This bike leaks a bit and smokes like a two-stroke should.
This bike is unique from its sound to its construction.
My good friend gave me this bike and we rebuilt it up from the ground. We bought parts from other T500 fans, as well as eBay, and I painted it at my friend's shop.
I decided not to keep it all original, so I put on drag bars with a small billet mirror. I also used smaller turn signals.
There are three of us who ride T500s together and we have a blast on our smokie two-strokes, turning heads.
Yes, you don't see many 500 Titans around anymore. A 500cc 2 stroke twin must be a great deal of fun.
I like the old 2 strokes, as well.
The old Yamaha RD's are my favorites (currently restoring a '75 RD250 - had a '75 RD350 back in '75), but Suzuki made a lot of nice 2 strokes back in the late 60's thru the 70's.
Weren't those 2 stroke triples cool!!! I like the GT380 & GT550. I also like the little GT185 as well as the GT250 twins.
My XJ650 will probably spend more time in my garage next summer, while I buzz around on the little 250 (with the exception of longer rides of course)!
I bought a '72 T500 back in the early 80's. Kinda loud, but could beat everything up to 900cc's light to light, at that time. It just spent 12 years in storage, time to paint and put it on the street.
I live in Orange County CA. When it was last on the street, it was one of three existing in the county... probably the last one here now...It's time to turn heads again... soon as I can I'll post some pics if this page allows...jamesalawyer@aol.com
I have a Suzuki 1971 T500 original condition with 9700 original miles. It has been stored since 1979. It looks and runs great. Started right up after 25+ year with fresh gas and a new battery. I was wondering what it is worth on the market today?
I had a 1974 500 Titan and loved it. I'm not sure about the dude who "beat other bikes light to light up to a 900" and also said "kind of loud". He may be confusing it with an H1 Kawasaki or woke up screaming from a bad dream.
With the stock tall gearing, these things could hardly beat a RD250 from light to light, and they were probably the quietest and least annoying sounding 2 strokes ever built.
That having been said they handled well (once you got rid of the stock tires), were EXTREMELY dependable, were competently quick (but not rapid), and just did enough things right to keep you sitting in the saddle for longer than the stock seat should ever have been sat upon.
I miss mine and would gladly have accepted another one like the fortunate gentleman in the previous review.
I purchased my T500 new back in 1972, a long time ago. It has just been sitting around for the past 15 years, and no it did not start first kick. The carbs were blocked with scale big time, and the left coil was shot. But I am slowly bringing my baby back to life. This time I will give this great motorcycle the respect it never got and be proud to ride it. Ride on. Mike.
Purchased a T500III (Old Blue) in July 1970. Rode it 14K in the first year I owned 'er. That included a 2813 mile dash in five days and change from Phoenix to Chicago via Yellowstone National Park in temps from as low as 18 degrees F up to over 100 degrees.
Finally gave Old Blue away a number of years later with over 40K miles. Only thing I ever had to do was replace plugs about every 6K miles, change oil about every 5K, and had to put a new clutch in at about 30K.
A wonderful ride that consistently delivered well over 40 mpg on regular gas, about 1000 miles per quart of two stroke oil. Wish Suzuki had kept making them.
I acquired a 1969 T500 Mk-II with 22400 miles as a gift from a family friend. It's my first bike, and as such I have a deep affection for it. The man I received it from suffered from a brain tumor and could not ride anymore.
He used to ride it everywhere and camp out wherever he stopped, sleeping bag in hand. He said he almost never had any trouble with it. He had a Suzuki dealer completely rebuild it a month or so before his surgery. It sat in his garage since 1979. The health condition struck him so suddenly, he didn't plan on prepping her for storage. Once recovered he couldn't really get his leg over the seat anymore, so was forced to not ride it again-then lost interest in the bike. I acquired it with a half tank of 30 year old gas, a flat tire, seized motor (from sitting), plugged petcock and carbs - not to mention the pitted chrome and rust. I saw beyond the ton of work ahead of me and undertook the task of lightly restoring the 40 year old bird for summer riding. I replaced the rings, cleaned the carbs and petcock, cleaned the points, new fuel lines, new head/base gaskets, honed the cylinders, and cleaned the fuel and oil tanks.
