike market was dying in the UK in the 60s - 'enthusiasts who'd bought 500s, 650s, even the few 750s moved to cars when they got their 4 wheeler licence, and by then even 17 year olds were getting the car licence and not even looking at bikes. The 16-er laws revived faster very small bikes, but that only got decent products from Japan and some Italian/German makes, not from NVT the sole major Brit bike survivor. ANd the 70s youth wanted middle weight rocket 2 strokes when they moved up market before eventually landing on big Japanese 4s.
How can you ... or anyone ... not just LOVE the looks of the Yamaha SDR???? Come on! That MUST be one of the coolest small bikes I have ever (not) seen. It's GORGEOUS!
It was out the same year as my SRX 600, and so similar in design, use, style... I think a SDR V2 with a 450cc single 2 stroke and a few tweaks to the design woulda been way cool.
The Yamaha SDR is a cult classic among 80's 2-stroke enthusiasts in Europe and Asia. That thing could scare bikes with 3 times the displacement. One of the fastest small displacement bikes ever made.
The Suzuki SW-1 was actually riding a vehicular 'retro-wave' that was hitting Japan at that time. Nissan is the best example with its oddly-styled Figaro, Pao, and BE-1 passenger cars, and lots of other manufacturers made 'retro-styled' versions of their cars since it was in vogue. Suzuki was following a trend and I can't say it looks bad.
The MH 900 is a work of art. It had the Monster power train with that streamlined art deco styling reminiscent of Paul Smart's 1972 Imola winning machine, yet named for Mike Hailwood. The Moto Guzzi Griso is a lovely, stylish sport touring machine with weird but wonderful cafe racer presence and performance. As you can no doubt tell, I love off the wall Italian classics.
@@gs1100ed A weird pick indeed. The weirdest ducati imho is the Paso. Just because of how it's an oddball in ducati's design language. The fairing is unusual and is continued where you'd expect a screen.
I actually love how MV just doesn't keep one style, they don't try to satisfy everyone Instead they target two groups & go completely bananas with it, would love one of them in my garage!
Re: the Royal Enfield 'Trial' name. There are two motorcycle sporting events that are called trials. Observed Trials, with the ballet bikes where the point is to ride through a difficult piece of terrain without putting your foot down, and Reliability Trials where the object is to have a bike survive harsh conditions with minimal self-support. Back in the '50s a reliability trials bike would resemble the Enfield, a rugged simple bike that could go anywhere and take abuse. So the Enifeld Trials is a sensible name for a rugged retro-styled bike.
The SDR 200 is also very similar from a styling perspective to the SRX 6 when you sit on them. I like the SDR a lot, it has about 34 horses I think and weights only about 110 kilo. Nice piece. I‘d really like to own one, as I also have an SRX 6, but you almost can‘t get spare parts, as it‘s so rare (and also pretty expensive meanwhile)
I have an SRX 3VN 400. It's considerably heavier than the SDR and produces 32 HP - 2 less than you than you say the lighter SDR put out. I only ever sat on the SDR, but I sure wanted to ride it. It had a port valve, I think, so it would have been pretty tractable. But when wound up, it must have have been a blast! The SDR was one of the more eye-arresting machines of the era.
OMG HD Nova Project. I drool over that motorcycle. I even have the HD Low Rider ST (based on the FXRT) poster on my wall and set as wallpaper in my pc as inspiration in work. Super love that design and it's iconic.
Agree. Though as a guy who owns all kinds of bikes, I'm a rider and not just a HD rider. I also own a performance built Dyna LRST and performance built Streetglide rippers. So it probably makes more sense I really dig the Nova projects vs the standard HD guys. Its really cool to see the moco at work in those days vs today's HD.
Yep, looked in the comments to see if this had been picked up. My Tigress was a 250cc 4-stroke parallel twin with an oil-bath chain drive to the rear wheel. It would do 75mph if there was no headwind and returned over 100 mpg. I still regret parting with it, it was a great machine. I've got to wonder how much of these 'bart' videos is accurate as, with bikes I've had personal experience with he's usually wrong (this Tigress info is on Wikipedia ffs!). If he's often wrong on the stuff I know about then Occams Razor says he's probably wrong on other stuff too.
@@Shaun.Stephens Much said to spark a reaction I suspect! Works for me - high rate of "what???" reactions followed by a comment means its interesting entertainment imo
BSA listen to all of the experts who said that if they made the three-wheeled Ariel tricycle they would sell millions of them and they sold hardly any wasted a great deal of company funds producing that piece of s***. People tell motorcycle companies to make this and make that and then when they do it nobody buys the product.
A member of the local Motorcycle Club here in Australia has what I believe was the last Norton Commander sold, and it is a phenomenal machine, agile and super-fast; the only problem I know he's had with it was a minor wiring issue relating to the sidestand switch. I think you've undersold that machine! As for weird motorcycle. I don't know if you've mentioned them in other videos, but I would include Mitsubishi's Silver Pigeon and Fugi Heavy Industries' (now Subaru ) Rabbit scooters !
Honestly, I am someone who loves anything on two wheels. As i was presented with each new "wierdest" I asked myself, "Would I take it for a ride?". There was never a no. And honestly,as far as the bathtub styling, Id love to see a big bike done that way...its no different than a full fairing covered bike...it just has lines that flow. Reminds me of the styling for freight trains in the 30s...much like a bullet...sleek and adorned with art deco flair
The bathtub style that Edward Turner inflicted on the classic triumph is company made were despised. It made the motorcycle look like it was wearing a skirt. Because Edward Turner was the head British designer everyone followed his lead even Harley-Davidson with the boat tail on the big twin as well as the Sportster and the look was not well-received at all. All attempts at making a real motorcycle to have scooter attributes were complete abysmal failure.
I owned an SDR200 also known as the 2TV. It is the most fun bike I ever owned and the most regret that I sold it. It weighed 222 pounds and destroyed liter bikes in the tight Twisties. Riding up Tuna Canyon in Southern California there was no bike that could come close. Arriving at the Rock Store people gathered around it and a million questions were posed to me. My most fun besides riding it was to park it and walk away to watch people gawk at it. Jay Leno himself liked it. I wish I could post pictures of my bike here.
