Web Test: 2009 Yamaha YZ450F – Dirt Rider Magazine

Here it is: The full test of the 2009 Yamaha YZ450F. We’ve dropped 10 hours on our test bike in three ride days and this is what we’ve found out about Yamaha’s newest motocross bike.(Note to dirtrider.com users: This is the first of our web exclusive First Tests. These will go live on www.dirtrider.com as soon as we have tested the new bikes enough to give you the full report, just like the first test in the magazine. Only close to three months sooner! If you like these tests, we’ll know and they will keep getting posted up here. And you’ll be able to comment and get quick responses through our member forums, likely linked to a thread at the end of each test.)What’s New:
–The biggest change for 2009 is the swingarm. Its hydro-formed shape is altered to give the bike a claimed improvement in cornering and traction by reducing the rigidity in twisting motion and in vertical stiffness. It is stiffer horizontally, or in loads placed from the side as well as being 350 grams lighter. The linkage is also all new but keeps the same rate and activates the exact same shock as the 2008 model. Also playing to the handling game by way of rider comfort is the top triple clamp. It is now four-position adjustable in 10mm increments at the bar mounts, one back from stock and two more forward. You can also use YZ250F bar mounts for a 4mm lower bar position as well. The rear hub is lighter, and uses three bearings and a larger 25mm axle. The clutch perch is all new and even more adjustable (lever position) with a shorter lever.–Inside the engine is one significant update. It is the use of longer shift fork bars which allows the bar to have more shaft surface area inside the cases which makes it harder for the forks to bind during shifts, especially between second and third. There is a small update to the ignition stator plate where it received a fourth mounting point and the color of the valve cover now matches the side covers in black.What’s Hot:
–Last year we raved about the Yamaha’s suspension and some riders seemed to fight with the turning. We raised issues with the power but at the same time turned the fastest lap times and never go outgunned down a straight. This year is going to be more of the same, only we are way more confident in what we are doing on the 2009 YZ450F.This is a bike that almost every rider just hopped on and felt at home aboard within a few laps. The biggest thing you notice on the bike is the very smooth and easy-to-use power. It is so easy to use most riders feel they wanted more. It does not snap very hard off the bottom, and since riders were not losing traction or control in corners they wanted more. A typical 450 experience involves fighting to control the power, not being at one with it. And because the suspension is working so good on the YZ, it is very plush and takes a lot of the ripples out of the ground, you don’t think or worry about it too much. You just push to ride faster and the YZ is a very good companion at that. So with the suspension working so good the rider’s focus seems to turn to thinking he wants more power.–The power is smooth, deliberate and very linear through the throttle. That means when you twist the throttle you get what you ask for. Never more and rarely less. It is an engaging setup that pulls from very low with a fair amount of torque but not much snap. It goes through the revs quick and really sings up on top. It takes a long time to get into the rev limiter.Though you can race the bike like a 250F and just sing the motor, most riders quickly learned to run the YZ a gear high in the turns and go big on the throttle, letting the bike pull them around with less shifting. It sounds kind of funny since the bike is certainly quieter than others and the sound just doesn’t fit with how fast the bike is pulling. But it pulls just fine, we could tell by how far it jumped out of tight turns and when we pulled up and drag raced other bikes. It is not slow and if anything the YZ is finding better traction all the time.Discuss this in our forums

