For Sale '84 or '85 XJ 700X

Friends ;
I live in San Francisco. I have 2 bikes. I am considering selling my XJ700X to someone that will get some use out of it. It has been sitting for over a year. It ran when I parked it. The carbs need work,it needs tires,turn signals,a clutch cable,several odds and ends. The 3rd carb has never been 'right',someone used too small a screwdriver to try removing a jet and they ruined the slot in the jet. I never got around to drilling it or using an EZ-out...
Anyway this bike will run with a little bit of attention,there is nothing major wrong with it,it simply needs a little work and I have no time. It is fast,I beat a new Z-28 from stoplight to stoplight,and the carbs aren't even 'right' !
This bike has too much life left in it to part-out in my opinion. If somebody has a pickup truck and some spare time,they could surely get it running good enough to ride over the course of a weekend for sure. I got a good deal on this bike in 2012 and put maybe 4-5 k miles on it.
I believe it has about 30k miles on it now.
If you can make a reasonable offer please do. The engine is a beast,5 valves per cylinder,water cooled. If you have any questions,just ask and I will try to answer.
Ronald

 

2 more posts and you will be allowed to post photos. (there's a 5 post minimum). We'd love to see some!

 

Either ‘85 or ‘86......

 

This will be helpful if you want to pin down the year: https://xjbikes.com/forums/threads/tech-topic-model-id-and-vins.14577/

 

Even easier—
1. look at the white tag on the head tube, or look on the title. But it’s either ‘85 or ‘86......they weren’t out in ‘84.
Or
2. If foot pegs are blocky, it’s a ‘85; if they are pointy, it’s an’86
3. If the tank emblem is round, it’s an ‘85; if it is long oval, it’s an ‘86

 

This baby is nothing to look at,it is pretty dirty,the seats are rough,etc. I thought the Reagan Tarriff was on '84 and '85 bikes.
I remember 2 years you could not buy a 750 because with a 1500$ Tarriff on bikes over 700cc it made the price difference between a 650 and a 750 go from 300$ to 1800$. A 750 would have cost twice as much as a 650 ! So they made '698cc bikes'
Anyway thanks for the valuable info Friends. I will get back with the year as soon as I can!

 

The Reagan tariff, known more here as “The Harley Tariff” went from 1983 til it expired in 1988

 

Yes and Thank You,Hogfiddles!
"Reagan ordered a tenfold increase in tariffs on heavyweight motorcycles, almost all of which were then imported from Japan. In the first year of a five-year program, tariffs rose from 4.4 percent to 49.4 percent on all large highway motorcycles. The duties were then scaled back in successive years to 39.4 percent, 24.4 percent, 19.4 percent and 14.4 percent."
Cut+paste from Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel
I seem to remember 2 years there were no 750's to be had,anyplace. Then again,that was a minute ago...I must look it up,it will bug me.
Have a great day!
Ronald

 

That’s an ‘85

take the time to replace things right, and you can turn that into a thing of beauty

 

I was always impressed by the speed and smoothness.
It is noticeably heavier than my '81 xj650 but the motor makes up for it.
I just cannot seem to get to it and would love to see somebody get some use out of it.
It has quirks-flaws but is sound overall for sure. Dig the weird back rim,different on both sides!