I must be weird - I own two of the bikes on this list. The Ducati MH900e (#0055) and the Guzzi Griso. The MH900e is a work of art and a fun bike to ride, it is light and nimble, and the 900cc gives it more than enough power. The old-school 2V Ducati exhaust note - just fits! The Griso is a real gem. I owned an older 4V sold it - regrated it so I picked up the last version of the 8V. An amazing beast of a bike. As others said until you ride (and hear) a Guzzi you can’t fully appreciate them. All Guzzis are weird, but the Centauro has to be at the top. As for the SDR200 - yes, I see the parallel to the Monster, but that frame had its start with the Ducati 851/888. The original Monster was the 888 frame. An 888 stripped down with bar risers to appeal to the UK trend of sport bikes that were modified post-crash and turned naked. Ducati definitely hit a cord, but I suspect they could have never dreamed how successful that Monster would be. Great work on the video - thanks. It's great to be weird.
I love the Suzuki SW1. Looks great. And I will accept no criticism of Norton rotaries, particularly the Classic, so cool so square, so bloody powerful. What about the Guzzi California with the auto gearbox?
The Griso's one of the best looking bikes of the last 25 years imo. A standard roadster, sleek and just lovely lines. Maybe there's too much of an urge to slot things into rigid categories?
Try buying a SDR, Performance Bikes managed to get hold of one when it was a current model and really raved about its handling and speed., I think that's why they have this mythical presence.
15:51 No sir, you were absolutely correct from the get-go. Please don’t apologize, because this really is a hideous looking motorcycle. You have to call them as you see them because there’ll always be someone whose feelings will be hurt.
A note: the Ducati trellis frame was born in 1980 with the racing 600 TT2 (Ing. Taglioni) , a frame that is found in the 750 TT2 and then in the 750 F1 road version of 1985. Of this there will be the 400 version for the Japanese market. Who knows who inspired who... Second note for Guzzi: the name Griso (from the Lombard dialect gris = grey, "dark as ashes", evil) comes from a famous (for Italians...) literary character of the 1800s taken from the novel "The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni, set in the same places as the Guzzi factory (Lake Como) . Il Griso was the head of the Bravi, the criminals in the pay of the villain of the novel, Don Rodrigo. Griso was entrusted with "the most risky and unfair undertakings". Seen this way, I'd say that as a name it's very appropriate for a "bad" and out-of-the-box bike. Definitely a very cultured reference, not so immediate.
I am a long-term motorcycle rider riding over 50 years. I have a collection of burger cycles that include BMW BSA triumph Euro even a jawa. I have a genuine / Vespa p150 scooter with shaft drive and a Kickstarter. People questioned each other about why I bought such a thing and it's like it is fun around town. I stopped at a light and a bunch of Harley guys pulled up next to me and challenge me to erase and I told them two conditions number one they only got a gallon of gas and number to they had to kick-start their motorcycle and the guy said touche.
Having ridden 63 years to date, I've also had some left-field machinery over that time, starting with a BSA M20 side-valve, a pre-war Ariel VB 600 single side-valve, a Raleigh RM1 moped, a Vespa 125, a Jawa 250 single and a Jawa 350 twin that I kept for 15 years. Wish I still had that one, actually.
The Mk1 Honda VF1000, with the second small radiator hidden behind the clocks and the square down tube that was also part of the cooling system! not to mention the Anti Dive Forks that spat You over the bars under sudden hard braking, I thought the students had been allowed to design it then some idiot accidentally put it into production rather than prototype
Hmmm that Yamaha SDR always (and now) seemed pretty awesome to me. I remember seeing it and other bikes like it in Japanese bike magazines and drooling over them. I wish I had gotten an SDR.
The SDR is a derivative of the trend that was happening in roadracing at the time... we were taking two-stroke motocross engines and putting them in suitable frames, things like older TZs or small roadbikes - because small displacement real roadracers weren't something you could even get your hands on, affordably or otherwise *I had a 250 Ninja with a CR500 in it Yamaha saw this, and answered with the SDR The SDR has been kicking around in my head, lately, as inspiration for a similar place to put a 750 Vulcan powerplant, so having it as the thumbnail drew me in
I beg to differ, the RE5 was a disaster on wheels for Suzuki, so unreliable that I understand they tipped hundreds of them into the sea rather than sell them, because they knew that the cost of the warrantee claims would be more than they could ever hope to make from selling them. Smooth, quiet and gutless.
Oddly, I find that bathtub-looking bike visually soothing. I'd ride one, and I also liked the Ducati Monster-ish Yamaha bike...a lot. Oh, I also think the Aprilia Mojito looks hot, and I totally dislike scooters. It has this artsy design to it that just flows! EDIT: I have a Gen 2 ZX-10R and a Gen 3 Hayabusa, so I already have peculiar likes! 😅
Yeah, I really liked it as well. I guess that's what makes the world an interesting place. I'm going to really dig my cyber truck when I get it, but after a few years and everything starts looking like a cybertruck it would be easy to mold some foam blisters onto those flat panels and make a bathtub cyber truck. What a whale! I'd love it.
Where I live, if you have a DUI, you lose your license, but you can still ride a scooter, and in my mind, hence the name Mojito. Its for drunks, maybe.
The Yamaha SDR is an inspirational bike for me. One of the coolest & high water marks IMO in a 2t format. I like small bikes, I really like two strokes, and Yamaha makes my favorite. So knowing you can't get them in the US and they go for high prices I set about making my own version in concept. Fun video.
Yamaha made a 600 cc air cooled version of the SR200, it was the SRX6 and I had one in 1986. A 600cc thumper that weight under 400 pounds. It was more fun than any bike I've ever owned and I regret selling it. Super nimble and from 0-60 very torquey.
The reason you never saw many RE Classic Trials and why they were around long is they are a limited addition. Clearly they are stripped down like Johnny Brittain's winning machine of the late 50's so you can register it and ride it on the road. The colour schemes chosen were factory team colours of the time.
The only difference between the Classic 500 and the Trials 500 were the pillion seat is removed, an upswept exhaust and taller handlebars.. Ive got a Classic 500 and I've removed the pillion seat and added trials bars to mine as I like the more upright seating position.. I get a few people come over and ask what happened to my red frame.. Thinking its a Trials bike.. But its how I've chosen to modify it to make it more comfortable to ride..
My brother owned a Ducati MH900E for awhile, so I got to see one up close, though I never actually rode it. What an unbelievable work of art that motorcycle was. Just unreal.
The first Griso sold by Moto Guzzi was beautiful to my eye. I even started saving up a down payment. Their lack of dealer support locally and the gradual changes to the appearance and engine put me off. They were sport tourers or standards in my view. The Triumph scooter seemed ok, too. They're allowed to sell a scooter, man!
