13 WORST Motorcycles From The 1970s, Nobody Wants Back!
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- čas přidán 4. 07. 2024
- Welcome to 13 WORST Motorcycles From The 1970s, Nobody Wants Back!
For every great bike, there's always one that fails so badly you question how it was approved. These failures have been around since the early days of motorcycles, but they became more common in the 1970s.
It was a time of innovation with parallel twins and advanced triples, alongside the rise of sport bikes in America.
Join us as we delve into the world of the worst bikes ever made, where ambitious ideas often ended in disappointment and frustration.
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Copyright Disclaimer
We do not fully own the material compiled in this video. It belongs to individuals or organizations that deserve respect.
We use under: Copyright disclaimer section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976. "fair use" is allowed for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching. scholarships and research.
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You obviously have no real knowledge of these bike. I have owned and rode all the Kawasaki triples, respected them, worked on them and drove them within their limits and the only others who could keep up were others on 2-stroke bikes like mine. I was a mechanic at all the Japanese brands and everything you said in this video simply is distorted misinformation by someone who listens to myths, tall tales and outright lies by others who don't know what they are talking about.
If you want the real information, ask the people who were there and experienced it as the greatest times of our lives.
Back then if you were owner/riders of these machines you were also mechanic for your bike and YOU did all the riding and handling magic. today the bikes do almost everything for you.
@KO-pk7df wel said.. MC Mechanic on all makes for over 50 yrs too , Kwaka, Yam, etc, obviously this guy is clueless !!
@@dilwyn1 A kind of clickbait to get all us real riders/mechs to rise up and respond I guess.
Agreed..........mind you the first clue was the text to voice bot used to narrate the video.....sure sign of pure laziness......as for dumping on the Z1......next to the original CB750, she was the bike to have back in the day....
And Allen Milyard has done some amazing engine transformations on the kwaka triples transforming them to four and six cylinder and producing a 1500 cc version H4. He's also produced a V twin Honda 90 meaning it's 180 cc . I think I've remembered the name correctly.
Complete crap, I rode fast bikes in the 1970s, if nobody wants a H2, Z1, V7, T160, Laverda, give it to me, have a look at the second hand prices now. You cant even get the photos right. When talking about the Laverda 1000 triple you keep showing pictures of the 750 Twin, Can you not count from 2 to 3?
❤
Z1 bad?...Crack is bad for you.
You have no idea what was bad in the 70's.
A drop in torque caused unexpected wheelies. That is like saying that rising sea levels will cause more land mass.
Certainly a WTF moment. I'm interested in the explanation. Should be entertaining.
He doesn't know anything about torque and what it does.
Nobody wants a Z1 or a V7? Really?
Z1 was the shit back then. Super popular
I've had a Z1 for 40 years 😊❤
a Z1 or a V7 are now very expensive and popular in Europe
I still ride my kz1000 and love it.
The owner of this channel is a total wanker when it comes to bikes........there were some truely terrible bikes back then, just like any period of time, but the majority of the ones he listed weren't them.
I'll grant him the Hondamatic, it must of seemed like a great idea from a marketing point of view, but apparently no one in the Honda marketing team thought to ask riders what they wanted. I think it was primary aimed at the North American market.
What a load of BS. From what I remember most Japanese bikes from the 70s had electric starters. That's one of the reasons they sold so well. If I was offered any of these bike I'd love it. He forgot the 70s US motorcycles made by the bowling ball company and how bad they were.
Had an AMF 1975 Harley Sportster in the 90s . Was very reliable and I chopped the hell out of it. Very few issues with it , but I was a bike mechanic back in the 80s , so I could fix anything that went wrong.
Bought a brand new 79' harley lowrider "amf" that smoked excessively,dealer kept saying just wait for the rings to seat,after 3mo. of riding it they finally decided to take it apart under warranty and found the cylinders were bored wrong from the factory! They gave me a choice,wait 6mo. for back ordered factory pistons or pay for a set of aftermarket pistons and all the labor covered under warranty,I chose the latter.
