Yamaha introduced this large-displacement cruiser-styled model for the 1982 model year as part of its XJ family, drawing on the company’s earlier XS1100 era while adding the newer Yamaha Induction Control System-era thinking that defined Yamaha’s early-1980s four-stroke lineup. It sat at the top of Yamaha’s “Maxim” range and represented the American-market custom/cruiser interpretation of Yamaha’s big air-cooled inline-four, rather than the more upright European XJ road-sport approach. In the United States it is generally remembered as a one-year model, but Canadian-market examples continued through 1984, extending the nameplate slightly beyond its U.S. run. As a result, it is best understood as a short-lived but important bridge between the XS Eleven generation and Yamaha’s later large V-twin cruisers and touring models. Its historical significance lies less in outright longevity than in how it translated Yamaha’s big-four-cylinder engineering into a more relaxed, low-slung format aimed at North American riders.
MODEL HISTORY