The small Yamaha SR 200 is cool. Lattice frame & 2-stoke liquid cooled motor. It would be fun on back roads with tight turns. Frankly, you're more interested in styling. It's a MOTORcycle with all it's intricate small parts & a motor. Not for tall chunky riders I suppose.
Dude, the SDR was a take on a smaller version of the RZ350, a race winning badass bike that it's super rare today. I think it was their effort to bring back that love.
Though absolutely weird, meaty and gnarly appearance, Rush1000 is EXACTLY what MV Agusta stands for aesthetically, especially if you consider the 'hearkening back to the back when times' phrase. In the 1960s, 70s, and even 80s, MV naked sport motorcycles had round headlamps, exposed mechanicals and very minimal body parts. The edgy and angular appearance of MV is a very small (but iconic and the most beautiful) part of the MV heritage. Rush feels like they finally found their way back to their roots. And MV is gonna be going ahead with this direction even more, looking at the latest render of the equally weird cafe racer inspired from the 70s 750 Sport. TBH the latest render of the cafe racer looks the weird sort of weird if you know what I mean😅
Moto Guzzi Griso is a roadster. A bike ahead of it's time. BMW took the idea of the Griso and made the RnineT. But they did it much later when the whole modern retro vibe was in full swing! If you compare the RnineT 1200 boxer and the Griso 1200V8 SE they have very similar power weight.
That Douglas motorcycle company in England saw the writing on the wall and instead of wasting their money and making their own scooter they became the importer for Vespa.
Ducati didn't copy the SDR for the monster. This and the original speed triple are just de faired sports bikes with wiring tidied up. So the frames etc are identical to the sports bikes Ducati 900SS/851/888.
Thanks for this very colourful list! I happen to own a Griso, and although one could argue that ALL Moto Guzzis are 'weird', I think the Griso is not the weirdest of them (e.g. you should check out the Centauro or the Audace). Ok, fine, the Griso looks unusual (and I think: beautiful) but it is also an incredible fun, fast and powerful motorcycle. For Yamaha, you could have mentioned the MT-01 (which I also happen to own 🙂): a bike that looks like a sportbike but with a 1700cc cruiser engine that produces an insane 111 lb⋅ft torque... For unknown reasons the MT-01 was never sold in the USA.
I've owned a 1984 MkIII Le Mans and a 1990 MkV Le Mans. Both bikes were head turners in their time because they were so different. People would come up just to have a chat about my bike. I owned the Mk V for 11 years from new. For looks the MkIII, for performance the MkV. Both had Australian (I'm Australian) made Staintune stainless steel exhaust systems, that sounded like nothing else.
I recall an article, I think in Motorcycle news, that claimed BSA had bought thousands of 50cc engines from the surplus market since the moped market in Britain had collapsed due to legislative changes and they were wondering what to use the engines for, engines probably costing pennies per unit. One idea finding favour was a small shopping tricycle aimed at the housewife popping down to the shops and such a vehicle offered several advantages over 2-wheeled transport; namely, it would be a load carrier that didn't need putting on a stand, wouldn't be top heavy when laden and wouldn't fall over - the Ariel 3 was probably a great little machine when used for the intended purpose which begs the question, why was it advertised with strapping blokes riding it and treating it like it was an amazing performance machine??
The Norton Commando is one heck of a bike, set up properly they are fast and smooth and the best from the end of the popular British bikes era. They also have a great resale value and parts are readily available.
I like your list here. Of course, you can always argue what model to pick, but all of these stand out. The Honda Rune could also suit the selection, a bike that allegedly cost Honda 100,000 dollars to build, yet they sold for 25k, leaving a cool loss of 75k for every bike sold if true.
5:07 The 999 is my guilty pleasure bike. I would love to own one, I think they look beautiful, sound amazing and is honestly one of my top 3 favourite bikes ever made
I own a BMW C1! The point of buying it was exactly that, as a car driver who's never had a motorbike nor been interested in them, I was sick of getting stuck in traffic and that seemed like the perfect half-car for the job! I just had to ride to a big city whilst it was raining, and it is just amazing to be dry and comfy while still being able to lanesplit and jump long car queues; I barely use my car anymore! And yes, I am slowly getting more interested in motorbikes, so their plan is working flawlessly...
Wanted to buy a Norton rotary but I was told I had to buy $8,000 worth of stock in the company in order to buy one and I told them I did not want to spend $8,000 on paper that wasn't worth wiping my ass on.
What about the Ducati Cucciolo model 48? I had one of these and they were very weird, especially coming from Ducati. They were a 50cc moped with the fuel 'tank' IN the frame.
The H-D Nova project was bagged due to budgetary constraints, and... because Honda came out with their water-cooled V-4 line - which would have left H-D appearing as a far more costly imitator rather than a forward thinking innovator.
Holy shit that Ducati is beautiful! ❤️ Edit: KTM just had to include an ugly fairing up front to replace the ugly headlight of the Dukes. The only thing that would keep me from buying a KTM street bike.
Another couple of "weirdos" are the Yamaha XZ550 and the Honda DN01, honourable mention to the Italjet Dragster Scoot (weird in a good way!) Jamie Oliver (The Naked Chef) rode a Mojito!
Alot to digest for this one. I like odd ball bikes that no one else likes. For me it gives the bike a bit of prestige. I like about half the bikes shown. That BMW looks tippy thou.
I bought in 2000 a new Royal Enfield Taurus with 325cc Diesel Engine, 6.8 PS, Exhaust on the back of the cylinder, oil filled air filter, 2 Gear shifts (1 for the gears and 1 for neutral from every gear), gear shifts and brake pedal left/right swapped. It would run with 1 Liter Diesel on 100km (235 mpg) or 1.5 Liter Salad Oil on 100km (157 mpg). I owned this bike 7 years and sold it because I migrated to Australia.
Yamaha did have line of sport singles in the 80's that are forgotten, but great bikes. The SRX line included several naked machines that had that Monster look before the Monster was sold. The SRX600 was slim and sexy, with a jelly-mold fuel tank and thin, tapered tail section. The first Bandit series would echo this styling but add a trellis frame (which the Monster sported) and a four cylinder which was more in demand at the time than a single. My red Bandit 400 is often mistaken for a Ducati from a distance, by people who aren't highly motorcycle literate. Other notable but forgotten bikes of the era with similar traits were the Hawk 650, CB-1 and Suzuki Goose series.
