1976 Suzuki RM370 - Tom White's Museum
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- čas přidán 28. 05. 2018
- By the early 1970s the manufacturers figures out that increasing the suspension travel on motocross bikes would allow riders to go faster over challenging terrain. Backyard mechanics were cutting the frames and swingarms to allow the shocks to be moved forward and installing cooling fins and heavy springs to help dissipate the extra heat. Fast forward to 1976. The Suzuki engineers went to work and built a completely new machine using everty bit of ingenuity that came from the efforts of backyard mechanics and lessons learned from previous failures. the 1976 Suzuki RM370 was lightweight, the frame was durable, handling was decent, the power was usable, and the suspension travel was over 9 inches. For a Japanese Open bike, it was relatively easy to ride.
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That is absolutely the most easy to ride big bore ever made. I had the 76 way back when. It was amazing!
Yep. Great low-end usable power. Certainly a welcome sight after those TMs.
Such a classic looking machine. I restored one and sold it. I wish I had kept it.
RM 125 1976 So much fun. Great memories. YZ and KZ were great as well.
Back in the day I had a 125 one of the best bikes I ever had it handel like a dream
My first bike, I was 15 years old. I weighed 90 lbs. Wild ride, loved that bike
Thank you very much for posting this video. 1975 was about the year I discovered my love for dirt bikes and motocross. Got to watch mx once a year(with 4 available tv channels I think) with Wide World of Sports covering the Carlsbad GP. Man I wanted to be like those guys and race a dirt bike for a living! Unfortunately, my dad didn’t share my dream or passion for dirt bikes and that dream wasn’t realized(many I’m sure can relate). This motorcycle, as well as others like it during that era, just took me back to a time when a 7 year old boy could hope and dream to be like De Coster, Lackey, or Chuck Sun racing these awesome machines. Thanks again.
It's like you're in my head. Lol
Thanks Tom for the enthusiasm about the old bikes and for saving some important , serious Motocross History.
There was a time when these bikes were like Flys every one had one ot was realy back then.between the rm.s and the kx.s the cr.s..wasn't in there yet .the yz was realy squezzing the rm.s it was the three honda was not there yet
Back then a huge motocross bike was around 2 grand those days are history now plus the older bikes were better cheaper to repair and the weren't ugly then
I had the 77 B model....it came stock with the reservoir Kayaba's. THE best bike I ever owned!
Arguably one of the best looking motocross bikes of all time. And when we put the name DeCoster on the equasion, it becomes even better looking!... : ⁰ )
I owned an RM370A and later a RM370B while working in Saudi Arabia about 1978 &1979. When I bought both bikes you drove your truck into Dammam and loaded the bike into your truck in a crate. When you got home you broke up the crate, mounted the front wheel and did some other minor assembly stuff, mixed gas with 2 stroke mix, oiled the chain and you were good to go.
I rode, nearly always on sand and I believe I rode every kind of sand dune that exists, barchans, seif dunes and sand mountains. After I got comfortable I led usually 2-5 4WD vehicles whenever we had to cross dunes because the vehicles we had were adequate but dunes present challenges that can really cause some pain, either burying the vehicle to the frame or in the worst case rolling. We never rolled a vehicle but we shed blood, sweat and tears getting vehicles out of soft sand and subkha flats that sometimes were quicksand.
Sorry for the diversion, those RMs were absolutely awesome motorcycles. Reliable, excellent suspension for what I was doing, perfect power band, I always got surprised when I got on dirt or rock because the front end would come up in 3rd or 4rth gear. I rode that bike all over the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia and a bit further south and aside from a broken collarbone it was the best dirt bike I owned, but it was my last.
That thing was wicked in it's day. But I wouldn't own a Suzuki mx bike just because they had so many different size fasteners and were just kinda weird to work on. Fast forward to 1989 I decided to switch from a yz490 and race the 125 class in our local desert. Bought a new rm125 and ordered the tallest gearing that sunstar made. Fantastic bike! Actually won the superstition series 125 sportsman class and finished 4th in district 38 125 class. And it was very reliable and easy to service.
What an important machine. First great Suzuki motocross bike.
I loved the late 70s RMs. Beautiful bike.
Those where the days..
