The end is nigh for my relationship with Yamaha’s seminal pocket rocket. I have to admit that whilst she is drop dead gorgeous to look at and I love owning her, my collection must shrink.
I thought that the more bikes the greater the joy, but, after a while owning bikes becomes a full-time job looking after them all; how Andy Bolas manages I have no idea. Space is also a nightmare. I have a large workshop and still have to rent another three lock-ups, none of which are as dry as I would like them to be, so the only sensible solution is to thin down the collection to just the bikes I really can’t live without.
The things that have gone wrong with my baby Yamaha are typical of what happens when you park bikes up without preparing them properly for hibernation.
The fuel tap started leaking; the ethanol in