The "winner" in this group goes to BSA, IMO. What were they thinking? LOL!!! If I were to chose one to own it would be the Yamaha. And just look how close it not only resembles the Ducati Monster, but also the SRX600. Nice video
Nice to see Bart agreeing with me on the Rush. I saw a photo of the Rush the other day and my immediate reaction was that something was not quite right with this bike, styling wise. And by the way, I love the other MVs, from the beautiful F4 to the aggressive looking Brutale.
Griso, definitely not a weird bike at all. Like all Guzzi's they were made for Guzzistia, not Japanese or American followers. Otherriders look at my 2006 griso and think 2018. The Centoro would be more odd than a griso.
When I saw a Picture of the Yamaha SDR for the first time, what shocked me the most is that Yamaha never even tried to make it in Brazil too, not only because the engine is roughly the same of the DT 200 R, but also because of the large 2-stroke fanbase it had.
That BSA Ariel three seemed better than walking until I hit a pothole, by way of massive axel tramp it convinced me at was worse than trying to walk when too drunk to do so!
That Norton motorcycle's rotary engine was an outgrowth of Norton's military endeavors decades ago when they manufactured small, inexpensive rotary engines for use on target drones.
I own a Trials Enfield and love the thing so it's a coin flip as to whether the bike is weird or I am.. However the now rarity of them is making them well sort after at least in my part of the world..
10:08 own a Griso Tenni and whenever I park it in the city there is a crowd around it after 5 minutes. This bike delivers both. Enjoyment riding it and enjoyment looking at it. You need time to educate and earn experience as a biker in order to be ready for a Guzzi.
I'd agree with you except for aprilia because as far as I can remember they were always well known for their scooters and small displacement motorcycle. The oddest one that came from them is the Aprilia classic 50 which is a cruiser with the same engine as a RS 50. So high strung 50cc 2 stroke. Not only that but it wasn't even a commercial failure. I saw several on the roads during the 90s.
Fun vid. I noted your comment about bridging the gap between scooters and motorcycles. Undisputed fact worldwide is that Honda literally OWNS this "gap" with the Honda Cub and derivatives by all manufacturers. Underbones are the most ubiquitous 2 wheeled vehicles on the planet. I understand your point though from a "vintage loyalty" perspective for the 10" wheel platform stepthoughs based on Piaggio/Vespa geneology and Mods vs Rockers aesthetic. Just a perspective. So I put forth - there are 3 segments, not 2.
I am on my second Griso, a 1200. I think the 1100 was actually a better bike for me but emissions drives some manufacturer choices. I don't think it can be slotted into a category. Bimota DB3 was probably my weirdest bike from a looks standpoint but it handled amazingly well. Suzuki B-King is worthy of being on the list as well.
Talking of chopper mopeds, when I was 16 I had the Yamaha FS1SE 50cc chopper version of the FS1-E affectionately known as a Fizzy. I love the look of the SDR!
SDR owner here. 35hp to whatever you want to port it to 100kg two-stroke. What’s not to love? 90% of a TZ125 on track, reliable enough to use regularly on the road. Best bike I’ve ever owned.
SDR use the same motor of DT200r right?
@@campones... No, it's a bit of an odd one. The cylinder is a 2TV, which is unique to the SDR, the bottom end shares a lot of parts with the TZR125.
@@TheCh4s3
SDR200 owner here too. I agree, best bike in my collection. My first choice when I head up to the local canyons. It's a tiny bike for sure. I've heard it's nick-name was "The Whippet" It would be the last bike I ever sell.
People like us know Jeff 👍.
Remember the SDR from when i was a kid. Loved the styling then and its aged very well. Beautiful bike, no doubt its bags of fun to ride.
I think the reason BSA and Triumph produced a scooter in the early 60s was that, in the UK, at that time we had a huge influx of Italian scooters from Vespa and Lambretta because of the 'Mods and Rockers' era ( someone of your age might need to look it up ) but it was huge among the teenagers at the time in the UK. The British bike manufacturers like BSA and Triumph must have seen how many scooters were being imported and tried to capture some of those potential sales for themselves, but didn't have the Italian 'cool', so failed miserably.
Yes, it was the Triumph Tina 70cc!
And also the Velocette Viceroy. Another failed scooter. I have ridden a Norton Commander , it looked a bit odd but it handled well with the smoothest engine I have ever used with tremendous torque and quite a comfortable riding position.
@@mr.carguy654 I think you'll find that the Triumph T10 Tina was 100 cc...
Agree. Also ducati brio, MV agusta chicco, moto guzzi galletto, ktm ponny, Mitsubishi silver pigeon, fuji rabbit (subaru's parent company), harley davidson topper, etc
And the Ariel 3 of 1970! Remember them being demo'd in the Doncaster market car park - zero interest. The proper bike market was dying in the UK in the 60s - 'enthusiasts who'd bought 500s, 650s, even the few 750s moved to cars when they got their 4 wheeler licence, and by then even 17 year olds were getting the car licence and not even looking at bikes. The 16-er laws revived faster very small bikes, but that only got decent products from Japan and some Italian/German makes, not from NVT the sole major Brit bike survivor. ANd the 70s youth wanted middle weight rocket 2 strokes when they moved up market before eventually landing on big Japanese 4s.
How can you ... or anyone ... not just LOVE the looks of the Yamaha SDR???? Come on! That MUST be one of the coolest small bikes I have ever (not) seen. It's GORGEOUS!
Same for the KTM e-Scooter. Love it!
It was out the same year as my SRX 600, and so similar in design, use, style... I think a SDR V2 with a 450cc single 2 stroke and a few tweaks to the design woulda been way cool.
The Yamaha SDR is a cult classic among 80's 2-stroke enthusiasts in Europe and Asia. That thing could scare bikes with 3 times the displacement. One of the fastest small displacement bikes ever made.
The Suzuki SW-1 was actually riding a vehicular 'retro-wave' that was hitting Japan at that time. Nissan is the best example with its oddly-styled Figaro, Pao, and BE-1 passenger cars, and lots of other manufacturers made 'retro-styled' versions of their cars since it was in vogue. Suzuki was following a trend and I can't say it looks bad.
