With the surprise return of the Kawasaki KLR650 after pretty much everyone thought it was gone for good, we can only but applaud the fact that there is at least one more honest dual-sport back on the market.
Currently, we are not spoiled for choice when it comes to dual sport bikes, that wasn’t always the case though. Not long ago every manufacturer had a bike competing in this market segment, but as the demand for Adventure bikes grew, so the demand for more rugged dual sports shrank.
It is in many ways an understandable evolution of the market as most explorers need to cover more distance on road, it is still a shame that it forced bikes like the Yamaha XT350 out long ago. Produced between 1981 and 2000, it became one of the most popular off-road bikes all over the world in the 90s. It was essentially the motorcycle equivalent of a Swiss Army knife, able to do pretty much anything and go pretty much anywhere.
10 Affordable
Back when it was new, even in the 80s, it was always a pretty basic, affordable machine. It didn’t offer much in the way of features and other than the little tool kit had pretty much no options.
On the used market, these bikes are in no danger of becoming sought-after classics and even in good condition won’t set you back much more than $1,000.
9 Excellent Trail Bike
Compared to most other dual sport bikes the XT is actually fairly light, weighing in at just a shade over 250 pounds wet, most people won’t find it difficult to ride off-road.
Being an air-cooled bike, it is also pretty simple to work on even if something does go wrong in the middle of nowhere, you will likely be able to easily get going again without much drama.
8 Able To Do Highway Speeds
With only around 30 horsepower at your disposal, you can’t expect much on the highway, or main roads for that matter.
The bike was geared fairly tall from the factory though, and was one of the few six-speed dual sports, with sixth being particularly long-legged. This allows you to cruise comfortably at highway speed if necessary, with zero wind protection this is still not exactly advisable though.
7 DOHC Engine
For the 80s this was actually a pretty advanced little single, one of very few thumpers that made use of a dual overhead cam four-valve setup.
It proved to be ultra-reliable, fuel-efficient, and made respectable power, even if a little high up the rev range for a dual-sport.
6 Dirt Commuter
One of the best parts about the bike is the fact that it is actually really comfortable and efficient, so running around town or doing short commutes is something it will take in its stride. If you have a stretch of dirt road on your commute, then all the better.
It is also narrow enough to lane split (if you are allowed to do that where you are from) and gets through traffic without ever getting very hot, its heat dissipation is unusually good for an air-cooled bike.
5 Light And Maneuverable
What makes the bike so fun to ride is just how easy it is to ride off-road, it certainly doesn’t have all the power in the world, but it has more than enough to get through tight, steep, technical trails.
The only real downside is the fact that most of them don’t come with an electric start, so it can get quite interesting if you stall it in an awkward part of a trail. It isn’t an easy bike to kickstart and will sometimes kick back.
4 Beginner Friendly
If you are willing to live with the kick-start and the fairly tall 34-inch seat height, it is a very good bike to learn how to ride on.
Dropping the bike won’t bother anyone, with a bent clutch lever usually the worst thing that can happen and when (yes when) you crash it won’t be at any great speed and the bike won’t cost very much to repair, if it even needs to be repaired at all.
3 Classic Enduro
This is a good and a bad thing, the do anything nature of the bike is exactly what people look for in a bike like this, a bike that is able to navigate any sort of terrain.
Sadly, any compromise vehicle is inherently compromised, the XT is no exception. The rear suspension is probably the most limiting factor off-road with only around 9 inches of travel. On-road the bike feels almost powerless with all its torque sitting above 7000 rpm.
2 Rugged Appeal
Riding a bike you don’t really mind breaking always inspires confidence, the last thing you want to be thinking about on a challenging trail is how much a new set of plastics is going to cost.
That is the beauty of the XT, the only thing that can get a bit banged up is the tank and if it gets so dented you can’t use it any more there are larger plastic tanks made for the XT readily available on the aftermarket.
1 In Production For 20 Years
The fact that it was around for so long means that there are still parts all over the place, the aftermarket also still has service parts and a host of modifications available for the bike.
It was a very popular machine, and if you are looking for a first bike to build your confidence both on and off-road, don’t look much further than this old Yamaha.