–The handling on the YZ seems to come under scrutiny for its turning. We have had turning issues with our bike as well. They were easily remedied by playing with the ride height. First by getting the sag setting dialed for the rider, typically between 100-105mm, then on some circumstances by playing with the fork height in the tripleclamp. That is why these bikes are adjustable, you know. There is not one magical setting that everyone settled on but we seemed pretty happy for riders in the 170-190 pound range with closer to 105mm of sag and the stock fork position at all of the tracks we rode. The whole time we were within one click of stock on all the clickers. After that we rarely fiddled with the bike, track-to-track.–The suspension has a very plush feel and really good control of its stroke. It bottoms only when you’d expect it to and even pro riders were able to push pretty hard on the stock setup. Smaller and lighter riders seemed happiest with less compression damping and more rebound damping to settle the bike and definitely had to play with it more to get happy with the turning. This is one bike that definitely has a zone where it really shines when you dial in your setting. Luckily for most of our riders, that zone is really close to stock.What’s Not:
–Honestly there is very little to complain about outright on this Yamaha. To go straight to the coating wearing off the clutch side cover would tell you how dialed everything else is, so we’ll start there. The coating wears off the clutch cover on the first muddy ride!–Some riders were still able to get less-than-smooth shifting to rear its head. Though definitely better than last year, a few of our testers got a long shift, or a slight reluctance between second and third gear and the overall action is definitely not the best ever when compared to other bikes.–The muffler is tuned into the package of the bike. Yes, you change that muffler and you are opening a new can of worms and we are pretty sure that a fair amount of the turning issues you hear about with YZ450s comes from the bike having an aggressive low end snap. (Also, the majority of turning complaints come from riders who do not know what setting the sag means.) Yamaha has tuned the bike to run strong with a mechanically restrictive muffler. If you take that off (and we have played with other mufflers and exhaust systems), you will also have to play with your chassis setup, guaranteed. Not to mention the jetting on some of the more free flowing systems. In the past we’ve had the best luck with the quieter offerings from the aftermarket.–Since the YZ is so willing to go a gear high, and as a rider you get used to riding it like this, sometimes you can get some hesitation at big throttle openings and low-low RPM. Why do we notice this? Because before there was not a real solution to this, now there is Fuel Injection and you can get away with this kind of throttle wackiness on FI bikes. On the carbureted Yamaha, you notice this slight stumble. Answer: Slip a little clutch or downshift, maybe you are truthfully a gear too high.What it is:
The 2009 Yamaha YZ450F is a great motocross bike. It is ready to race for all levels of riders and it is doing it with a sensible sound output to help keep tracks with sound issues out of trouble. To top it off the power is easy to use and the bike gets great traction. Matched with excellent suspension, riders savvy with setup can get the bike to do whatever they want it to do, adding the adjustable tripleclamp makes it even more versatile. Overall it is a package that isn’t specific to any type or style of rider and seemed to satisfy all of our testers.Discuss this in our forums

Discuss this in our forums

Opinions:The motor on the 2009 YZ450F was the first thing to catch my attention. A lot like the 2008, it had plenty of power, but was still deceiving due to the smooth power delivery. At first I found myself wanting to downshift because the motor sounded like it was bogging down. Well, maybe it sounded like that, but it definitely wasn’t slowing down, and after a couple of turns I was one happy camper, I mean rider. It was pulling strong and putting traction to the ground. Most of the power was in the bottom to mid range, so the YZ liked to be short shifted. What do you know, a 4-stroke that’s made to be ridden like a 4-stroke. I have never understood why people like to ride 4-strokes on the rev limiter; I mean after all, that’s not where the power is, and who wants to replace valves more often then their oil.The suspension on the Yamaha was again very plush and worked great all around. I only had a couple issues that could easily be remedied with some minor suspension work. With the back end kicking coming into hard braking corners, I felt that the bike could use a little more hold up in the front. This would also help with those unsuspected pot hole landings and make the bike a little more stable at high speeds. I’m sure that would effect the corning a little, but that shouldn’t be a problem because this thing turns on a dime. Can you say “corners like a Suzuki”? Yes, I said it, and yes, it does. As long as you are fully committed, you can throw this bike into any tight, rutted turn and come out smiling. If I had to pick out something that I don’t like about the YZ all I can come up with is the skinny feel. Being 6’1″, I’m a little more comfortable on the wider bikes like the Kawasaki and Honda, also which, are the bikes I am used to riding. That’s just rider preference though.Yamaha has once again put together an awesome machine. The motor alone makes the YZ one of the easiest 450 motocrossers to ride. Then you add great suspension, awesome Handling and little extras like ProTaper Bars, wide foot pegs and some serious braking power. The ’09 YZ450F is definitely competitive right out of the crate.