Looks comfy honestly ! 😅
The MH 900 is a work of art. It had the Monster power train with that streamlined art deco styling reminiscent of Paul Smart's 1972 Imola winning machine, yet named for Mike Hailwood. The Moto Guzzi Griso is a lovely, stylish sport touring machine with weird but wonderful cafe racer presence and performance. As you can no doubt tell, I love off the wall Italian classics.
I don’t think he gets it. The MH900e should never be considered as “weird”. The word itself carries a negative connotation.
@@gs1100ed A weird pick indeed. The weirdest ducati imho is the Paso. Just because of how it's an oddball in ducati's design language. The fairing is unusual and is continued where you'd expect a screen.
That rear swingarm 💌
@@anonymous-rj6ok The weirdest Ducati is the Indiana. Still don't know what they were thinking back then...
Multistrada 1000 🤮
I actually love how MV just doesn't keep one style, they don't try to satisfy everyone
Instead they target two groups & go completely bananas with it, would love one of them in my garage!
I guess he never heard of the 1970 MV Agusta MV600 Roadster...I feel Mr. bart needs to do more research on all of his subjects.
I’ve seen the rush in person. It’s even more beatiful than on pictures
Re: the Royal Enfield 'Trial' name. There are two motorcycle sporting events that are called trials. Observed Trials, with the ballet bikes where the point is to ride through a difficult piece of terrain without putting your foot down, and Reliability Trials where the object is to have a bike survive harsh conditions with minimal self-support. Back in the '50s a reliability trials bike would resemble the Enfield, a rugged simple bike that could go anywhere and take abuse. So the Enifeld Trials is a sensible name for a rugged retro-styled bike.
actually the Ducati mh900e is one of the most interesting motorcycles i ever saw, i'd love to own one!!!
The SDR 200 is also very similar from a styling perspective to the SRX 6 when you sit on them. I like the SDR a lot, it has about 34 horses I think and weights only about 110 kilo. Nice piece. I‘d really like to own one, as I also have an SRX 6, but you almost can‘t get spare parts, as it‘s so rare (and also pretty expensive meanwhile)
I think the SDR 200 would have flown on a moto gymkhana course.
I have an SRX 3VN 400. It's considerably heavier than the SDR and produces 32 HP - 2 less than you than you say the lighter SDR put out. I only ever sat on the SDR, but I sure wanted to ride it. It had a port valve, I think, so it would have been pretty tractable. But when wound up, it must have have been a blast! The SDR was one of the more eye-arresting machines of the era.
Ive had a 1XL for 25 years. It probably weighs less than an SDR now. It's had a lot of mods. I'd probably swap if for one.
OMG HD Nova Project. I drool over that motorcycle. I even have the HD Low Rider ST (based on the FXRT) poster on my wall and set as wallpaper in my pc as inspiration in work. Super love that design and it's iconic.
Agree. Though as a guy who owns all kinds of bikes, I'm a rider and not just a HD rider. I also own a performance built Dyna LRST and performance built Streetglide rippers. So it probably makes more sense I really dig the Nova projects vs the standard HD guys. Its really cool to see the moco at work in those days vs today's HD.
The Triumph Tigress was available with either a BSA Bantam derived 175 two stroke or a purpose built 250 four stroke TWIN 😳.
Yep, looked in the comments to see if this had been picked up. My Tigress was a 250cc 4-stroke parallel twin with an oil-bath chain drive to the rear wheel. It would do 75mph if there was no headwind and returned over 100 mpg. I still regret parting with it, it was a great machine.
I've got to wonder how much of these 'bart' videos is accurate as, with bikes I've had personal experience with he's usually wrong (this Tigress info is on Wikipedia ffs!). If he's often wrong on the stuff I know about then Occams Razor says he's probably wrong on other stuff too.
@@Shaun.Stephens Much said to spark a reaction I suspect! Works for me - high rate of "what???" reactions followed by a comment means its interesting entertainment imo
BSA listen to all of the experts who said that if they made the three-wheeled Ariel tricycle they would sell millions of them and they sold hardly any wasted a great deal of company funds producing that piece of s***. People tell motorcycle companies to make this and make that and then when they do it nobody buys the product.
A member of the local Motorcycle Club here in Australia has what I believe was the last Norton Commander sold, and it is a phenomenal machine, agile and super-fast; the only problem I know he's had with it was a minor wiring issue relating to the sidestand switch. I think you've undersold that machine! As for weird motorcycle. I don't know if you've mentioned them in other videos, but I would include Mitsubishi's Silver Pigeon and Fugi Heavy Industries' (now Subaru ) Rabbit scooters !
I wish Yamaha would revive the BW 350 something about it having huge wheels makes it somewhat unique
Honestly, I am someone who loves anything on two wheels. As i was presented with each new "wierdest" I asked myself, "Would I take it for a ride?". There was never a no. And honestly,as far as the bathtub styling, Id love to see a big bike done that way...its no different than a full fairing covered bike...it just has lines that flow. Reminds me of the styling for freight trains in the 30s...much like a bullet...sleek and adorned with art deco flair
I love the Suzuki SW-1 ''bathtub''. The built-in saddle bags are fantastic, and w/ a big bore kit , would be my ultra-modern runabout.
or just buy a Honda Deauville , much of the same.
The bathtub style that Edward Turner inflicted on the classic triumph is company made were despised. It made the motorcycle look like it was wearing a skirt. Because Edward Turner was the head British designer everyone followed his lead even Harley-Davidson with the boat tail on the big twin as well as the Sportster and the look was not well-received at all. All attempts at making a real motorcycle to have scooter attributes were complete abysmal failure.
I've got to disagree that this is the weirdest Royal Enfield. That dubious honour has to go to be the Diesel-engined Bullet.
I owned an SDR200 also known as the 2TV. It is the most fun bike I ever owned and the most regret that I sold it. It weighed 222 pounds and destroyed liter bikes in the tight Twisties. Riding up Tuna Canyon in Southern California there was no bike that could come close. Arriving at the Rock Store people gathered around it and a million questions were posed to me. My most fun besides riding it was to park it and walk away to watch people gawk at it. Jay Leno himself liked it. I wish I could post pictures of my bike here.
That SDR is really cool, I’d love to take a rip in that thing!
I must be weird - I own two of the bikes on this list. The Ducati MH900e (#0055) and the Guzzi Griso.