You either love or hate Harley Davidson.
All BS...No credibilty at all. Obviously not a motorcycle rider!!!!!
Dudes a rookie get your shit straight before you make videos. Tell your probably like 20 something.
Oil leaks and electrical problems on a 1970s Triumph? Oh, the humanity! Everything out of England had electrical problems, thanks to Lord Lucas, the Prince of Darkness.
Luckily Norton Commandos had better results and life from the Lucas parts. My 1st year 1968 Commando has all the Lucas parts still in it even the condensers. The Condensers replacement involved removing the oil tank. But removing the oil tank after the 1st season and then every few years helped keep the oil cleaner until in 1972 Commando got a spin on oil filter.
ALL english bike has lot lot elektric prblem alltime ewery bike or car because all has totally worst lucas elektric parts, all need change better if can if buy triumph or other english shit.
That’s why the Brits drink warm beer: Lucas also made refrigerators.
Nope, they were just fine. I rebuilt BSAs and rode with other restorers of British bikes in the 2,000s. The problem was the vibration of the bikes, not the electrics. Once you secure connections a little better, NO PROBLEMS.
71er Bonneville, Elektrik neu gemacht, keine Probleme.
Best Bike ever!
Can you even ride a bike. The kawasaki 750 triple is one of the most expensive and sought after collectors bikes
I love my ‘74 H2-750 Mach IV. It’s an awesome bike that’s still quick today.
The high performance bikes from that era did just fine... if you knew how to wrench, and how to ride.
I don't agree with 90% of this video..... Go back to school....
Btw,british bikes do not leak oil, they just mark there territory......😅
LOL!!
Got to be kidding. Kawasaki H1and H2
We're 2 of the best.
The writer of this doesn't know what he's talking about. So many datums about Kawasaki H1 and H2 are inverted. Simply inaccurate ; terrible reporting. But don't let reality get in the way of click income huh. That all this is !.
Oh hell yes.
Not to mention the Z1....its an icon of that period.
Nice seeing the best of the 70s bikes The title is a click bait it got me.
Video gets most things backwards... 14:37
I miss my 750 Honda CB special K. One great bike.
Clueless on CZcams
I bought a 74 kz900 z1 in 1078. Keept that bike until 2003. I ported and polished the heads rj carbs, hooked headers. Loved that bike. Sold it with all the original parts that I had kept. Sold it to a collector out of Mexico for stupid amount.
I worked at my uncle's Harley/Kawasaki shop during these years. I had the enviable job of assembling them from the crates and then riding them for 10-12 miles to check them out. I of course would ride over to my high school and pick up the girl I wanted as my GF to impress her.
I can't tell you how many Z1's we sold. We couldn't get enough.
Oh, and no matter if it was an H2, Z1, Harley 74 dresser or a Sportster she was never impressed. She never refused a ride though.
If that had been me, I would be royally kicking myself for the past 21 years. :D
If you ask me Z1s and H2s gave you more bang for the buck than anything built before or since,except maybe RD 350s. Unless of course youre the type that thinks BMWs were exciting bikes.
1 summer with a H2 was enough. I didn't think I'd survive another.
I had the 500 H1 and an R5 (orange and white)- both kept you busy, fun and fast. I survived!
Ah, the RD350B, 1975. One of the most balanced motorcycles ever made. You could commute on it and race it. It could handle it all and do it well.
@@curtwuollet2912 did you like the 25 mpg?
@chadhaire1711 You don't own an H2 for fuel mileage, better stick to your Plymouth Valient.
...so says a 20 yr old CZcams creator. The Guzzi Sport and Laverda twins & triples are cherished sought after bikes.
How does "loss of torque" cause unexpected wheelies???
That one left me a bit puzzled as well........I guess its a case of "tell me you are not a rider but don't say your are not a rider".
Think they are setting people up to sell these favored to them cheaply. These are some of the priciest, most revered everyday bikes that were great investments. They typically sell for many multiples of thier new price are still sought after and are regularly restored... most have dedicated forums. Hardly failures!!!
