1982 Seca 400

I'm looking to pick up a clean 1982 Seca 400 and I am not sure if this is designated the XJ400 or XS400. This is the vertical twin, mono shock rear, naked bike that uses the motor as a stressed member of the frame.

Does anyone have a good source for spares like levers, exhaust, tires, etc..? The bike is complete and other than 30 years of wear it's in decent shape.

 

That is the XS400RJ Seca. It is basically the XS400 Special, but in a Seca styling. It is not the XJ400. The XJ 400 is an inline 4 cylinder. Yamaha did some funky things with the 400 for a short time. There was the:

xs400 special - 2-cyl
small version of the larger xs XS Special

xs400 seca - 2-cyl
as shown above, basically the xs400 engine in a seca-styled body

xs400 Maxim - 2-cyl
basically the xs400 engine in a Maxim styled body and frame

XJ400 Maxim - 4-cyl
the actual XJ, inline 4 in a maxim body and frame.

I have one, and a guy I teach with also has one. I have a few extra parts, but not many. What do you need? I need a real good tank, myself.

The xj400rj is not a powerhouse bike, but for the size of it, it's a pretty sharp looking bike, runs well, get's great gas mileage and will catch some attention. Problem is basically power........you can't get out of your own shadow going up hill, unless you're willing to keep downshifting. But again, it's a nice, cute little bike.

If you need more info on it, or questions for parts, PM me.

Dave Fox

 

Hi Dave,

Thanks for the info. The picture I posted is of the actual bike I plan to buy and was a picture I took when I went to see it in person last week.

The bike is complete and all there, but the brake and clutch levers are bent and I'd like to replace those. The tires are old and cracked and will also need to be replaced. It also needs a new battery, probably an air filter and of course oil and oil filter.

The rest looks good and there are no dents in the tank, virtually no rust inside the tank, all the body panels are intact and the nubs are all there, the seat is original and not ripped, etc..

 

No probl.

From the pic, it looks pretty good! The one I have is fair-to-rough. The one that the guy I work with has, though, is near mint. His is the same color as your's (I THINK the red is the more rare color), mine was originally a sapphire blue. Most of the parts on mine are now the red, though. However, since it's rough, I'm going to repaint.....just haven't decided which color, though.

The levers are often on ebay, and there is some cross-over to different models, so you won't have too much difficulty finding them.

Dave F

 

Very nice looking small cc bike. Never see those around here.

 

they were only made for a couple years

 

Correction time....

The Maxim/Seca 400's were not based off the special engne, which is SOHC

It was in fact a DOHC, YICS engine... so think more like 1/2 and XJ

 

Well.......again, sort of.

The US-available ones were the 2cyl bikes.
The Japan-available ones (and I think Europe, too) were the 4 cyl ones, which if I remember correctly, was the XJ400Z.

For the US-available ones............

These bikes are the "younger cousins" of the XJ-series bikes, and are from the related-but-different "XS" series of models. Besides sharing the Maxim and Seca names, they use the XJ-series style engine (DOHC, alternator behind the crankshaft, YICS system). They were chain-driven (5-speed on the Maxim, 6-speed on the Seca models), and featured a unique mono-shock rear suspension system. They were available from 1982-83 in the USA, and lasted until until 1984 in Canada.

But, just to throw the usual Yamaha "twist" into the plot, there was also a 1982 XS400SJ "Special" model that was related to the older XS-series bikes, having the SOHC motor and a more typical dual-shock rear suspension...........

- Europe and Japan actually got a "real" XJ400 model

That was based on the xj550 engine, which also was what the fj600 ended up being based on, and so on and so forth.........................

 

Actually, when it comes to the 4-cylinder XJ400, that WAS the original XJ. The XJ550 was developed from the original 398cc XJ400, the XJ400D IIRC.

 

cool history, and looks like it would be fun to scoot around town on!

If you get it, replace the brake pads/lines too along with the tires and other stuff on your list

 

FWIW, I copy/pasted that from a yamaha history site...........

Whatever....... still, yamaha did some pretty cool stuff mixing things up. Same with the Virago/Vision/VMax thing, and the Virago/Maxim thing in 85-86...........etc................

Dave

 

Check it out: http://www.bike-box.jp/work/xj400d/restore_xj400d.htm#1

Looks suspiciously like a Seca 550... except a "D" model would mean what, a 1977 model year?

Japanese home-market only; and then there was an XJ500 in Europe before the XJ550R showed up here.

 

I just want to see more pics of the bike!

 

Looks to be in great shape....

Don't see many around here, tons of Maxims though.

As mentioned, not a powerhouse, but highway capable.
Great for around town and country roads...

Fun little guys and pretty lightweight.

 

.................

 

Did you get the bike???

 

Yup, you don't see many of them around. Let's see.......

1-- I can see your picture
2-- I can see mine, which is really rough compared to yours
3-- I can see my co-worker's, in as nice condition as yours and registered
4-- someone in the town next to the town I work in has one that has been re-painted a bright yellow, runs real well, I've serviced it for him,but the paint only looks good from about 14 feet away. Get closer, and it's not a nice job. Wish I could buy it from him and 'correct' it

So..........I''ve only seen/know of a total of 4.

Dave

 

We close the deal this coming Wednesday....fingers crossed.

 

nice.........keep us posted. Keeping my fingers crossed for you.

Dave

 

I took delivery of the '82 Seca 400 this morning and the seller even gave me a helmet, gloves, lock and a service manual. Looks to be in good shape and nothing is dented or broken. It needs a new battery which I have already purchased and is on charge, needs tires and levers as well.

The mirrors were removed for these pics but I have both and they are original. The bike was given a cleaning with Simple Green and the hose. I'll try to clean it up a bit more later. It also needs new oil and filter as it's been sitting for several years.