GROUND-LEVEL FLYIN’ MACHINE

Faster than the laws of adhesion would seem to allow, Yamaha’s 350cc twin is a handler’s drear

By Bob Greene

The R3 twin is the largest and strongest offering Yamaha has to date, yet it is no match in displacement or performance for some of the powerhouses its competition has developed to compete perilously close in price. Kawasaki’s wheel-lofting triple will cut it to ribbons from a standing start, and from a monetary standpoint any Honda dealer will saddle up a sophisticated four-stroke for appreciably less money, and yet, when the truth is known, Yamaha’s simple port-timed 350 can handle this kind of competition — and more. It has its own thing. Unfortunately that truth may not be immediately obvious from a five-minute, around-the-block test ride … if you’re lucky enough to rate that. Our 350 test machine didn’t “drive us up the wall’’ the first couple of hours aboard; tight,…

You're reading a preview of

Hot Rod (Digital) - 1 Issue, October 1969

DiscountMags is a licensed distributor (not a publisher) of the above content and Publication through Zinio LLC. Accordingly, we have no editorial control over the Publications. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including those made in Publications offered on our website, are those of the respective author(s) or publisher(s) and not of DiscountMags. DiscountMags does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness, or usefulness of all or any portion of any publication or any services or offers made by third parties, nor will we be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in any Publication, or your use of services offered, or your acceptance of any offers made through the Service or the Publications. For content removal requests, please contact Zinio.