1978 yamaha xs400

Subject: "1978 yamaha xs400"

Conferences > International Cafe Racer BBS > Topic #859
Reading Topic #859

cafe canuck
Member since Mar-7-06
25 posts

Mar-08-06, 08:49 PM (EDT)

"1978 yamaha xs400"

Does anybody know anything about these bikes? I'm a honda guy but there is one for sale with 6000 mi. I'm wondering hp, top speed and does it have a cdi box or points and coil ignition? I can't find too much info on the net on these bikes but a few of the pictures looked kinda cool. Square tank is a bonus.

RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, Freud , Mar-09-06, 01:14 AM, (1)
- RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, Freud, Mar-11-06, 06:43 PM, (2)
  - RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, Growl , Mar-12-06, 02:22 AM, (3)
    - RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, cafe canuck, Mar-12-06, 04:55 PM, (4)
      - RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, cafe canuck, Mar-19-06, 00:57 AM, (5)
        
        RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, Schurkey , Jun-23-06, 00:56 AM, (6)
        RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, dmar836 , Jul-05-06, 01:14 AM, (8)
        RE: 1978 yamaha xs400, Eric , Jul-19-06, 11:30 AM, (9)

Freud

unregistered user

Mar-09-06, 01:14 AM (EDT)

1. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #0

>Does anybody know anything about these bikes? I'm a honda
>guy but there is one for sale with 6000 mi. I'm wondering
>hp, top speed and does it have a cdi box or points and coil
>ignition? I can't find too much info on the net on these
>bikes but a few of the pictures looked kinda cool. Square
>tank is a bonus.

78 ? ... not sure (points/CDI) ... I'll give a 90% guess that its a CDI

HP? speed? ... its going to be a bit faster than a CB350 ... maybe 5 hp more ... maybe .75 sec in the quarter mile ... I seem to remember the motor was biased for top end HP and was a high revver - ask what the tachs redline is

... and the square tank one .. WAS Yamahas cafe version ... so you have a headstart there ... and I have seen a gloss black painted one - that looked damn good.

Freud
Member since Dec-9-02
890 posts

Mar-11-06, 06:43 PM (EDT)

2. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #1

... and ... keep in mind that that bike would have a direct relationship to the vaunted Yam RD frame/chassis heritage ... so it probably handled/stopped very well

... like a Cafe is supposed to

**********************************
Save the USA ... kill a lobbyist

Growl

unregistered user

Mar-12-06, 02:22 AM (EDT)

3. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #2

I have a friend that has one - has over 60,000 miles or so on it...
It's been reliable and he is hard to keep up with even when following
on a larger bike.

cafe canuck
Member since Mar-7-06
25 posts

Mar-12-06, 04:55 PM (EDT)

4. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #3

So I've talked to the owner a few times now and I'll see the bike tues. night. He has to "clean it up" as it's been sitting in his garage in the corner for a couple of years. Apparently he starts it once a year. He sounds like an older dude and he bought it off the original owner. Also he now tells me that there is a dent on the tank and there is rust on the exhaust. The bugger advertised it as VGC but the more I talk to him the worse it sounds. I'll take pictures and post them after my visit. I hope he's motivated cause I'm not buying another resto job. Been there done that. From surfing I found that 38hp is claimed and it should have rear disc brakes. That' cool.

cafe canuck
Member since Mar-7-06
25 posts

Mar-19-06, 00:57 AM (EDT)

5. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #4

Well the bike that I saw definately wasn't the cafe version. I was hoping to find something close to this...

What I found was a plain jane model that looked like it was from the 80's. Teardrop tank and sissy bar crap but it did have rear disc brakes. Just not enough there to make me want to buy it or even worth posting pics of it. I sure like the look of the bike in the picture though. I think it's either a 77 or 78.

Schurkey

unregistered user

Jun-23-06, 00:56 AM (EDT)

6. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #5

I had a '79 XS400. Maroon, teardrop tank and sissy bar crap.

At that time, it was the fastest accelerating (4-stroke) 400 sold in America. Only the ring-ding RD400 (?) was quicker.

Took mine on a 4,000 mile trip the first summer I owned it. Ran 7K all day long, day after day.

Had some problems with extra neutrals in the gearbox. This was a recognized, "everyone knows about it, they all do that" thing.

Had problems with the screw-type valve adjustment. One backed off during one of those false-neutral WFO throttle deals. Beat hell out of the adjuster, and had problems getting another from Yamaha--they kept sending me shorter screws than what was in the bike.

Like every bike from the late '70's and early '80's, it soon succumbed to Japanese Exhaust System Disease. I stuffed a 2-1 header on the bike and had no further exhaust problems.

I had to rebuild it at perhaps 12K--15K. I don't really remember the mileage. Sold it soon after, as I had just bought another bike and didn't think I needed two.

If I could find that bike again, I'd like to buy it back, warts and all.

dmar836

unregistered user

Jul-05-06, 01:14 AM (EDT)

8. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #5

Looks like a Euro version to me.

Eric

unregistered user

Jul-19-06, 11:30 AM (EDT)

9. "RE: 1978 yamaha xs400"
In response to message #5

the bikes that look like this one are quite hard to find, i've only seen about 5 of them in new york, ohio and pennsylvania and one of those was the one i bought, i was luck enough to get it from a guy who didn't know what he had, for $300, i'm a lucky punk, good luck to you, i love mine, it runs with my rd400 til around 80 and then the rd just continues to pull farther ahead. fast little 400