You have forgotten the 1975 Harley Davidson 1200 cc AMF ,,, the worst pice of crap ever put on the road ,,, crank shaft , Breaks that would fall off the motorcycle, starter , electrical fire , leaking oil , poor performance
A real pice of crap , any of the motorcycle that you listed were 100 times better machine than the Harley 1200 ,,, I know I owned one ,,,,
This guy has no idea of what he is talking about.
I rode a slightly used R5 (orange and white) and later an Orange 500 H1 disc on front (new)- both kept me busy, fun and fast. I survived with a few scrapes!
Kawasaki mach 4 ? I'm gone
this guy is a writer not a rider!
He's a shit writer, so his riding must be even more atrocious.
Bet you he isn't either a writer or a researcher, odds are the script was generated by an AI such as ChatGPT just like the narration was done by a text to voice AI.
Damn I think you got it . And another video can be weaved from all the knowledgeable comments given here.
No one wants a '72 Z1 back??! Do you have any experience with these machines? They command huge prices to collectors and restorers...because they want them back!
''13 WORST Motorcycles From The 1970s, Nobody Wants Back!'' is the title of this video. I wonder if whoever put it together has actually spoken to anybody who owned these bikes back in the 19070's - I imagine not. I'm sure if you spoke to those who actually rode them back in the day most riders would say they really regret having got rid of them and would have another in a heartbeat. I owned a Triumph back in 1975 and sold it when my kids came along. I would have another one tomorrow if it wasn't for the fact that you need a second mortgage to buy one now.
I'm the same with my Kawasaki Arrest Me Red GPz 1000. (Can't remember which year it was, bought it used from someone who was scarred of it after one season of riding) Lovely bike, but a bit of biatch battery wise.....if she didn't start by the third try on a cold day, then the battery was done.
I had the misfortune of owning a three cylinder Kawasaki 500 in 1973. It was a rattletrap that went like hell. Glad I survived!
So nobody wants a Triumph Trident T160 or a Laverda Jota or a Kawasaki Z900? I can only assume that whoever put this list together knows less about motorcycles than I know about string theory.
But the best part is reading these comments. All the real knowledge is in these comments.
I had aCB500T. A rather bland bike, but I never noticed the alleged problematic vibration. A good commuter.
I had one too and it didn't vibrate any more than my 650 Triumph. I wish I'd find one in decent condition. I liked the bike.
Way off being remotely accurate! Most of us would happily own a Laverda Jota, Moto Guzzi, Ducati 860, Triumph T-160, Kawasaki Z1, or a Suzuki rotary. Triumph leaking oil? Call the cops! The T160 was a very nice machine and with some fettling and tuning became even better. You’re also showing entirely different motorcycles from those mentioned. These bikes were typical of the times and some were truly innovative. Can’t judge them by today’s standards.
Had a couple of the Ducati,s both reliable and decent on the road.
Had a 75 Triumph Tiger 750 that never gave me a minute of problems. Only once I it gave me a scare when a cat ran across the road. Stopped at a store, looking out of at the bike, I saw a black fuzzy mess at the rear axle. Thought I’d hit the cat, but turned out that the end of the muffler had blown off when I twisted the throttle.
You really don't know what you're talking about. The Suzuki RE5 did NOT have an NSU engine; NSU licensed Suzuki to produce their version of the engine designed by Felix Wankel. The bikes were not very successful mostly because they were heavy and not very sporting, and many dealers simply never bothered to send technicians to the excellent Suzuki training program. FYI - Suzuki covered almost all engine problems far past the initial warranty period.
The V7 Guzzi was a fine bike, the father of the Le Mans series, and was covetted by many. I know, as I had one and put about 40,000 miles on it with NO issues. Contrary to your statements, the bike was quite easy to maintain and was very low-maintenance by motorcycle standards. Reliable?? these things were BULLETPROOF!! It led me to buy a Le Mans 850, which I also loved; I still have a much-modified Le Mans and will never sell it.
