Yamaha Wr450f
Yamaha WR450F
CW RIDING IMPRESSION
Blue, with a button for you
CRAFTY FOLKS, OUR FRIENDS OVER AT JAPAN'S GARRRR MAGAZINE. Somehow, they managed to sneak in the first ride on one of 2003's most anticipated off-road machines, Yamaha's electric-start WR450F. "Impossible, those bikes haven't even been built yet!" bellowed a Yamaha PR type when told of the test.
Well, judge for yourself. Admittedly, an electric starter and a bump in displacement aren’t exactly ground-breaking changes. It’s just that trail riders no longer have to look to Europe for a competition Thumper equipped with the magic button.
Previous WRs fired easily enough, but thumb-starting is certainly easier than kicking-especially after a tip-over! And, considering how much lighter the ’03 YZ450 motocrosser is than last year’s YZ426, we expect the WR450 to also scale-in at a few pounds less than the old WR426-even with all of the extras.
Every change made to the new YZ has also been incorporated into the WR. So, yes, the WR’s engine is new, too. Unlike the YZ, though, which uses a four-speed transmission, the WR is equipped wdth a semi-wide-ratio five-speed box that holds a tad more oil, likely due to the larger magneto-and accompanying sidecover-that’s required to generate the power necessary to keep the battery charged and the lights running.
The radiator has one additional cooling row, and the overflow catch bottle is still located behind the left sidepanel. The air filter is easily accessible through a side door, as the battery now sits atop the airbox. The rear wheel is still an 18incher driven through a steel sprocket by a beefy O-ring chain. The sidestand attaches to the frame behind the footpeg.
Our Far Eastern stringer Yasuo Tolmkuji rode the U.S.-spec WR on a rainy day in Japan and immediately found the push-button starting to his liking-no kidding! Power delivery, he reported, seemed smoother and stronger in the bottom part of the powerband than with the WR426. But once he got to revving the new engine, it really came alive. Apparently, it’s more of a racestyle motor that likes wide-open spaces and high rpm. There are no gaps in the power; it just builds and builds. And yes, there’s plenty of overrev.
In the tight stuff, Tohukuji was able to lug the engine down and crawl around, the only downside being a slightly heavy clutch pull. Before electric starting, this might have been a concern. Now, the occasional stall doesn’t present a problem. And should you ever have to prod the bike to life, the engine is equipped with the same auto-decompression system as on the YZ-kick and go!
As for the chassis, the frame is identical to that of the motocrosser, which we already know is one rigid structure. This, combined with suspension that has to pull duty on supercross and motocross tracks all over the world, set the stage for a stiff ride, which was confirmed by our man in Japan. Of course, Tohukuji's definition of stiff may be different than ours. In the past, though, the WR has been on the stift side. According to Yamaha, a lot of the U.S. testing was previously done in fast, open riding areas out West, but on the new bike a big eflbrt was also made to set it up to better deal with rocks and roots, or more Eastern conditions.
As for handling, the WR gets the same boost in performance as the YLL. Steering is lighter, and it's easier to move forward on the 2.6-gallon gas tank to get over the front end. Even though the battery is positioned up high, Tohukuji says he didn't really notice its additional weight.
We're waiting anxiously to get our hands on our own testbike to determine it the WR has indeed made a strong move toward the head of the class. One thing is for sure, though: With KTM's 450 E/XC and a load of comparatively obscure but highly refined four-stroke enduros coniing to these shores from a variety of Euro hike-makers motocross tracks won't be the only knobby-infested conipeti tion hotbeds this coming riding season.
Jimmy Lewis
