1980 RD350LC

The RD350LC ‘4L0’ sums up a golden era in motorcycling that will never be repeated.

The design ethos behind the first ‘Elsie’ came mostly from Europe with many British connections in Product Planning (Paul Butler) Design, (Mick Ofield, John Mockett) and even test riders (Dave Bean, Bob Trigg.) The new machines – 250 and 350LCS (Liquid-cooled) – brought together the tech behind the TZ racers into the RD (Race Developed) road machines.

The 250 and 350LCS would share nearly all components, save for the larger bore in the 350’s barrels, with both machines sharing the same stroke. The bikes would debut at the Paris show in October 1979 to much fanfare – even if the 350 had one, not two, front brake discs. The 250 arrived in the UK in May 1980 with the 350 coming in June of that year.

The LC really moved things on, being 18 kilos lighter than the RD400 at 143 kilos and seven bhp more powerful than the 400 with 47 ponies under the hood. The impact was immediate and demand for the £1130 RD350 led to waiting lists. Eventually, the 350LC’S sales were reported to be around 20,000 in the first year alone! Meanwhile, in the 250cc category the smaller capacity version – the 4L1 – also made the opposition obsolete overnight. Further development would lead to the equally legendary Powervalve, with the RD350LC YPVS ‘31K’ being launched in 1983.

Prices for such a legendary machine are now around £7-£10,000 plus for really nice examples.