-Chris Barrett 6’1″/185 lb/ProSeeing as the 2009 YZ450F didn’t receive any major motor or suspension changes this year, it’s no surprise that new blue is essentially a slightly tweaked version of last year’s model. And what stood out on that bike? Rideability, among other things, was the 2008 Yamaha’s prominent characteristic, and the new model is no stranger to this same ease-of-use. Thanks to a hearty but well-mannered motor, the YZF is less “get up and go” and more “I’m here if you need me”. In other words, the mellow nature of the bike’s delivery doesn’t wear you out, doesn’t knock your socks off and doesn’t feel very fast. On the stopwatch, though, the benefits of a useable 450cc power spread can be a bit surprising. As far as the chassis goes, the Yamaha again exhibits a nimble and easy-handling feel that can be in part attributed to the narrow seat and shroud setup. With stock settings, the suspension was a little stiff for my weight and riding style, but even still it took hard hits and chop like a champ. The stock Pro Taper bars on the YZF are killer, and the overall fit and finish of the bike is also solid. But can this bike win our shootout? It’s too early to tell, but if the stopwatch is any indication of the potential it has, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Yamaha on top this year.
-Chris Denison/ 5’10″/ 155 lb./ IntermediateFor 2009 Yamaha didn’t change a lot on the big YZ. However, riding the big blue bike today reminded me of what a potent performer it really is. The first thing everyone in the world wants to talk about on the YZ450 is the power. For me, it’s perfect. And I’ve personally spent the last two years modifying the two powerhouses in this displacement class to reflect exactly what the YZ does in stock trim. It simply delivers the most usable helping of 450 power I’ve ever experienced.Discuss this in our forums

Now, at first impression you might think it’s muffled, slow or lazy off the bottom, but you’re wrong. So is everyone else who says this thing is down on power. It’s not. It stacks power like firewood and is ready to burn on notice. Riders from beginner to pro will (and have in our tests) gone fastest on the 2008 YZ450F in timed test sessions.What is it that works so well? It’s delivery. It’s efficiency. And it’s usability. The bike doesn’t rip your arms off or spin it’s rear. It just accelerates controllably.As controlled as the power plant is across the board, the suspension and handling has always thrown me off on this bike. I often have more trouble finding a balance between bump-compliance and cornering stability than I do on other aluminum-framed MX bikes. I praise its straight-line performance but can’t get the thing dialed in to dive and swoop through corners without precise concentration on my part. Let’s be honest here: I’m really complaining that while the bike lets me go brainless with my right hand, I still have to think on my toes and with my clutch in the twisties.If I can get the front end to commit, the back end to follow and both ends to stay planted as I drift off and think about how my fantasy baseball team is doing, then I’ll be completely sold. If anything the YZ450F is consistent. It hasn’t done anything surprising in the few hours of testing.The thing about it “not” turning as well for me is more a feeling of its suspension really working. These forks actually move! The feeling threw me off for a while since I’ve been in the saddle of more rigid-feeling bikes for the last year. When the Yamaha started moving in the front end I’d panic and release the front brake and thus would begin the see-sawing, unsettled sensation I was struggling with at first. I’ve found ride height and dragging the rear brake in those ruts a bit ensures the big blue bomber will plant itself just fine. Also, stop shifting down so much, Ziegler! The bike will pull a taller gear and is more relaxed in the turns without a freighter’s worth of engine braking.Mostly, the cornering characteristics are something I needed to get accustomed to. I guess that’s why we put 10+ hours on this bike already.
