Words: Nic Granlund
Photos: John Pellan
Test Riders: Nic Granlund, Allen Knowles, John Pellan
Exiting corners like this is blast on the new YFZ450R.Even in bone stock form, the power delivery is amazing.
I remember the day the boys at Yamaha dropped the bomb on the ATV industry with the introduction of their high-performance YFZ450. Thanks to Dennis Cox of Dirt Wheels Magazine, I was fortunate enough to be a part of that instrumental day when Yamaha invited the press out to ride the top-secret project that they had spent nearly five years developing. Thinking back I would call the experience the Barack Obama Presidential Inauguration of the ATV Industry, since it truly was a day of change. It was really cool to learn first hand what Yamaha had up its sleeve for several years. I didn’t expect such a well-designed, high-performance, race-worthy quad. After realizing how serious Yamaha was about their new YFZ and its role in the ATV racing world, I remember being really excited about the future of the sport on that Spring day in 2003. Like ATV Scene said back in ’03, with the 2004 Yamaha YFZ450 feature, it truly was the quad that changed everything.
YFZ 2.0
Fast forward four and a half years later and thanks to ATV Scene I was once again a part of another equally exciting YFZ ground breaking introduction. The YFZ becomes the first of any 450 on the market to be completely revamped from the ground up. The word revamped isn’t even fair. Let’s put it this way, the only parts carried over from the 2008 YFZ are the front disc brakes, the rear caliper and the axle carrier. As they say, if it’s not broke - don’t fix it. The frame, engine, suspension, plastic, tires and just about every component on the machine is completely new from the ground up. To fully understand what I mean here, you really should check out the Yamaha YFZ450R “Yamaha Goes All In” feature that was posted a few months ago. This article and the video walk-through provides a lot of detailed information about the all-new YFZ450R.
This ski jump at LACR was really fun! Since the YFZ’s suspension seemed to soak up the landing with ease, I kept hitting this thing harder and harder.
If trail riding is your thing you might want to adjust the YFZ’s shocks to get a little higher ride height. You also might consider speeding up the shock’s compression and rebound from the factory settings.
Ride Test
Yamaha set us loose for two full days of ride testing on their new YFZ450R. We put it through desert and cross country rigors at Gorman OHV Area on the first day and logged a zillion laps at the LACR Motocross Park in Palmdale, CA the second day. Both ride spots were superb. I especially liked the new and very much improved LACR facility. I thought it was kind of fitting that the new LACR track, with its new elevation changes, is night and day better than the last time we rode there, which was during the first YFZ intro in 2003. Its horsepower-sapping terrain complimented what the new YFZ450R was capable of quite well.