The MH900e is a work of art and a fun bike to ride, it is light and nimble, and the 900cc gives it more than enough power. The old-school 2V Ducati exhaust note - just fits! The Griso is a real gem. I owned an older 4V sold it - regrated it so I picked up the last version of the 8V. An amazing beast of a bike. As others said until you ride (and hear) a Guzzi you can’t fully appreciate them. All Guzzis are weird, but the Centauro has to be at the top.
As for the SDR200 - yes, I see the parallel to the Monster, but that frame had its start with the Ducati 851/888. The original Monster was the 888 frame. An 888 stripped down with bar risers to appeal to the UK trend of sport bikes that were modified post-crash and turned naked. Ducati definitely hit a cord, but I suspect they could have never dreamed how successful that Monster would be.
Great work on the video - thanks. It's great to be weird.
The Ducatti MH900e is a work of art, almost like jewelry.... you, however, are a masterpiece. ♥
I love the Suzuki SW1. Looks great. And I will accept no criticism of Norton rotaries, particularly the Classic, so cool so square, so bloody powerful.
What about the Guzzi California with the auto gearbox?
The Griso's one of the best looking bikes of the last 25 years imo. A standard roadster, sleek and just lovely lines. Maybe there's too much of an urge to slot things into rigid categories?
I do kinda dig how that Suzuki looked, it has a weird charm to it.
Looks like a DC comics Dick Grayson Robin motorcycle
Try buying a SDR, Performance Bikes managed to get hold of one when it was a current model and really raved about its handling and speed., I think that's why they have this mythical presence.
15:51
No sir, you were absolutely correct from the get-go. Please don’t apologize, because this really is a hideous looking motorcycle. You have to call them as you see them because there’ll always be someone whose feelings will be hurt.
A note: the Ducati trellis frame was born in 1980 with the racing 600 TT2 (Ing. Taglioni) , a frame that is found in the 750 TT2 and then in the 750 F1 road version of 1985. Of this there will be the 400 version for the Japanese market. Who knows who inspired who... Second note for Guzzi: the name Griso (from the Lombard dialect gris = grey, "dark as ashes", evil) comes from a famous (for Italians...) literary character of the 1800s taken from the novel "The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni, set in the same places as the Guzzi factory (Lake Como) . Il Griso was the head of the Bravi, the criminals in the pay of the villain of the novel, Don Rodrigo. Griso was entrusted with "the most risky and unfair undertakings". Seen this way, I'd say that as a name it's very appropriate for a "bad" and out-of-the-box bike. Definitely a very cultured reference, not so immediate.
I am a long-term motorcycle rider riding over 50 years. I have a collection of burger cycles that include BMW BSA triumph Euro even a jawa. I have a genuine / Vespa p150 scooter with shaft drive and a Kickstarter. People questioned each other about why I bought such a thing and it's like it is fun around town. I stopped at a light and a bunch of Harley guys pulled up next to me and challenge me to erase and I told them two conditions number one they only got a gallon of gas and number to they had to kick-start their motorcycle and the guy said touche.
Having ridden 63 years to date, I've also had some left-field machinery over that time, starting with a BSA M20 side-valve, a pre-war Ariel VB 600 single side-valve, a Raleigh RM1 moped, a Vespa 125, a Jawa 250 single and a Jawa 350 twin that I kept for 15 years. Wish I still had that one, actually.
The Mk1 Honda VF1000, with the second small radiator hidden behind the clocks and the square down tube that was also part of the cooling system! not to mention the Anti Dive Forks that spat You over the bars under sudden hard braking, I thought the students had been allowed to design it then some idiot accidentally put it into production rather than prototype
That SDR looks like a nice bike tae me.
That Ducati is really beautiful ! No odd at all
Hmmm that Yamaha SDR always (and now) seemed pretty awesome to me. I remember seeing it and other bikes like it in Japanese bike magazines and drooling over them. I wish I had gotten an SDR.
The SDR is a derivative of the trend that was happening in roadracing at the time... we were taking two-stroke motocross engines and putting them in suitable frames, things like older TZs or small roadbikes - because small displacement real roadracers weren't something you could even get your hands on, affordably or otherwise *I had a 250 Ninja with a CR500 in it
Yamaha saw this, and answered with the SDR
The SDR has been kicking around in my head, lately, as inspiration for a similar place to put a 750 Vulcan powerplant, so having it as the thumbnail drew me in
Guzzi bikes are not for photo or videos, you have to be at 1 Mt from it to understand what a Guzzi is...
The Suzuki RE5 wasn't bad, it just didn't sell. And that bike at 9:22 is cool as hell.
I beg to differ, the RE5 was a disaster on wheels for Suzuki, so unreliable that I understand they tipped hundreds of them into the sea rather than sell them, because they knew that the cost of the warrantee claims would be more than they could ever hope to make from selling them. Smooth, quiet and gutless.
i think the yamaha sdr look fine, ducati monster was the weird one
Oddly, I find that bathtub-looking bike visually soothing. I'd ride one, and I also liked the Ducati Monster-ish Yamaha bike...a lot. Oh, I also think the Aprilia Mojito looks hot, and I totally dislike scooters. It has this artsy design to it that just flows!
EDIT: I have a Gen 2 ZX-10R and a Gen 3 Hayabusa, so I already have peculiar likes! 😅
Yes, that Suzuki is very desirable.
Yeah, I really liked it as well. I guess that's what makes the world an interesting place. I'm going to really dig my cyber truck when I get it, but after a few years and everything starts looking like a cybertruck it would be easy to mold some foam blisters onto those flat panels and make a bathtub cyber truck. What a whale! I'd love it.
I agree with most of your list but the Rush is a beautiful rendition of a naked bike.
Where I live, if you have a DUI, you lose your license, but you can still ride a scooter, and in my mind, hence the name Mojito. Its for drunks, maybe.
The Yamaha SDR is an inspirational bike for me. One of the coolest & high water marks IMO in a 2t format. I like small bikes, I really like two strokes, and Yamaha makes my favorite. So knowing you can't get them in the US and they go for high prices I set about making my own version in concept. Fun video.
$8K and you can get an SDR here legally now because of new rules.
Yamaha made a 600 cc air cooled version of the SR200, it was the SRX6 and I had one in 1986. A 600cc thumper that weight under 400 pounds. It was more fun than any bike I've ever owned and I regret selling it. Super nimble and from 0-60 very torquey.
Great bikes for road racing!
SRX600 no connection to SDR. SDR was a beauty and a devil.
So you start with Norton and totally ignore the racing rotories that were amazingly successful and the road bike based on them
The reason you never saw many RE Classic Trials and why they were around long is they are a limited addition.