-Jesse Ziegler/5’10″/175lbs/ Vet Intermediate.I am not really too much of a 450 rider I only race it ounce a year for Mammoth. So I was a little on the timid side about the power of this big 450. After doing a few laps I realized that I was having no problems controlling the bike at all. With such a smooth powerband it made me think that the YZF 450 was a little slow, and lacked power. But by the end of the day I realized that what made this whole bike was a great motor. It was pretty close to identical to last years bike. Suspension, handling and just about everything else on this bike worked together perfectly. I was able to get on the bike and just ride without making any adjustments. Even coming straight off a 250F, there was no challenge in the transition to a bigger bike.-Tyler Ruiz 5’10″/180 lb/IntermediateIf I told you that I had a choice between racing Chad Reed’s supercross winning YZ450, Grant Langston’s Outdoor National number one bike and a stock 2009 YZ450, which one do you think I would take? All egos aside, I’d choose the stock bike if I were looking for results. Crazy? I had the opportunity to ride all three of these bikes (feature story to come, you’ll have to get the magazine for that.) and if I needed to do my best, the stock bike would have been the best tool. It is such a well rounded package, like it was last year, that if you never rode another bike you could not complain about how this bike works. This may be one of the last carbureted full-size motocross bikes and for some dealing with jets is something they do not want to give up. No matter what anyone’s reason for thinking about buying the YZ450, I don’t know of any reason a rider wouldn’t be really happy on one of these.–Jimmy Lewis 5’10″/185 lb/ Senior ProDiscuss this in our forums

Reader’s Questions:“I mostly ride in deep sandy tracks with lots of traction and braking bumps that can bottom out forks. I also ride in very tight trails again with soft dirt. Occasionally I come across some hard packed clay, but if it’s been raining that clay becomes muck. I want to know if the new 450 is better than the YZ250 in any of these conditions.” – bhorriganAs for bottoming out the forks, that is a lot about the rider and the speed you are riding. We don’t find that the Yamaha bottoms any more than any of the other 450s but what we do know is that when it bottoms, often just adding a little more oil to the forks can have a really positive effect on this. If the fork is working good everywhere and it is only bottoming, adding 5cc of oil at a time to each leg should help it out.We do not test motocross bikes in the trails. Why? Because it is not what they were designed for. We know riders use them for this but for us to tell you how something works for something it wasn’t designed to do just does not make sense on out part. Especially when Yamaha makes WRs for the trails. Generally the two-strokes motocross bikes are better on the trails than the four strokes, if you are asking my personal opinion.“Basically, a run down on how the new swingarm helps improve the bikes turning ability, and suspension action, if it does…It would also be nice to hear some about the bikes power. It seems like the first thing guys do when they bought the 08 was to go out and put on a aftermarket exhaust. However, it seemed like the stock system provided plenty of power that came on so” – pin_itWe could not really pinpoint the changes the swingarm made. Since our 2008 bike had a pipe and different tires, that is enough to change the feel of the bikes enough so that even high level test riders might not be able to feel the difference. From talking to Yamaha test riders (who tell it straight) there is a slight benefit in traction that you can fell in going back-to-back. We felt nothing bad from the new swingarm, that is for sure.“The first thing I want to know about this bike (and any new bike for that matter) is how it held up. We don’t get to rebuild a motor every week, so durability is a big concern. Yamaha is tops in this dept, and I for one would like to know if they are keeping it that way. Does it flame out? How’s the jetting and handling? How fast did it run through a tank of fuel, did the valves come out of spec at any point while you were testing…” – skipkhWe have over 10 hard running hours on our bike already and it is still getting faster and easier to start every hour. We have done one oil and filter change. Our experience with Yamaha 450Fs is that that peak at about 20 hours and run really strong easily till 30 hours (all approximate) and beyond. We’d suggest looking at the top end at 40 hours and then decide on how you are wearing stuff out and determine a maintenance schedule for your bike. You should check the valves more frequently. And if they are not moving, don’t worry about them. Live by the hour meter. We have not checked our valves yet, maybe at 20 hours but I wouldn’t suspect to see anything out of spec.The bike does not flame out, the jetting is about perfect for us running Texaco 91 octane pump gas at elevations from 0-3000′. For the handling, see the test. As for the fuel range, we can ride a solid 45-minute GP and push an hour-long moto on a tank of gas.Discuss this in our forums