2013 Yamaha YZ450F and YZ250F Motocross Bikes - First Look

It’s new model release season, and so far we’ve seen some fairly big announcements from the manufacturers. KTM is revamping their four-stroke line, Kawasaki is throwing some major changes—including an all-new air fork—at their KX450F, and Honda is unleashing a brand new CRF450R complete with twin pipes and a new frame. So, what’s big blue up to? Surprisingly, not very much, which may indicate that there could be something big happening in 2014.

The 2013 Yamahas do not have any major revisions. Both the blue YZ250F and YZ450F have been handed new graphics and white rear fenders, while the white versions of both bikes receive black fork guards instead of white. The only other notable change is a switch from Pro Taper handlebars to an identical Yamaha-branded bar. That’s it. No air forks, no redesigned frames and—shockingly—no fuel injection for the YZ250F, which will remain the only carbureted bike in the 250cc division.

As mentioned, this may mean that Yamaha is saving its development dollars for something big in the near future. Granted, much of that effort (and money) went to the all-new WR450 off-road bike, which is essentially a YZ250F frame with a beefy 450cc thumper engine in it. But what could Yamaha be cooking, if their strategy is to essentially re-release some 2012s in 2013? Our prediction would be an all-new, fuel-injected engine for the 250F. And some major revisions could be in order for the YZ450F, given that some top-level riders like James Stewart have voiced negative opinions about how the bike handles when ridden to 99.5% of its full capabilities. Whatever the case may be, we are curious to see how Yamaha plays this one in the next year or two.

Stay tuned to www.dirtrider.com in the coming weeks as we take a pair of brand new 2013 YZ250F and YZ450F motorcycles out to fiddle with and evaluate further. We liked both of these bikes in 2012, and expect that they will still hold their own against the rest of the pack, though it's far-fetched to predict a shootout win from either machine. Still, we can't rule that out until we ride everything back to back!