Twin Cylinder Magic. Review on Yezdi 350 Twin

How many twin cylinder motor bikes were made in India? Well im sure most of you know of the Yamaha/Rajdoot RD350 but thats quite a common name among the biking community. Its not for nothing that its common and at the same time the only bike till date thats worshipped for its performance and is still the performance king. Sad thing is it isn't manufactured anymore. Yamaha had to stop production for this bike as it was not able to meet emission norms. Very low sales was another factor and this was a bike for the elite group of genuine die hard bikers; which during that time and even today are very few.

There was one other bike that never made it as the company shut down before they could do any more research and development. Its the Yezdi 350 Twin. Surprised? Yezdi was one company that did some serious R&D. The Yezdi 350 Twin in no way can bet compared to the RD350. These are two very different machines. The RD350 is a pure performance machine whereas the 350 twin from Yezdi is better off as a cruiser. Power is rated at 23 Bhp and the manufacturer claimed top speed is 140 Kmph. Top speed figure does sound similar to a stock RD350 from Yamaha but the difference is the Yamaha can do the drag a lot quicker. This is quite a big bike for indian standards even today. Its as tall and long as a Bullet if not as bulky. It comes with a 145 Kmph speedo and 8000 rpm Tachometer. The warning lights are for the indicators and high beam. There were some bikes that had a ignition light, turn indicator warning and high beam indication on the instrument cluster. Fuel Tank capacity is 11 litres including reserve which does not sound like much but gives you a range of around 275 kms on the highway. The bike does howl but its nothing like the howl one is used to hearing from an RD350. Its a more mellow howl. This probably has to do with the single carburetors feeding the twin cylinders all the fuel they need. This is not a performance bike of any sorts. Well it is in a small way but nothing to get excited about. The gear ratios are very tall which means you got to keep shifting to be in the power band which starts at a rather late 2800 rpm. Anything below this and your moving only on torque which in some ways is a good thing; especially while riding the bike in the city where you can be in 4th and still ride at 35 kmph without the bike stalling. The gearbox is another major drawback. Drawback in the sense that it has just 4 speeds. The RD had 6 in short ratios which means there was no such flat spot in the power band. The gearbox is not a slick shifting unit. Its a typical Yezdi gearbox where a new rider will find neutrals between each gear. An experienced rider can avoid this and actually enjoy the way the gearbox behaves.

Riding position is simply brilliant. When you get on the bike having intentions of doing the usual city rounds and then hopefully if you get a nice patch of road to do leisurely 100 kmph you wish you could keep going on and on the whole day at that speed. Thats the thrill this bike offers. Its relaxed at this speed. Open the throttle more to do an overtake is all you need.

A little bit of history on this bike. To my knowledge Yezdi never sold a bike with the Yezdi badge on the engine. It was a Jawa engine that they used with a points ignition (Similar to whats used on the standard bullet 350, 500 and RD350) system. The points ignition system was the primary reason the bike never sold and was a failure. When it did fail the bike would drain down its battery leaving you stranded on the road and a points ignition system requires a battery to be well juiced up. Many will agree that the points ignition system though the best to get that perfect exhaust note and idling is not exactly the most reliable way to go if your doing long distance biking. They are mechanical contacts which wear out and need constant attention.

Yezdi were working on a CDi ignition unit for this bike but its at that point the company went bankrupt and finally shut.I was lucky to get my bike with a CDI unit so i've had no hassles with it. Its easy to start and runs very well. The stock electrical systems are also another very weak point on the bike. The bulbs keep popping if you over rev the bike. The headlamp beam is as good as a candle sitting in the dome. The bike runs on narrow tyres which is a turn off on the looks front. Looks like a sized up TVS moped at times; well till you do see the engine with twin spark plugs, a massive bore and gearbox assembly.

Braking is another very weak aspect on the bike. Very typical of all Yezdi bike's. The large front drums do a good job in bringing down speeds but then depending on them is not the way to go if you want the bike to stop straight or on both wheels. The rear drums are the same size as on any Yezdi motorcycle and this requires you to step on it real hard if you want to do an emergency stop. I consider the braking weak as this is a bike that won't give you the slightest idea of doing 3 digit speeds until the point you actually look at the speedo.

As for long distance biking you do need to buy some biking gear such as a saddle bag as there is no possible way the bike can allow a carrier to be fitted. This is another major draw back but hell; I would not care less even if I had no luggage with me.

On the reliability front you need to carry the usual Yezdi tool and spare parts kit. I mean spare parts as in brake, clutch and throttle cables and spare bulbs. Thats all you'll need as these are the only things that have given up on me. Everything else stays and lasts. There are just a handful of these bikes with a select few. Im one of the lucky ones and I love this bike.