How common are the 2A2s?

[macwarrior]

...or at least that's what I think they are called?

so I saw an XS400 parked on the street recently and thought it looked like a great bike, and now I'm trying to find one for myself -- maybe a winter project or something. The one that I saw looked like this:

However, when I look on eBay or Kijiji or the classifieds or whatever, I only see the other style -- the ones with two-level seats and rounded sloping tanks and high bars, like this:

I don't like how those look, but it seems like that's all anyone has! Can someone tell me what I should be searching for in order to find a bike like in the first picture?

If it's relevant, I'm in southeastern canada -- maybe they just didn't ever sell the good-looking (my opinion! ) ones in my area? That would suck.

Thanks.

 

[volcomskater77]

i actually see more of the earlier models (SOHC top pic) than the later ones (DOHC bottom pic). just type in xs400. not maxim. not seca. XS400. try addind leters on the end that correspond with the year your looking for, XS400E, D, 2A2, F, 2F, that kind of stuff. early SOHC have the squarish tanks, and the later SOHC have a rounder tank. i may be wrong tho. drewpy will chime in. read up on the xs history in the rules and FAQ section.

 

[HoughMade]

In the U.S., the more rounded tank started in '78 (XS400E), but there seem to be some '78s with the squarish tank. However, swooping tank like the pic above is on DOHC models '82 and after. Between '78 and '82 with the SOHC, '78s and '79s (XS400F) had flatter, but not completely flat seats. Starting in '80, the seats got more "king and queen" and the bars got higher. The '77(XS400D) and before had the square tank and flat seat. One thing to keep in mind is that motorcycle models sometimes bleed over to different years. You could have a bike registered as a '77 that looks more like a '78. A '79 with features of an '80 and vice versa.

Examples:

1977

1978

1979 (mine, but it has lower "European" bars)

1980

1981

1982

So, if you are looking for a squarish tank bike, the reason that they are more rare is that they are older and many more years of XS400s were made with the more rounded tank.

 

[drewpy]

very popular in the UK the 2A2's

 

[cmoore352010]

i have a 78 xs400 and it looks exactly like the 77 in the pics by year above. It was manufactured in the later part of 77 like november or something like that. I would much rather have the special (DOHC) that you are reffering to but i picked this one up off of craigslist and traded a computer for it. I want to completely restore it to original with just a couple modifications to it and then show it in classic/vintage cycle shows.

 

[Sandrew]

There must be something seriously messed up as mine is '82 but in the pics above it says '78.

 

[xschris]

Model years looked different in other countries.