XS-XJ Eleven Owners Association FAQ

by Mike Saar, edited by JP Honeywell

Who are the members of the XS-XJ Eleven Owners Association?

This loose association is made up on motorcycling enthusiasts who own (or have owned) a Yamaha XS1100 or XJ1100. There are roughly 675 members (as of Mar/01) on the mail list. It was decided not to make the group too formal. One of the things that makes it great is that there is no organization to this organization. All those folks who currently own one (or more) of these models are referred to as Vice-President. There's hardly ever something important enough to vote on but when there is here's who can vote. Vice-Presidents each get one vote. Non-owners are called Associate Members. They are welcome to participate in all discussions but do not get a vote. People who have owned but currently do not own an XS11 or XJ11 are considered Past Vice-Presidents (again without voting priviledges). Ed Burke, the brilliant Yamaha mind behind the XS11 was appointed President-for-Life. He has no vote. He doesn't even know he's the President.

What is it about?

The XS-XJ1100 motorcycle was the most powerful production motorcycle of it's day. The XS1100 was built from 1978 until 1981 when the engine was used in the XJ1100 Maxim for one model year in 1982. In 1978 the XS1100E started it all off. Then in 1979 The XS1100F (called the 'standard' model) was joined by its more cruiser-esque stablemate, the XS1100SF, the Special. The next year followed suite with the XS1100G (standard) and the XS1100SG. Also in 1980, Yamaha introduced the XS1100LG, known as the Midnight Special. The same three models, XS1100H (standard), XS1100SH Special and XS1100LH Midnight Special, were repeated in 1981 with some obligatory changes. There were, along the line, several other models in the XS11 world-wide stable. These included the "P" model, a police bike used in Australia, the "R" model, the race bike, and the "Martini". The Special model was called 1.1S in several countries.

The history of the association goes back to several enthusiasts e-mailing each other about their bikes. This e-mail list grew to be big enough to be cumbersome. Having to send any message to 25 or more individuals can be a real pain. Your mailing addresses end up being four or more times as long as the message?! Enter Greg Freeman, the man who conned his ISP into letting us use their mailing list software for free. Greg's effort made all our lives easier. One address to mail to, one address from which to receive XS-XJOA messages. Around June, 1999, Greg passed the List Administative duties to JP Honeywell. More information about this can be found on the mail list page.

Where do we meet?

We "meet" via the listserv run by JP Honeywell. Additionally, there are three Assistant List Administrators; Horst Unger, Ken Talbot & Gary LaPook. To subscribe, visit the "How to subscribe to the mail list page". There is also a digest version of the list. You may subscribe to that by following the directions on the Digest mode page.

Why is there an XS-XJ Eleven Owners Association?

The list is more than just a bunch of folks writing fan letters about a motorcycle. There is so much practical knowledge available on this list that it never ceases to amaze me. Topics from acceleration to zerk fittings, and almost everything in between, have been brought up on this list. This Association is a very real "support network", to use one of today's buzzwords, for owners and enthusiasts of the XS-XJ1100. Parts availablity, dealers, aftermarket parts, supplies, how-to's and even special tool lending are all discussed. With the collective wisdom of this association to draw upon, there isn't a problem that can't be solved - or at least speculated about. Those that have been around the XS-XJ's for awhile have seen the common problems and the group has come up with some inovative solutions (along with many warnings on what not to do in certain cases).

When do we meet?

24 hours a day - 7 days a week - 365 days each year. Mostly on the Internet - but sometimes in person.

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