This Vintage Lambretta Can Make Even The Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 Sweat: Watch Video
Published On Apr 21, 2023 01:35 PM By Sudipto Chaudhuryfor Yamaha R3
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The secret of its performance lies under the skin…
Two-wheeler riders of the days past could be chiefly characterised into two categories. The first and more common ones were the sensible family men who rode comfortable, fuel-efficient, though slow scooters. The other were the thrill-seekers on light, fast, and patently inefficient motorcycles. The beast you see, though, is an amalgamation of both; a Lambretta with a Yamaha RD 350 engine!
Owned by Jed Thompson from Wiltshire, England, the Yamaha-engined Lambretta, or Yambretta as he calls it, has been created to honour his late brother Jamie. Both brothers raced motocross in their youth, so a unique bike based on a two-stroke legend is a fitting tribute.
The Yambretta started off as a Lambretta rolling chassis (frame and wheels, but no engine). This was then fused with the frame from a liquid-cooled RD 350. But since the rider is seated atop the engine on a scooter, the RD’s rear subframe was removed, and the swingarm was repurposed to attach to the “front” of the bike’s frame.
Next, the radiator was mounted within the apron-mounted storage compartment, with routing along the floorboard and vents both under the seat as well as on the scooter’s body panels to dissipate heat. The one-up, five-down gearbox as well as rear brake pedal is mounted of course on the floorboard. Jed has got the Yambretta dyno-tested, and it puts out 60PS, and can get to a claimed 130mph (or approximately 209kmph). These figures that are enough to give ‘proper’ street bikes like the Kawasaki Z650 a run for their money! And so, to keep all that power in check, the Yambretta gets racing discs front and rear.
Ultimately, though, the concept of transplanting the RD350’s engine into other bikes’ frames isn’t a new concept. However, it’s heartwarming to see both the beautifully built bike, as well as the intentions behind it.