The Z1 Kwacker was an incredible bike, the first real superbike, and it handled VERY well for its time. FYI - Electric starting was standard on almost ALL Japanese streetbikes by the 1970s; only the smallest displacement bikes and big singles didn't have button starting.
The big Maico was a bike for EXPERT riders, just like most 500cc MX bikes. It worked, had excellent power delivery and good suspension. If it was so lousy, how do you explain all those races it won?
It's very easy to sneer with the benefit of years of development, but these bikes were part of that development and deserve respect for that. Many of them were also fun, unlike this video.
Is this guy for real? So nobody wants a Z1, or a Laverda, a Guzzi V7. Really??Or are they being judged by today's standards??
Up to the honda twin that could have used a balance shaft, I could go along with you. From that point on ~
Nobody wants a Z1? Really?
Your 'worst 3' are three of the most classic motorcycles of the last century.
This is what it means to be "Artificially Intelligent."
Why would you put the one bike everyone wants back, first? I had an H1. It was fun. I also had a '74 Z1.
Best Bike i ever owned an ran back and forth in all weathers was a an EX W.D Royal Enfield side vale 350. it had seen a lot of use in its time but was simple to maintain , and the only expense as a was few gallons of gas. Time has moved on and fancy gizmos may be every where but quality and reliability beat everything.
O man, you must be kidding. Two bikes in and I'm thinking, for sure, it'd be great to have those bikes now, all you have to do is ride them within their limits and then there's always after-market parts for improvement. And I'm guessing you weren't there for motorcycling in the -70s. It was a glorious decade on the street and in the dirt.
Quote from the section on the 750 triple,
"Above 3500 rpm it suffered a sudden DROP in torque resulting in unexpected wheelies", huh?? I would like to hear their explanation of how that one works!!!!!!!!!
Fact checks provided by the team at the George Santos for Drag Razor Committee. Content created by someone who does not know me as Jaackie Schlitz.
I always enjoyed my v7. I had the cylinders sleeves and bored to 850cc at about 35000 miles. I don't know what was so difficult about maintenance. It was like taking care of a Chevy six. I still ride Moto Guzzi and currently own three.
Are you ...🤣🤷♂️...The 750 triple was the most fun bike I ever owned Just try and buy one❗️
Allen Milyard has several and he's mutilated them , converting to four and six cylinder 1000cc and 1500 cc . That's when I believe the frame might flex .
Yeah, I had a 500T. At 16 years old and my first street bike, I got along with it until 1983 and shaft driven 650 Nighthawk came home with me. Now that was great bike!
I had a 1973 Yamaha TX-750. It was a great bike. I rode from ILL to Fort Carson Co. first trip. Up Pikes Peak and home again. I had 36,000 plus miles when I traded it for a 1976 Z1 R Kawasaki.
No such thing as a '76 Z1R, didn't make those until '78, then again in '80.
860 Ducati didn't have DESMO heads.
So how many seconds into the video did everyone get when they realised this guy didn’t know what the hell he was talking about…?
For me it was the moment he said “The Kawasaki H2-750….”
This video is okay if you turn the sound off, because he doesn't know crap about 70s bikes.😂😂
He has never ridden!!!!
Yikes... I'd take any bike anytime.
Sounds like someone who's barely ridden spewing a bunch of rumors and garbage. A Guzzi hard to maintain? Nobody wanted the H2 and H4? Kawasaki couldn't keep them in stock! The Hondamatic was crap, a lesson they still won't learn in that few if any want an automatic motorcycle to this day. The Z1 900 was no failure, they just upgraded it to the 1000, it wasn't taken from production at all. Just a bunch of the kind of crap i heard from people who knew nothing even years back when I started in the bike business.
Did l hear the guy or AI say that electric starters were UNcommon at the time?
Yes, you heard correctly., Apparently 4 speed transmission with chain final drive is an innovation too because obviously no bikes had these before the mid 70's.
You did........along with dropping torque causes wheelies............