Clearly they are stripped down like Johnny Brittain's winning machine of the late 50's so you can register it and ride it on the road.
The colour schemes chosen were factory team colours of the time.
The only difference between the Classic 500 and the Trials 500 were the pillion seat is removed, an upswept exhaust and taller handlebars.. Ive got a Classic 500 and I've removed the pillion seat and added trials bars to mine as I like the more upright seating position.. I get a few people come over and ask what happened to my red frame.. Thinking its a Trials bike.. But its how I've chosen to modify it to make it more comfortable to ride..
I actually prefer it's looks over the current Himalayan.
My brother owned a Ducati MH900E for awhile, so I got to see one up close, though I never actually rode it. What an unbelievable work of art that motorcycle was. Just unreal.
When I think Norton commando the last word that comes to mind is sleek, cool yes, but not sleek.
The first Griso sold by Moto Guzzi was beautiful to my eye. I even started saving up a down payment. Their lack of dealer support locally and the gradual changes to the appearance and engine put me off. They were sport tourers or standards in my view. The Triumph scooter seemed ok, too. They're allowed to sell a scooter, man!
The small Yamaha SR 200 is cool. Lattice frame & 2-stoke liquid cooled motor. It would be fun on back roads with tight turns. Frankly, you're more interested in styling. It's a MOTORcycle with all it's intricate small parts & a motor. Not for tall chunky riders I suppose.
Dude, the SDR was a take on a smaller version of the RZ350, a race winning badass bike that it's super rare today. I think it was their effort to bring back that love.
Loved the RZ350. It was signed by Kenny Roberts or something like that. I'm old and can't remember but I drove it to highschool in the early 80's.
Though absolutely weird, meaty and gnarly appearance, Rush1000 is EXACTLY what MV Agusta stands for aesthetically, especially if you consider the 'hearkening back to the back when times' phrase. In the 1960s, 70s, and even 80s, MV naked sport motorcycles had round headlamps, exposed mechanicals and very minimal body parts. The edgy and angular appearance of MV is a very small (but iconic and the most beautiful) part of the MV heritage. Rush feels like they finally found their way back to their roots. And MV is gonna be going ahead with this direction even more, looking at the latest render of the equally weird cafe racer inspired from the 70s 750 Sport. TBH the latest render of the cafe racer looks the weird sort of weird if you know what I mean😅
I don't ride any longer but this channel always entertains and maybe one day when I can move out of the city again I will get another Ducati 748.
Moto Guzzi Griso is a roadster. A bike ahead of it's time. BMW took the idea of the Griso and made the RnineT. But they did it much later when the whole modern retro vibe was in full swing! If you compare the RnineT 1200 boxer and the Griso 1200V8 SE they have very similar power weight.
How about the feet forward Quazar? Built in England in the 70's, I have some old magazines at home, I'll check them out and post the pictures.
That Douglas motorcycle company in England saw the writing on the wall and instead of wasting their money and making their own scooter they became the importer for Vespa.
15:45 The Aprilia 6.5 has an exclusive accessory, the swingarm axle contains a retractable cable and padlock. Never seen anywhere else.
I’ve ridden a Griso. It’s a truly excellent bike. Dare to be different. The Griso works.
Norton made/make rotary engines for light aircraft. Probably why Norton used them in there bikes for a while.
They did quite well at the TT
Ducati didn't copy the SDR for the monster.
This and the original speed triple are just de faired sports bikes with wiring tidied up.
So the frames etc are identical to the sports bikes Ducati 900SS/851/888.
Thanks for this very colourful list! I happen to own a Griso, and although one could argue that ALL Moto Guzzis are 'weird', I think the Griso is not the weirdest of them (e.g. you should check out the Centauro or the Audace). Ok, fine, the Griso looks unusual (and I think: beautiful) but it is also an incredible fun, fast and powerful motorcycle.
For Yamaha, you could have mentioned the MT-01 (which I also happen to own 🙂): a bike that looks like a sportbike but with a 1700cc cruiser engine that produces an insane 111 lb⋅ft torque... For unknown reasons the MT-01 was never sold in the USA.
I've owned a 1984 MkIII Le Mans and a 1990 MkV Le Mans. Both bikes were head turners in their time because they were so different. People would come up just to have a chat about my bike. I owned the Mk V for 11 years from new.
For looks the MkIII, for performance the MkV. Both had Australian (I'm Australian) made Staintune stainless steel exhaust systems, that sounded like nothing else.
I have a Griso and love it!
I recall an article, I think in Motorcycle news, that claimed BSA had bought thousands of 50cc engines from the surplus market since the moped market in Britain had collapsed due to legislative changes and they were wondering what to use the engines for, engines probably costing pennies per unit. One idea finding favour was a small shopping tricycle aimed at the housewife popping down to the shops and such a vehicle offered several advantages over 2-wheeled transport; namely, it would be a load carrier that didn't need putting on a stand, wouldn't be top heavy when laden and wouldn't fall over - the Ariel 3 was probably a great little machine when used for the intended purpose which begs the question, why was it advertised with strapping blokes riding it and treating it like it was an amazing performance machine??
The Norton Commando is one heck of a bike, set up properly they are fast and smooth and the best from the end of the popular British bikes era. They also have a great resale value and parts are readily available.
It's so pretty too.
I like your list here. Of course, you can always argue what model to pick, but all of these stand out. The Honda Rune could also suit the selection, a bike that allegedly cost Honda 100,000 dollars to build, yet they sold for 25k, leaving a cool loss of 75k for every bike sold if true.
Agree. The Rune was a weird one...
Griso is phenomenal, man.
how can u not get it?
Agreed!!
There is no accounting for taste. I think he missed the mark on several of these bikes.
"KTM was hard to pick a weird bike because they're all weird"
*shows the KTM weirdbike*
Me: "What the fuck is that thing?"
5:07 The 999 is my guilty pleasure bike. I would love to own one, I think they look beautiful, sound amazing and is honestly one of my top 3 favourite bikes ever made
I own a BMW C1!
The point of buying it was exactly that, as a car driver who's never had a motorbike nor been interested in them, I was sick of getting stuck in traffic and that seemed like the perfect half-car for the job!
I just had to ride to a big city whilst it was raining, and it is just amazing to be dry and comfy while still being able to lanesplit and jump long car queues; I barely use my car anymore! And yes, I am slowly getting more interested in motorbikes, so their plan is working flawlessly...
