Marlboro Bikes

RZ-RD-RZV.... and everything in between

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jackson.40
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#16 Post by jackson.40 » Wed Aug 24, 2011 3:33 pm

I was hoping it was a 1983 bike but that frame number would date it around mid 1984.It is also strange that there is no "51x" stamp on the engine.If you brought the bike in December 1984 it would not have been in Japan for very long being used as a promotion tool.I have also never come across any photos of such a bike.I think it is more likely that a dealer in Japan has done this work.I would love it to be a factory bike and it would be great to find out the full story.

Could you send copies of the paperwork you have for the bike?.

Cheers Steve

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#17 Post by rztom » Thu Aug 25, 2011 12:02 am

Andrew wrote:Or, what now looks like the truth..... Yamaha France (or anyone else) bought the bike new, painted it, kept it for 6 months until they knew the Saron brothers were not going to do anything special, and then sold it to Linex in SA.
That's my guess....

As Steve has stated, there never was a "special" from Yamaha in anything other than factory, country-specific colors that was ever issued by the factory, for any country.

The Dream Machine bikes were an anomaly done by the British Yamaha importer at the time. I have never seen, nor heard, of any other "specials" produced by the factory. :cool:

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#18 Post by Andrew » Fri Aug 26, 2011 5:45 pm

Sorry, I thought the last four digits would be enough :???: ....
it's a standard RZV 51X with a couple of zeros before the number, which I know from Steve's past serial number posts equates to a 1984 (if I remember correctly), even though I always thought it was an '83 model until I came to England.
Steve, I really don't think it's any factory special :grin: I wish it was :grin:
I'll dig out all the original papers and have them scanned.

To be truthfull, crashing the bike and losing the Gauloises colours never really bothered me, they're long gone now and will never go back on the bike, it'd be Yamaha Speed Block in black & yellow if it ever went back to standard again, which won't be soon..... it's the missing engine number I've always found strange.
The bike was far to new when I bought it to have already had the engine casing changed.... and I didn't do it :-? :-? :-? the area where the engine number should be is just a smooth blank surface.
Andy (UK)
RZV500R
FRC
Faster Faster !!!

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#19 Post by bogey » Sat Aug 27, 2011 12:22 pm

Steve,

my bike is in Marlboro coluors. Not sure if it was done when new by Dream Machine or if somebody has domne it since. My engine and frame no is 47X002501.

Any info you could give would be great.

Regards

B

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#20 Post by jackson.40 » Sat Aug 27, 2011 4:04 pm

Hello,

To be a original Marlboro bike it would have to be a 1GE model from the second batch of bikes into the UK.Dream Machine painted many 47x and first batch 1GE 500`s in the Marlboro colours after they had done the original batch for Yamaha.

Cheers Steve

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