Those were the days golden age of motocross
Tons of fun 😀
Beautiful bike! I remember the Bicentennial year very well as I was 11 years old..We used to ride our BMX bikes down the railroad tracks to see everyone racing their motorcycles. I still remember seeing a brand new R M 370 which was a magical moment..He stopped and talked with us then split hauling ass throwing up a huge roost..
I have one. One problem it has is the clutch cover flexes when the clutch is disengaged. In 1979 when they bored it out to 400cc, the clutch actuator was moved to the left side with a pushrod going across through the trans to the clutch.
It really is a fun bike to ride and can lug down to low revs.
I had a 76 Suzuki rm 250 the following year I bought a 77 Yamaha yz 250. They were both great bikes but the Yamaha yz's monoshock was a big improvement over the rms dual shocks. The us was essentially the same bike that Bob Hannah rode to win the supercross series championship that year!
Great video!
Def please do more of these vids on TWs collection, be great thanks for sharing guys.
I raced a RM125 back then...Loved it!
Really cool video!
Great looking 370.👍
I had a brand new yz 360b Yamaha! What a great bike.
I only ever rode my friend's brother's RM50, but it nearly tore my arms off my shoulders. Such torque! Brutal, absolutely brutal for such a small bike. I nearly flipped it!
Yeah, I was that guy! I can still hear them laughing now.
Oh and I nearly rode it in to a wall as well. I never was allowed to go back on that bike.
Savage.
I can't imagine what this beast would have been like. Best left to the real riders out there.
LOL.
The older i get the more beautiful these vinatge bikes gets to me.
Hey, they had a 100 as well. I first started in MX on a 1976 RM100 and then again with the 1977 RM100. I later rode the RM370 during a ride (not on the track) and it was fun
That 100 class was so cool. Really bridged the gap from the little fellas to big boy bikes.
The 77 370 is a really fun bike to ride
Great stuff.
Twin shock was best for my 5'9" frame . Monoshock put me on my tip toes .
Love the RM370, always have. I had a YZ360B .
YZ 360B !!!😀😀😀😀🏍🏍🏍🏍🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🍺🍺🍺
Oooo yea, raced with my buddies who had rickman montesa!!! And a AJS 370 !!!!!
I had the Suzuki 125 1976 it handles like a dream 6 speed transmission I'd climb any Hill Palm Springs was a kid the best running back I've ever had and I'm still writing Suzuki dr650
These where the best sounding bikes in the '70s
I bought the first one to come to Central Cycle in Denver. It was different than the one you have. It had remote reseviour shocks and it had the floating rear brake.
I had a buddy that had one like that when we were just kids, maybe 16, he was a little guy, and that thing would scream!
I could die there, and be happy. What a collection!
Iam "young" but love the MX history!
A guy down the road had on of these back in the 70's, he lived almost a mile away but you could hear him kicking it over before it started, these were jet liner loud.
Yeah the 76 Rm 370 is probably one of the loudest dirtbike ever
The silencer on my was missing and it was ridiculously loud and cool.
great vid thanks. would be nice to hear it at least though. thanks guys :-)
Miss you, Tom.
Still riding my 1978 suzuki ds185 !
At 3:12 it shows the suspension at about 8 1/2 inches both front and rear and Tom later says it has about 11. The 8.5 is correct for that bike.
DB MAG says before that year Suzuki really didn't have a presence in the Motocross but the Suzuki had some nice fast lines of TM Models.There was 125, 250 and 400 of the previous years were actually a pretty big presence in the motocross world. The ( 75 year built but didnt come out till 76) RM 370 was a great improvement BUT there was fast guys on the TMs for sure.
Simmons sold a kit that increased travel for the front end to just under 10”. It was a popular kit, because they recalled the 76 models due to the damper rods coming apart. I had one fail. That bike might have the kit, it would be running compressed air or nitrogen instead of springs. That setup worked really well. It made the front end a little less prone to headshake and gave the bike a kind of ‘74 CR400 Husqvarna feel. You could just ride the back wheel down the straights. It still turned inside of anything. The 250 was more difficult to ride because of the power delivery, but it was more fun, because of the power delivery! Nothing threw real estate back at you like the RM.
The RM370 was a great bike
welcome back to Is It Real?
Aww man, that's sad! I don't know if any of you guys ever raced against Mickey Grey, he was riding for Maico motorcycles back then and all over So-Cal. Pretty wild guy from his parties when his parents were running their guided hunting business down in old Mexico for guys like John Wayne to Ted Nugent in the latter years... He passed away just over 2 years ago.