I've owned four of these "worst" 70s motorcycles and loved them all. I still own a 73 TX750 which is my favorite vintage bike to ride today. It is admittedly a POS, but it's a pleasure to ride. BTW the Honda CB750A is a two speed, not a five speed. ALL 70s Japanese bikes were built with wet spaghetti frames.
Seems like Vintage Vehicles are bashing everything that's a bit old. Now it's motorcycles.
You need to learn about your subject, Laverda Jota did not hold the title of the fastest Production Motorcycle in 1978 -79, That was the Honda CBX1000
Still got my CBX since new!
@@MM_in_Havasu You have no idea how much I hate and loath you.....😁😁😁
a list compiled by someone with zero knowledge of bikes, nothing really in that list is not desirable now and a few are proper classics worth a fair amount of money, before your next video find someone who actually knows what they are on about and sack off the fool that came up with this idea
I'm left to conclude that this motorcycle "history" is created by AI. Wrong nearly as often as right, inconsistent, self-contradictory, narrator can't pronounce the names of either riders or motorcycles, ignorant of motorcycle engineering and motorcycle history both, mischaracterizes bikes (a Guzzi V7 Sport was difficult to maintain?!? WTF?), wrong photos and videos associated with the model being described (e.g., showing a Honda 500-4 when describing a CB500T, Laverda 750 twin when describing a Jota, etc.). Give it the thumbs down it deserves.
KH400, H1, H2, Z1, Z1-R. Love them all, miss them all.
The Kawasaki triple 750 was as good as it could be at the time with koni rear shocks Dunlop TT100 tyres maxton revalved and sprung forks plus a steering damper it was great that's also with a rider who wasn't scared of it
I had a couple of these bikes. The TX Yamaha dropped 2nd gear, apparently that was a known fail point and the H2 was manageable if you didn't try to streetrace with it. Never had a Trident but I DID have a Daytona- all Triumphs from those years leak and have wiring issues- Trident was nothing special there.
TX750,RE5 and TM400 were the only bad ones on here.
I actually rode a the Yamaha 500 in the day, I was a Yamaha 360 Mx racer at the time. I can tell you it was a beast to ride. I stuck with my 360. Looked hard a cz also.
I agree with those below. I owned an H2 back in the day. It did not have a flexy frame, it had a very broad power band you've discredited yourself by repeating the crap put about on this bike. It was not, by far, the worst motorbike. It was reliable, fast, a very fine production racer, and its only real Achilles heel was a prodigious thirst. Brakes weren't fabulous, but no Japanese discs were at the time. singling this bike out for that is ridiculous. So that being said, this is a far as I'm going with your vid, bearing in mind the opening rubbish.
In the 70s tgere was alot of compilation between motorcycle manufacturers. Those bikes were fast and built very good.
My Dad had a Suzuki RE5. Other than the rotor tips, which were problematic (as was finding a qualified mechanic a few years after they ceased production!) the only problems this bike had were too much power for a chain drive (it had LOTS of power!) and it came out at the same time as the goldwing...that had lots of power and a shaft drive...the RE5 just went ZING!
My brother did get out of a speeding ticket on it though...driving to Fort Lewis one cold morning he was stopped by a Trooper on a Harley...who had to warm his hands up over the RE5's radiator before he could hold his pen to write to write the ticket...{!-{>
Get the pictures right, on the Laverda, 😅, images are mixed in of the 750 twin,?
If there's anyone wanting to get rid of any of these bikes I would gladly accept thanks😅
There is a lot of poor/ bad views in this video ( as others agree) I had a TM400 - but a mate who was a fitter/turner made air shocks for the rear and converted the front forks to air suspension and it went and handled very well racing against other bikes of its time...
Have you ever owned a bike, seems if you have you have never ridden one.
What a load of crap. I love the bikes mentioned - all of them!
No hum….I wonder why several of these are sought after and sell for big money today?
The H2 750 didn't sell well because of fuel economy which was horrible at 30 mpg, unless you ran it hard then 25 mpg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Another Plymouth Valient owner.
