XS1100 Midnight Special

turbo_billy · Posted: Tue Jun 01, 2010 1:09 pm Post subject: XS1100 Midnight Special

Hope I can pick some of your brains.
I have found a 1981 Midnight Special that I am interested in but admit to knowing very little about the bike. The bike appears , from the photos at least, to be in good condition.
Any known issues and anything in particular to look out for?
I remember when they were first released and lusted after one for ages, thinking it was one of the best looking bikes to come out for a while. Well, I`m a little bit more grown up now but still think it`s a looker.
Any help would be appreciated
Kind regards
Tim

hugojose · Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 8:20 am Post subject:

I used to lust about them too. If I can recall it was the first Yamaha four cylinders, and also the first superbike with CV carbs. Yamaha only had singles, twins, or triples before. They had shaft drives to minimize maintenance. Tester of the period found it as good performing as the CBX 1100 or Suzy GS1100. Albeit it was heavy at about 600 lbs so it was more GT than sporty. Testers critized handling at high speeds. I never had one, but had and '82 XJ650 which was sort of smaller newer development of this engine, also with shaft drive. The sweatiest of bikes. Never had any problems, never let me down. The 650 had hitachi carbs. Don't know if the XS1100 had them, if so, parts may be hard to get.

KirkN · Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 8:41 am Post subject:

Yep, it was Yamaha's first four-cylinder bike. The 750 prior was a twin in the early 70s and a triple in the mid- and late-70s. The XS1100 came out in '78 and was both stronger and heavier than the other superbikes - the CBX, the Z1 and the GS1000. And of course, the shaft drive was a real hindrance to sporty handling, at least early on...

I had a '79 XS1100 and it was a sweetheart of a bike for 'normal' riding - smooth, fast and strong.

The Special was the basic bike dressed in 'cruiser' clothes of the day - stepped seat, smaller tank, pull-back bars, etc.

The Midnight Special was a "special" Special. Smile

Kind-of a 'black-out' version. Most of the chrome was replaced with black chrome, and of course, lots of black paint everywhere. Only minor gold-colored trim, IIRC.

In hindsight, the only thing the triples and fours had against 'em was a reputation for clunky, notchy transmissions, and trouble with second gears. My 750 had that problem, but the 1100 didn't. That's about all I can recall...

Good luck, and post some pictures, if you get it.

Kirk

1 · Posted: Fri Jun 25, 2010 7:59 am Post subject:

My 1980 xs1100 was by far the best of all my bikes. The only thing I can remember that I
didn't like about it was the 31" seat height coupled with the heavy wieght.
It was very fast and once I changed the stock handle bars with a pair of shorter turn-downs,
I could keep up with my buddies ninja in all the twisties.
+ you could ride two up and hardly notice the passenger.

turbo_billy · Posted: Fri Jun 25, 2010 12:29 pm Post subject:

Thanks for your replies. Didn`t get the bike in the end. Bloke told me he wanted Â£1500 for it and then listed it as a buy it now on ebay a week later for Â£1300 and I missed out by 4 minutes!

Never mind, there will be more bikes for the toybox I`m sure........ Very Happy

Regards

Tim

concours · Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 4:44 am Post subject:

I had a 1980 new, ran it six years, hot rodded the engine, 1196cc big bore kit, Yosh cams, braced the swing arm and fork, upgraded the shocks, etc. Great bike, just a crapshoot what type of neglect/abuse/improper service it's had. There is a small gearbox at the FRONT end of the driveshaft that needs lube, many were neglected, big $$$! Many didn't get valve adjustments, do a compression test. Just the usual cast of old bike characters, carbs gunked, cleaned by laymen, etc. Good luck!