A local bike dealer here in Portsmouth in the UK caught fire in the late 70's and the staff were running around trying to get all of the bikes out of the showroom. One of the lads started pushing out an RE5 and the shop owner grabbed the bike and shouted "No, no. These can burn. Its the only way we'll ever get any money for the bloody thing!" and wheeled it back in.
I bought my Suzuki GT380B from a dealer in Portsmouth in 1978. They had a row of unsold, new RE5 bikes. I wish I’d bought the year older GT550A they also had but no way I could afford the insurance. I still own that 380! And I’ve added a Kettle 15 years ago.
@@lardycake70 You know, I’m sure it was Rafferty Newman. Sounds incredibly familiar. Plate is “OOW xxxS” which is somewhere along the south coast I think?
Interesting engine concept, but problematic in execution (just ask NSU or Mazda in the automotive world, or Suzuki, Hercules or Norton in the motorcycle world). That said, if hydrogen fuel ever catches on, the rotary engine could yet see it's day...
@@abhimaanmayadam5713 - Rotary engines have trouble with complete combustion of hydrocarbons (due to the shape of the combustion chamber - causing a slow burn). Hydrogen burns faster than gasoline (or any other hydrocarbon fuel), partially solving the incomplete combustion problem of rotary engines. Butanol (C4H9OH) does not solve the incomplete combustion problem in rotary engines (since it is a hydrocarbon).
I sold a brand new one and then ended up owning it it was like a great big two-stroke but it was smoother.. the rotor / engine and transmission could be split from each other and of course the carburetor was really something different
Short answer yes…long answer no, it all depends on which 500cc piston engine you’re comparing it to , but generally rotary engines are comparable in power to a larger displacement piston engine, but the way a rotary engine fires means the actual displacement is arguably different than the indicated 500cc , to be fair it’s not fair to compare by displacement alone
@@smoll.miniatures I rode one for 3 years and I can say that bike in particular was just a cruiser although it wound up really interesting it would not beat the Titan
A very dear friend of mine who was a motorcycle mechanic all his life died of cancer in November of 2023. He used to tell stories that these rotary bikes would backfire out the exhaust when out of time, loud enough to wake the dead. He love to ride his and always had a large smile on his face when he talked about his rotary machines!
I sold my Mazda Rx2 40 yrs ago to a guy I knew he had an RE5. I remember going up motorway off ramps at night in the Rx2 and backing off from full throttle, flames from the exhausts unburnt fuel would light the road up and creating massive backfires...oh what fun for fellow motorists
Suzuki at the time wouldn't allow disassembly of the engine and had safety wired all bolts ending in a lead safety seal. All engine work had to be done at the factory. We were not allowed to do anything at the dealership. One of my mechanics owned a Re5 and we had to ship it 4 times to suzuki for engine repairs. Amazing engineering for the time. Great video, brings back memories.
@@spartanx169x Well, we're talking early to mid 70's, so early days for rotaries. Mazda was about the only other company with any experience with them, so I imagine Suzuki was leery of letting dealership techs work on them. This isn't that unusual: GM had a similar policy regarding LT5 equipped C4 Corvettes, requiring the engines be shipped to Mercury Marine, who helped design and build them. The bigger question is why didn't they partner with Mazda on this thing to help share the load, these engines were maintenance heavy and I imagine this thing burned through apex seals at an insane rate. I assume Mazda wasn't having their dealers ship their rotaries back to Japan when they needed repairing, maybe to specific service centers in the US. Otherwise, getting into rotary powered bikes in the 1970s looks certifiably insane if you wanted to do it all on your own, especially if you're handling repairs centrally. I imagine the theoretical power output of a 500cc rotary dazzled everyone at Suzuki!!!
Exactly our dealership had to send the engine part directly to Japan and they sent us a new engine part to be bolted on to the customer's bike it had a seal on it
"Maybe we should cover that wire beings we have a fuel leak." "Oh yeah, that would be bad." Craig immediately lights the propane torch. That was great. lol
I got my 1988 k100 running. $500 on marketplace, $500 in parts and it fired right up! Never would have attempted it if i hadnt watched every video on this channel
I loved my Norton rotary, biggest problem was the seals letting go and losing compression, Norton rebuilt it at their factory in Shenstone. Great to see another rotary still breathing.
I'd a UK police forces Norton Wankel in the 90s VAs scary fast highly revving engine mine still full police specs parts radio etc had 2 days and owner of a Ducati Monster 900cc perfect I'd tried buying numerous occasions when he offered bike and 10000 pounds he still owns not for sale as has 1 from each decades from 1900s to 90s rotary a and brand new commando
You mean so much to me craig, starting my first project bike this sunday because of you. To everyone reading this: enjoy the Video and greetings from germany👋
OM gosh I can’t believe that in my 56 years I have never heard of the rotary Suzuki!!! This is amazing. I have owned a 1985 RX7 and the engine is amazing. Can’t wait to watch. More comments at the end. Thanks for the content Craig!!!