I have ro disagree, having owned the V7, Laverda 1000 3cl, and z9 in their day, I loved and rode them all every day without issue. Back then, regular maintenance was required by the owner/rider, though I never foudn this onerous
The SC500 was 496 cc and 44 HP
Tenían exelentes materiales en su construcción como resultado una gran calidad 👍
H2 got such poor fuel economy it couldn't go frob das station to gas station in some areas. They are pretty sought after, but they are bottle rockets. My cub scout scoutmaster let me ride his when i was in like 16. It stood up on me in a turn but unicycled through it.
The slew of T-shirt no helmet riders tells me that this video lacks any credibility.
Squids galour.
I‘m trying to figure out how the Honda Cb750a (automatic) has a 5speed gearbox as mentioned in your vlog 🧐?
really am puzzled 🤔
About the 860 GT, , Yvon Duhamel, famous Québécois racer of these years was ofered one to race in Mont-Tremblant Québec. .. . . He came to see the machine. went around. . .and told his wife : I'm not gonna race this shit european bike . . No power, rides like a train. . too heavy. .. . . After a few minutes lady Duhamel told him. . . : If you want to eat next month You WILL race this bike . I signed a contract . . so get on it and give it a chance. . He put his leather and helmet and left on the Ducati . . The lady timed him. . . After a few laps, he stopped and said to Wify, I cannot win on that slow bike . . . Wify ask him, : What is the lap record for bikes on this track. . Yvon think a few seconds. . . It's about 2 min 28 sec non ? ? Wify said yes ! ! ! and how fast did you do it , ? ?? Well I must have done close to 3 minutes, that thing has no power and don't handle kwick as I would like. . . Wify showed his time . . . . Yvon I don't beleive this, you must gooffed the timing. . .. No you were very consistant within 4 tenth each lap. . . Then she said: My man; , you broke the lap time record by 2 seconds. .On a shitty european . Bike.. . he finally raced the bike but crashed . . . .
Interesting review of bikes, but the background "music" is just annoying.
Not worth watching because there’s too many commercials.
Ad blocker takes care of that.......
I didn't get any commercials. I don't even co-operate with yt surveys either that try to find tune our demographic. But they probably deduced my demographic from my watch later hoard .
I had a TM 400. She was wicked.
I had a yz250 landed a little rough off a jump my groan and i decided never again sold it the next day did i not mention i made it home from a mile away in 1st gear yah.
How could you include the Z1 one of the most desirable bikes from the 1970s what a load of bullshit
What a load of crap
No Harley Davidson? You own a Harley you better own a truck too. You will need to get it home somehow.
Like the old joke goes, "What do Harley's and Hound Dogs have in common?" "They both prefer to ride in the back of a pick-up truck then move under their own power".
Wasn't there, doesn't have a clue
Back then we used to say Harleys best f#@ the rest.
This video brought to you by the High Maintenance, Oil Dripping Sluggish running, Over priced "HARDLEY" Davidson.
This article is garbage, pure trash.
We’ll have 1973 450 Honda scrambler like carbs better then fuel injection got from father when he pasted away rebuild disassembled putting back together
I had a 78 honda cb 500 smoothest riding bike I owned even though it was wore our when I got it
That 🎵 music turn it off I don't know which is the worst beautiful woman or that music
Uh, the Trident and BSA equivalent was a really good bike, just not as good as the Honda 4. The H1 and H2 were straight line bikes.
Saw enough to know you know nothing about bikes. Outta here, marking as don't recommend.
It's a given-there are people who have knowledge of a particular subject. And there are people who know how to make videos. But they are RARELY the SAME people! This is a perfect example of someone who is technically competent with a camera but who otherwise doesn't know what he is talking about! Better stick to flower-arranging dude!
My girlfriend ha a small Civic Honda. . with this 2 speeds manual shift at 100 kmh it would rev surely at 5,000 rpm , a very noisy band. . So slow down ? ? ? Nannnnn go faster and it would just purr. .