W
hile it is true that you
only get one chance
to make a good first
impression, it is also accurate
that nearly everyone in this world
deserves a second one. In 1972,
Cycle News' staffer Ron Schnei-
ders was asked to road test
Yamaha's XS 650 street bike, just
over a year after he had written a
harsh review of the 1971 version
of the machine. To say the Ya
-
maha had left a bitter taste in his
mouth would be an understate-
ment, and now, the distributor
was asking him to give it another
shot. Could one trip around the
sun be enough time for Schnei-
ders to let go of a grudge against
both the bike and the Yamaha
Motor Corporation?
"The machine preparation was
poor," Schneiders wrote of the '71
Yamaha, "and several trips back
to the distributor were necessary
to get things straightened out.
The machine had some serious
design flaws, and finally, it scat-
tered and almost scrambled me
in the process." Schneiders wrote
a "scathingly critical" report, but
12 months later, he signed up for
another day on the torture rack
and agreed to test the 1972 ver-
sion of the Yamaha.
The Yamaha XS 650 was first
introduced in 1970. Many mo
-
torcycle historians might label it
as a British parallel-twin made in
Japan, but Schneiders disputes
CNIIARCHIVES
P144
BY KENT TAYLOR
Cycle News tested the Yamaha XS
650 in 1971 and gave it a scathing
review. A year later, the 1972 XS 650
(pictured) was a wonderful ride.
What a difference a year makes.
GIVEN
A SECOND
CHANCE
YAMAHA
XS
