Wankel-Mania...

[JJ]

...and you thought it was hard finding parts for your vintage Guzzi?!?

[bigbikerrick]

Or finding a mechanic to wrench on it!  I have always liked the weirdness of those. Yeah, I bet parts are hard to find,
Rick.

[lucian]

well, we covered the prettiest motors , that has to be about the ugliest.

[ITSec]

well, we covered the prettiest motors , that has to be about the ugliest.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder - and the RE-5 is undoubtedly the ultimate example of the late 70s aesthetic!

[Canuck750]

I read there is a fellow in the USA that bought up as much NOS parts he could find for the wankel Suzuki’s and is the go to guy for keeping them on the road. The long time Suzuki shop here has a service guy who has been around since the 70’s, I asked once about the Rotary bikes, apparently Suzuki made them take a couple for two years and it took years to get rid of them. He told me setting up the carbs was a bitch and they were heavy and not any faster than a GT750 and the new GS 750 dohc fours just killed them. A buddy of mine has an early blue one with the cylinder instrument enclosure just like the on on BAT, cool from an engineering perspective.

[JJ]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder - and the RE-5 is undoubtedly the ultimate example of the late 70s aesthetic!

Indeed...and here is the four-wheeled version!

[PeteS]

I had a chance to ride two Norton Rotaries. The Classic in the US and the F1 Sport in the UK out of the factory. Electric motor smooth. Would have loved an F1 had they been imported here.









Pete

[mondtster]

I remember when the cycle trader magazines were full of RE5s and people couldn't give them away. A few years back I got the idea that I might want one and assumed the prices were still as low or lower than they were in the '80s and '90s. Boy was I wrong...

Being a Wankel lover I'd still kind of like an RE5 but there's no way I'm going to pay the asking prices I've seen for them in recent times. I could buy several old Triumphs or Guzzis for the same price instead.