The story around this bike is very sad, and I greatly appreciate his generosity and trust in me to take care of it.
Since, I have been riding it for about a week now, and been caught in 3 severe rain storms it without any problems. I added nearly 550 miles to it. There are still the obvious bugs that come about like adjusting timing and tuning the carbs. Once I work these out, it is safe to say that this machine stood the test of time so far and stands as a great testament to its engineering. Numerous reviews boast of its bulletproof durability and rarity.
I have found this bike a great joy to ride. Its drum braking system is definitely dated and it has intense vibrations (just a characteristic of its construction, ask any enthusiast), but this aside, it is an absolute pleasure to own and ride.
I encourage anyone who still happens to have one of these in their possession to take care of it, rebuild/repair it, and get it out on the road. There are many people out there that can point their finger as you pass and remember this bike from when they were young and bringing this reminiscence from them makes me proud to own one.
This machine is indeed a proud one. If you need proof, check its race records, its enthusiast forums, and the hearts of the owners that still ride them.
I have just bought a 1971 T500r, it's in need of quite a bit of work to get it back to its former glory. I have herd nothing but good things, and am looking forward to the day I get it on the road. I am having issues with the clutch push rod, it does not seem to be actuating the clutch, any ideas would be appreciated.
I bought a T-500 Titan new in 1975 and rode it for three years and sold with about 14,000 mi on it as I recall. I wish I had it now. It was a great bike and never let me down. Bullet proof. It was a match (at least) to my friends Triumph Bonneville in speed and handling. My only complaint (minor) was that it seemed to need chain adjustments frequently. I attributed that to it's rather long swingarm length
I have just purchased a 1975 T500. This is the fourth T500 I've owned. I had new 69 and 74 models, and a 72 purchased used in the 80's.
The bike runs great and looks decent after a good cleaning and detailing.
These bikes are fairly quick and easy to handle around town, and very easy to maintain. With the lower euro bars, the seating position is quite comfortable.
I will not fully restore it, as I intend on riding it on a regular basis on nice days and don't want to worry about getting a mark on the paint or chrome.
Bikes were intended to be enjoyed and RIDDEN, and that's what I intend on doing ;-)
I just bought a 1971 T500, it wasn't in great shape and hadn't been run in 5 or 6 years. Somebody had put a GT motor in it with the electronic ignition and also given it a front disc brake similar to the GT. After changing the fuel, it started on the third kick! Just goes to show how well these bikes were put together. I plan on fixing the cosmetics and keeping it for a Sunday cruiser.
I rode a 1970 model for 3 or 4 years in the very early 70's, so yes I am an old git. I am looking to return to my youth, and am in the market for a 69, 70 or 71 model.
I had a 1971 T500 back in 1978 (1st vehicle). Sold it 2 years later to get what I thought was a much cooler 68 Triumph Tiger. I had so many problems with that Triumph that I greatly regretted that move. Years later I bought a 89 HD Heritage, which I still have, but I always kept my eyes open for another Titan.
Last year I found a mint condition Titan with 11,000 original miles on it. I love it. It was a little different than I remembered, but I rode the heck out of it last year and can't wait for the warmer weather. I won't be selling this one.
I grew up in the 1970's on Yamaha two-stroke dirt bikes, so when the time came for my first street bike, I decided that the RD 350 was what I wanted. Before I found one however, a Kawasaki H1 turned up for sale cheap in our local area, and I thought that a 500 triple would simply be more of a good thing than a 350 twin. Well, that thing was simply evil, and after riding it for a couple of years and crashing it, I sold it and moved on to a long succession of four-strokes.
As an avid old bike collector though, I always knew that I wanted another two-stroke, but decided that I wanted neither an RD nor an H1, but something in between like a T500 Titan. Many years went by without finding one... until yesterday.
Out of the blue, a local collector put up for sale not one, but two 1971 T500 Titans, that were both complete and running! He also included an excellent stash of NOS spare parts at a great price, so a friend and I bought them, and each took one home.
I can now ride this awesome bike anywhere as I restore it in the coming years, many years I hope!
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