What is a 1976 Yamaha 500 DOHC 8 Valve worth?

**Scott** · 12-02-2009, 07:43 PM

This bike has been sitting in my garage for years under a sheet.
There is no title or paper work. I think the owner is dead by now. Have not tried to start it.
I was looking on the web and saw a lot of people collect
these bikes....but I could not find the 500 DOHC 8 Valve online.
Is it the right year?
Is it a rare bike?
How much is it worth now and
how much would it be worth if I
had it all redone.

Thanks in Advance

**Dani G** · 12-02-2009, 07:44 PM

Your bike could be either a TX500 or an XS500, though both were essentially identical.

This bike was never a popular model even when it was new. Early ones suffered from poor reliability. As I recall, they had problems with, amongst other things, weak/porous cylinder heads that were prone to cracking between the valve seats, perhaps not surprising as this was one of Yamaha's first 4-strokes and the first modern bike to use 4-valves per cylinder. You may want to check the condition of the heads on your bike...

As for worth, KBB says one in excellent condition is worth about $700.00, so in this case rarity does not equate to value...
http://www.kbb.com/motorcycle/retail/1976/yamaha/xs500/81737

Getting it redone is certainly not a financially sound thing to do... but it could still be an interesting project if you like that sort of thing (I do).

**James** · 12-02-2009, 07:44 PM

As others have said, the early ones had problems with cracking heads. They ALL had lubrication problems if ridden hard: The "Omni-phase Balancer" (an early attempt at counterbalance shafts) had a tendency to froth the motor oil, leading oil starvation at critical bearings. They also had a tendency to go out of tune very quickly, but ran nicely while a good state of tune lasted. The bottom line: Worth less than $1,000 even in better than average condition.