Wanted to buy a Norton rotary but I was told I had to buy $8,000 worth of stock in the company in order to buy one and I told them I did not want to spend $8,000 on paper that wasn't worth wiping my ass on.
What about the Ducati Cucciolo model 48? I had one of these and they were very weird, especially coming from Ducati. They were a 50cc moped with the fuel 'tank' IN the frame.
I’m enjoying this series, looking at each manufacturer. I would like a look at the longest model run from each manufacturer
The H-D Nova project was bagged due to budgetary constraints, and... because Honda came out with their water-cooled V-4 line - which would have left H-D appearing as a far more costly imitator rather than a forward thinking innovator.
Holy shit that Ducati is beautiful! ❤️
Edit: KTM just had to include an ugly fairing up front to replace the ugly headlight of the Dukes. The only thing that would keep me from buying a KTM street bike.
That Suzuki, you can see the facelift hayabusa in it. Griso is awesome.
Held my breath for the entire video waiting for one of my bikes to show up .... but end the end I could finally take a breath with my pride intact.
Another couple of "weirdos" are the Yamaha XZ550 and the Honda DN01, honourable mention to the Italjet Dragster Scoot (weird in a good way!) Jamie Oliver (The Naked Chef) rode a Mojito!
Totally agree dn01 👍🏻
I own an XZ550. They are awesome bikes once they are sorted.
Bart- could you please do a documentary on the V4 MOTUS motorcycles of USA!?!? Amazing bikes!
Alot to digest for this one. I like odd ball bikes that no one else likes. For me it gives the bike a bit of prestige. I like about half the bikes shown.
That BMW looks tippy thou.
some didn`t make it because of the concept, other because of the design, but the majority didn`t made it because of the prize
I bought in 2000 a new Royal Enfield Taurus with 325cc Diesel Engine, 6.8 PS, Exhaust on the back of the cylinder, oil filled air filter, 2 Gear shifts (1 for the gears and 1 for neutral from every gear), gear shifts and brake pedal left/right swapped.
It would run with 1 Liter Diesel on 100km (235 mpg) or 1.5 Liter Salad Oil on 100km (157 mpg).
I owned this bike 7 years and sold it because I migrated to Australia.
Yamaha did have line of sport singles in the 80's that are forgotten, but great bikes. The SRX line included several naked machines that had that Monster look before the Monster was sold. The SRX600 was slim and sexy, with a jelly-mold fuel tank and thin, tapered tail section. The first Bandit series would echo this styling but add a trellis frame (which the Monster sported) and a four cylinder which was more in demand at the time than a single. My red Bandit 400 is often mistaken for a Ducati from a distance, by people who aren't highly motorcycle literate. Other notable but forgotten bikes of the era with similar traits were the Hawk 650, CB-1 and Suzuki Goose series.
SDR here in Singapore is already a collectors item. ❤
I was looking at a Yamaha sdr200 yesterday. Very tempted
The "winner" in this group goes to BSA, IMO. What were they thinking? LOL!!! If I were to chose one to own it would be the Yamaha. And just look how close it not only resembles the Ducati Monster, but also the SRX600. Nice video
British companies in general just seem to have a knack for not understanding their customers regardless of which industry.
Nice to see Bart agreeing with me on the Rush. I saw a photo of the Rush the other day and my immediate reaction was that something was not quite right with this bike, styling wise. And by the way, I love the other MVs, from the beautiful F4 to the aggressive looking Brutale.
Lol the rush looks like it got hit by a train
You gotta give the designers credit for trying.
Innovation involves experiments, and experiments never fail.
Griso, definitely not a weird bike at all. Like all Guzzi's they were made for Guzzistia, not Japanese or American followers. Otherriders look at my 2006 griso and think 2018. The Centoro would be more odd than a griso.
When I saw a Picture of the Yamaha SDR for the first time, what shocked me the most is that Yamaha never even tried to make it in Brazil too, not only because the engine is roughly the same of the DT 200 R, but also because of the large 2-stroke fanbase it had.
That BSA Ariel three seemed better than walking until I hit a pothole, by way of massive axel tramp it convinced me at was worse than trying to walk when too drunk to do so!
*it
the yamha sdr 200 is a beauty!
That Norton motorcycle's rotary engine was an outgrowth of Norton's military endeavors decades ago when they manufactured small, inexpensive rotary engines for use on target drones.
I own a Trials Enfield and love the thing so it's a coin flip as to whether the bike is weird or I am.. However the now rarity of them is making them well sort after at least in my part of the world..
10:08 own a Griso Tenni and whenever I park it in the city there is a crowd around it after 5 minutes. This bike delivers both. Enjoyment riding it and enjoyment looking at it. You need time to educate and earn experience as a biker in order to be ready for a Guzzi.
I'd agree with you except for aprilia because as far as I can remember they were always well known for their scooters and small displacement motorcycle. The oddest one that came from them is the Aprilia classic 50 which is a cruiser with the same engine as a RS 50. So high strung 50cc 2 stroke. Not only that but it wasn't even a commercial failure. I saw several on the roads during the 90s.
The Guzi isn't so wierd looking but I couldn't help laughing seeing 8V and thinking "8-volt." LOL
Fun vid. I noted your comment about bridging the gap between scooters and motorcycles. Undisputed fact worldwide is that Honda literally OWNS this "gap" with the Honda Cub and derivatives by all manufacturers. Underbones are the most ubiquitous 2 wheeled vehicles on the planet. I understand your point though from a "vintage loyalty" perspective for the 10" wheel platform stepthoughs based on Piaggio/Vespa geneology and Mods vs Rockers aesthetic. Just a perspective. So I put forth - there are 3 segments, not 2.
Mh900s IS beautiful!!!
I am on my second Griso, a 1200. I think the 1100 was actually a better bike for me but emissions drives some manufacturer choices. I don't think it can be slotted into a category. Bimota DB3 was probably my weirdest bike from a looks standpoint but it handled amazingly well. Suzuki B-King is worthy of being on the list as well.
Love my Griso, fun and comfortable.
Yo bert you should check out the 1989 Honda hawk GT 650
Talking of chopper mopeds, when I was 16 I had the Yamaha FS1SE 50cc chopper version of the FS1-E affectionately known as a Fizzy. I love the look of the SDR!
Compared to all other bikes I personally liked
the SDR 200 that looks very awesome compared to other bikes in this list