Great video! Some of the reasons the RE5 didn't sell well was its high price and poor gas mileage around 31mpg. Norton also made a wankel called the Commander from 1987 to 1992. Some were used by the London police. These were twin rotor and had 85 hp.
Rode a water buffalo for years. I did ride one of the rotary Suzuki on a test ride once. The thing was smooth as silk all through the rev range. The GT750 pulled harder, but the rotary was just plain smooth. I didn't ride the rotary hard, but the GT750 when pushed revealed the hinge in the middle of the chassis. Lots of memories from this episode. Thanks for inviting us along.
@@adotintheshark4848 As I said, I test rode the rotary, but I had already bought the Buffalo. There wasn't enough difference for me to trade. I put over 50k miles on the GT750. Sold it to a friend at work. Bought a GS850, eventually hung a sidecar on it, because a friend wouldn't let me ride his BMW with a Steb sidecar. When I got married, traded the rig and a Ford in on a Fiat 124 Spyder so I could talk to my wife while we were riding.
@@arthurjennings5202 the RE5's biggest issue was that complicated Mikuni-Solex carburetor. It's very difficult to get it set right enough where the machine won't hesitate or surge. Another thing with the RE5 was, it is nearly impossible to kick start, though it has a lever. I couldn't do it and my bigger and stronger friends couldn't either!
@@arthurjennings5202 I owned three of those, two '72's and a '74. I liked them better than my RE5 too. I rode the '74 practically till the wheels fell off.
Wow, i used to be an re5 Owner a while back, fun video, i was not expecting the statement at the end that most re5 owners are also jawa owners, because i happen to also own a jawa as well. We just love old school niche motorcycles. Great Video Craig!
I'm 69 years old and have only seen two RE-5's in my whole life. One was brand new at a Suzuki dealership in 1975, and in the early 90's I saw a 1976 in mint condition at Mid-Ohio racetrack. The owner had rode it to the event. Keep after it, they are so rare that it is worth restoring. Best of luck Craig!
we had a local shop that raced RE5s. They did well too, the only modification was upgraded shocks and fork springs, and replacing that complicated lump of a carburetor with a Mikuni 40mm motorcycle carb!
I owned two fully restored models the 'M' and the 'A' at the same time not too long ago, very reliable machines and fun to ride. Too many misconceptions regarding these bikes.
Just fun fact about this “Jawa”. Technically it isn’t Jawa. Manufacturer was Motokov and name this bike in our country (back then Czechoslovakia) was Babetta (the name is from movie Babette goes to war). But for export to western countries for better selling chances they rented name Jawa just for this product. And I realy like how you pronounce JAWA (Janeček Wanderer).
I taught my son how to. If he wanted to go riding and the bike had set for the winter. He could fix it himself. Later on he made a little money cleaning a few . Something a lot of people have no idea how to.
I'm the opposite. I used to rebuild hundreds of carbs in the 80s and now I hate them. Even more so now since our gas has ethanol in it that destroys them.
I imported a RE5 from California to the UK in the 90s, didn't need any work doing to it and totally rust free, but it would only run normal on half choke. If you purchase one of these bikes, compression check with the special tester before you hand over good money.
I can picture a room full of designers, engineers and fabricators standing at a dry erase board talking about making this bike. The only person missing was the one guy that would ask why.
Why? Because some will and have argued that the rotary engine is a superior design to the standard cylinder/piston design. Mazda has been very successful with theirs.
@@spartanx169x I get that Mazda had some success with the rotary. However, I don't recall seeing a new rotary powered car since the 90's. I owned an RX-7 for about 5 years and I've rebuilt a rotary engine myself so I know a little about it.
It was the seventies. Computers weren't really a thing yet - the only way people had to figure out if a technology had what it took to make it in the market was to throw it at the wall and see if it stuck. "Why?" would be answered with "because it might work!" and nobody would see a problem with the reasoning. I figure at SOME point someone must have looked at the overcomplicated mess this project was becoming and realised it'd never actually sell in significant numbers, but by then it must have had too much inertia to stop.
I followed a friend on his RE5 and I've never heard such a strange exhaust note! It's like a cross between a 2 stroke/4 stroke/ turbine noise! Great bikes, but terrible fuel consumption and needs a good understanding of all of the components and ancillaries to keep them running sweet and, yes, those early 'globe' flasher lenses are as rare as rocking horse sh*t.
Really cool bike and I do remember that no one would buy them off the showroom floor. My mom bought me a Suzuki TS185 when I was in high school in 74 and our Suzuki dealership actually had one for show just to see if anyone would be interested in buying when they received them for stock.
