When the MT-09 hit the market in the mid-2010s, all the moto-nerds adjusted their pocket protectors, pushed their horn-rimmed glasses up their nose, and said “Didja know these aren’t the first three-cylinder engines Yamaha made?”…

No kidding—many riders are old enough to remember the original XS750 production run from the 1970s. Even if you aren’t that old, if you spent any time hanging around a bike breaker in the 1990s or 2000s, you probably saw one of these tucked into a corner of a barn, or perhaps saw an engine sitting lonely on a shelf, and wondered what these machines were all about.

Not a superbike!

Before the XS750, Yamaha built twins and singles. Its big-bore four-stroke was the XS650 parallel twin, which was a not-very-evolved descendant of the 1955 Hosk OHC 500 twin. In the 1970s, a warmed-over parallel twin design just wasn’t going to cut it—that sort of offering had already caused the demise of the British manufacturers. Yamaha saw the four-cylinder superbikes from Kawasaki and Honda and realized it had to come out with its own similar machine, but not a copycat. So, the world got the XS750 in 1976, with a three-cylinder engine.

In pretty good shape, for a machine that’s nearly 45 years old. Photo: @roshoe

The triple was a first for Yamaha; Kawasaki had been building triples for a while, but they were two-strokes with a reputation for vicious power delivery. Yamaha made its own three-cylinder engines with an eye towards reliability and rideability. In fact, if you read the reviews of the late ’70s, it seems Yamaha wasn’t aiming to take over the high-energy market that Big Red and Team Green had staked out with their four-cyls. Horsepower was not the goal, and contemporary reviewers pointed that out (the Yammie made about 69 hp at the crank, at 8,400 rpm, and max torque was around 50 lb-ft at 7,000 rpm). Instead, it looked like Yamaha was aiming to muscle into the touring market. Yamaha even put a shaft drive on the XS750.

A competent-but-not-peaky engine, with low-maintenance drivetrain? Sounds like Yamaha actually wanted to steal a big chunk of BMW’s market. The XS750 was even a bit on the, errrr, chunky side, like its Euro counterpart. Over the five years of production, weight varied depending which configuration you got; the bike came with spoked wheels in some markets, cast wheels in others, and in 1980, the engine grew to 850 cc. Some versions came with factory luggage and fairing. Whatever the version, these machines much closer to 600 lb than they did to 500 lb,.

Love ’em or loath ’em (perhaps unfairly)

The press generally said very nice things about the XS750, even though the first-year bike had some problems to work out. They liked the bike even more in its later iterations. And if you read what riders themselves had to say, most of them seemed fairly happy with their Yamaha triple, for the same reason people like triples today. The engines are naturally well-balanced, they have an interesting sound, and combine desirable power delivery characteristics of both twins and four-cylinders.

Very low mileage, and sold by the original owner! Photo: @roshoe

But some people hate these bikes, or at least they repeat really nasty things about them on the Internet, saying they’re unreliable and junky. Judging by the nice things that most former owners have to say, we’re left with two possibilities. Either Yamaha had awful quality control, and many owners got complete lemons, or perhaps these people hate the idea of anything different and are just talking crap online.

I’m inclined to believe the second possibility, although I will note that I have two experienced motorcyclist friends who bought XS750s to restore during COVID-19, and neither seemed to really gel with their bike long-term. Perhaps it’s a machine that works well for some riders, particularly the type of rider who is inclined to oddities, but upon riding it, they discover it’s just a sensible, civilized ride with a slightly weird engine. They do not offer the same thrills as the MT-09 did when it came along 40 years after the original Yamaha triple. And if you were to say the XS750 had a legacy, I think it would be better seen as the progenitor of the design principles behind Yamaha’s four-cylinder tourers than the hoon-friendly triples that we see in the lineup today.

An all-round motorcycle that was more aimed at practicality than sporting use. Ride reviews of the late 1970s said the XS750 would come up flat in a drag race against a four-cyl 750, but the engine was perfectly suited to real-world use on public roads. Photo: @roshoe

This bike here

Inmate @roshoe, located in Boston, is selling this bike, with 32,000 miles on the clocks and the price reduced to $2,000 because of leaky carbs. He says he is the original owner of this 1979 model, and offers the following description:

Clean clear title.
It has sat for a couple of years,
A new battery, a little fresh gas into the perfect (no rust) gas tank and it started up. Idles smooth , shifts and rides as it should.
Excellent original paint.
I have the side covers
(Pics were taken in a hurry)
I noticed??
Both front brake calipers are damp
(New seals req)
Needs tires
Seat cover has a few cracks
Still very usable.
More pics on request
Video of running riding ? No problem

It appears to be very good nick for a bike that’s almost 45 years old. If you want more deets, contact @roshoe through his ad here.