Yamaha’s 180/200 timeline
The 180cc CS1 series appeared in 1967 alongside the 125cc AS1. Early CS1S proved to be lacking in top-end and Yamaha swiftly added additional ports to rectify this. Offered in road and street scrambler versions, the bikes proved popular in the USA where the low pipe version was marketed as the Bonanza. The rest of the world received the revised 180cc CS2 in 1968 but strangely America didn’t. The CS3 arrived in 1970/71 with an engine enlarged to 195ccs and more modern styling and again it was offered in both formats. A year later the CS5E debuted in purple and white with squared-off cylinders, revised gear linkage and a very rev happy motor courtesy of porting that owed a lot to racing successes. This bike was, in effect, the precursor to the RD200 and had a short model run of around nine to ten months. From 1973 to 1976 the reed-valved RD200 continued with just aesthetic changes but in 1977 the cosmetics were radically revised, delivering the famous ‘coffin’ tank look. With revisions the bike would continue into the early 1980s before being side-lined thanks to the 125 learner laws. This should have been the design’s curtain call but Yamaha had one ace left to play. Utilising a derivation of the RD125, 17in wheels, new cylinder castings and single carburettor Yamaha released the RS195/RS200 as a commuter bike. Sold with limited success
in Europe the bike found a ready market in Africa where it was used by postal services and travelling bush medics. Two decades after the original CS1 was launched the likes of DHL were delivering parcels from the rear rack of a Yamaha 200 twin!