I've been working on my 1982 Honda CB900C and all your videos have been a major help! It's super informative watching you work on so many different problems and diagnose them all.
I remember this bike being released. Even then it was clear that Suzuki had taken the simplest internal combustion engine with so few moving parts and created a ludicrously complex leviathan. Even the dash cover stuck down on the press bike. Such a shame.
Motorcycle shop near had one of these in the shop. It had 1 mile on it. Back in the day the dealership had to cannibalize some parts off of it to repair customers bikes.
Hi, Craig don't know if you'll see this but just wanted to say thank you for all the knowledge you provide for us and your passion for motorcycles. I first saw you over on the Bikes and Beards channel some years ago and really enjoyed videos with you in them but Shaun makes some fantastic stuff on his own lets not get this wrong. When I heard you'd created a channel I instantly headed over and have been watching ever since. I've had some troubles over the last several years and I have always wanted to get a motorcycle but your content, Shaun's and Wheels Through Time gave that push to go and sit the CBT (Compulsory Basic Training. A legal requirement before you can ride and motorcycle up to a 125cc, you can take various licenses depending on your age that allows you to ride various cc. A license allows a full unrestricted cc.) I took it a few days ago and passed which I'm over the moon about. I'm looking forward to getting my first motorcycle soon and hopefully on a long journey of motorcycle passion. With the knowledge that you lot have provided me I hope I can provide the best care that any motorcycle deserves. I hugely appreciate you and Dan and I look forward to upcoming content. Hope life is treating you well and all the best, cheers.
my first video I've watched, and what struck me was how little mechanics this guy knows, nor electrics, nor anything really. I guess he just guests actual people with knowledge and skills and people don't notice what actually happened....
what a treat! Your bike show is amazing. Cant wait for your show to get posted, reminds me when I was a kid waiting for the brady bunch show to come up. lol
Awesome video Craig, im glad you gave an update on the gt550. Max is awesome and i hope he gives more updates on the progress. I have a Gt550 parts bike i would give him if he ever came down to Oklahoma.
This is such a cool bike and two of them! Thank you for another cool video. It's going to be a great weekend. Those coffee cups are super cool also. Craig and Dan you rock!! ❤🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Nice detailed video Craig! I've worked on just about everything with 2 wheels.. *except one of THESE!* I've always been curious to see the inner workings of the Suzuki Rotary RE-5, so this is a real treat for me! It almost looks like they used 1/2 of a Mazda RX-2 carb on those, since the RX-2 had a 4 bbl. from the factory. I'm thinking you probably have a stuck thermostat rather than coolant getting into the rotor housing, or it would probably be throwing a bunch of white smoke. Anyway, good to see it actually running again. Max is pretty knowledgeable on these. Good guy to have around if you're going to get into it further.😉👍👍
Just getting caught up on your videos. Max is awesome. He would be a great addition to the channel you to work so efficiently like longtime friends. Craig, please bring him around more. long time subscriber first time commenting. Hello from Michigan.
I love the videos and am so glad you’re making more and getting more popular. With that said, please do something about the quiet dialog, when I turn it up enough to hear what you guys are saying the music is ridiculously loud for 3 seconds and then back to quiet again. That and all the fake video cuts make it hard to watch. Thanks and keep up the good work!
Love Max's knowledge and attitude. Top guy! BTW Craig, your glasses need adjusting properly so you don't need to keep pushing them up all the time buddy
I really enjoyed this episode, I think Max might be my new favourite person on RU-vid, you definitely need more episodes guest starring Max in the future 👌🏽
i love seeing these vids with a different kind of motor. the diesel was great and so was this rotary. interesting stuff. would love to see a teardown vid of the motors
Great video but the sound was quieter than normal, i had to increase volume to hear you guys as always in the other videos. Have a great day, cheers from Chile
I was doing some work in the front yard about four years ago when a whole flock of vintage Japanese bikes came past. One of them was an RE5, I couldn't believe I actually saw one in the wild...
Please I need as many detailed videos of how to work on this bike! This is so awesome you are showing this to a larger audience. My Re5 is posted on my account if you want to see it run. More videos soon because everyone on my Instagram is asking.
That etsy pottery coffee mug was awesome! Gonna try and see if i can get a custom gift for my wife. Love this channel! Wish i had a Craig in SC so teach me how to change my fork seals with simple tools and without a vice!
Awesome video! Can anything possibly be more complicated than a Suzuki RE-5 engine? The bike is now worth about 20 times more by running. Some things are just worth the extra effort to spend a day working and learning even if everything doesn't work completely out. Many thanks to your friend for his help and insights. I will remember his brake fluid trick.