He should be in the books, he had a room full of trophies from everywhere. I wish that those days were better kept for an online history from the days the sport was brutal.
What's sad?
Upload more of these videos
we have a couple more. you can click on the video links at the end or head over to our playlist Tom White's Museum
Thanks👆✌
Traded my TM 125 for reservoir shocks for my RM.
Those were the days.
Screaming Yellow Zonkers
Had one, scary fast for a dirt bike.
The first MX bike I ever rode was a Bultaco 250 Pursang, then I bought a new 76 RM125, light years difference. I was scared of the 370 so the 125.
What do you mean light years difference? The Bultaco weighed 219 and had 34 hp and a fairly wide power band. The 125 had 18-20 hp and weighed about 200 and was real peaky in comparison. So which was better for you?
Wow! 😁👍
I own a 1975 RM370.I am going to restore it. I also own a 1979 RM 250.Also going to restore that one as well.
In '75 Suzuki had a TM400 but not a RM370.
@Grant Odermatt - You're right.
Looks like military technology filtering down into the commercial market. Definitely the technology was evolving rapidly during the time mentioned by Tom White, 75/76.
If these bikes were available here at the time, would've snapped one up!
where is Super Hunky?
Cool! I hate all that plastic on new bikes
Is the transistorized ignition system of variable timing?
How could this be achieved if so?
I had a 76 370 that was punched out .60 over. It was nasty and it would get you in an emergency room situation if you weren't careful, lol.
The 370 and the 250 has that small double spring silencer on them from the factory! Very hard to find if you are restoring an RM to its original condition! Most of them fell off and were lost or just plain tossed for a aftermarket one!
What do you think of the 1976 400 YZI have one it's in prime condition all original never been tore apart Install rideable
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
..rip..Mr white🇺🇸
The rear shocks are not mounted correctly, they are upside down.
I have a 76 RM250 with a 78 250 C2 engine. Mechanically good, cosmetically not so good.
My dad put a TM tank on his r m 250 wanted to look like a 75 works bike
I had a 1979 YZ400. It was actually too much for me. Friend had the 1979 yz250 and it was a lot more fun.
I have a 75 ts I am adjusting for motocross
LOOK HOW GREAT RM'S LOOKED BACK THEN AND BULLET PROOF TRANSMISSIONS. MY 86 STILL SHIFTS PERFECT,I'M AWFUL TO IT.
76 rm 80 dominated
What about Can Am?
Have you guys got ae green dt 250 2 stroke ?
I have a 79 DT 250 parts bike if your interested. Green,but somebody did a silver paintjob on gastank
Superlight and Superfast
wow the 2019 RM-Z450 looks like hell
I was lucky enough to have owned a 74 TM400, a 76 RM360, when it was I yr old,upgraded with better suspension and more hp, and a 87 CR 500, I yr old. I didn't know they'd become legendary, I just bought them because they were fast and they just happened to be for sale. I still have the Honda,needs to be restored
Is it wrong to watch this with my britches down around my ankles....?
122...Bikes and we're STUCK HERE ON ONE BIKE.....MOVE ON.... I'M OUTTA HERE...🤔🤔🤔
shocks are upside down!
Watched a friend get killed on this same bike. 💔
The Suzuki RM 370 was the first RM l ever layed eye's on Was only 5 or 6 maybe 7 years old was bad trick then and is still bad trick now. Go suzuki
Im in love i use to droll over that bike every time i went into the dealer the suspendtion works so well for a twin shock great vid awsome mor please nice collection 👍😀 you oda ck mi gal rosie gabrielle ch. ambassedo eyes on the world adv rider fisty fun ta watch
I believe the 76 RM 370 was closer to $ 1800-2000, I say this based on buying a 75 RL250 in 1976 trials for $1150 new. A yr prior I came close to buying the 75 RM125 $1550.
Just saying, because facts are important in perpetuity.
I currently have a 1989 RM 250 K, I'm considering putting it up for sale. Hope to get $ 1000...
Why did Harley Davidson never get into motocross? Looks like they would wanna build a dirt bike and compete with the Japanese.
I regret the day that i sold mine
Why not take it for a spin? Rubbish!