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Posted: 09/25/09
We found that moving the clamps to the front most position on the bike warranted a much better feel. This gave us a bit more room on the cockpit to move around and stay aggressive. This, of course, reduces your rake angle though, which makes the bike a bit more twitchy, but we felt that this compromise worked best as the bike is very stable in its stock settings.
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Posted: 09/25/09
We experienced a bit of clutch slippage during our two days in Maryland. The micro adjuster on the perch helped keep it in proper range, but it’s an issue that may warrant more of a look. We’ll know more when we get the bike in our hands for a longer test.
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Posted: 09/25/09
Off-camber turns are tough on any bike, period. The Yamaha’s new lower center of gravity certainly helps you put it through these tough sections with confidence.
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Posted: 09/25/09
Another addition to this year’s model is an oil window. This will keep you from wipping the dipstick on your socks every time you need to check your Yami’s oil level. Very handy.
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Posted: 09/25/09
The new molded plastic that Yamaha has implemented for 2010 really does what they say, stay fresh. Joel busted out a lot of laps over the last two days and the plastics are still looking fresh.
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Posted: 09/25/09
This bike comes on hard! The power curve is relatively smooth, but in its stock EFI settings the majority of the useable power is at the bottom and mid-range. This, of-course, can be altered a few ways; different chain/sprocket ratio, adjustments to the EFI settings (you’ll need to buy the control module, when available, price is approx. $290).
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Posted: 09/25/09
The first ride on this bike is interesting, we had to take our time getting used to this bike. Because the ergonomic’s have changed so much, you’ve got to manage this bike a bit different from last years model. It seems to reward those who push hard, ride fast and use up all of the suspension travel. The center of gravity is definitely lower and right under your bum. Once you get used to managing its weight distribution is handles like a dream.
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Posted: 09/25/09
The new frame/gas tank combination really forces the rider forward. If you’ve spent any time on Yami’s from the last few years you know that the seat had a major slump in it, this one is about as flat as it gets and forces the rider into a much more aggressive seating position than the previous model, which we liked.
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Posted: 09/25/09
We were very happy with the feel of the suspension on this bike. We didn’t change a thing from the minute we got on the bike, clickers still in stock position. Our test rider Joel attempted to bottom out the shock and fork a number of times down Henry’s Hill but didn’t have any luck.
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Posted: 09/25/09
The airbox is now slightly harder to access than before, but that isn’t saying much. You’ve now got a whopping 6 bolts to remove. Once the seat is pulled up you simply push on silver bar running across the air filter, pull up on its lower tab and it’s released. Very simple, actually.
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Posted: 09/25/09
The new semi-transparent gas tank is also a nice addition. It’s tough to tell from this photo, but it’s easy in the daylight to see what your fuel level looks like from the side of the bike. This will help you avoid the always embarrasing situation where you pop your gas cap off, sloshing the tank around to check the fuel level and fuel jumps out on your lap.
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Posted: 09/25/09
The front brake on this bike is great. Budds was a great place to test brakes, there’s a lot of high speed downhill sections with off-camber turns following which require you to get on the binders hard.
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First Look: 2010 Yamaha YZ450F
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Photos: KLX 110 and 110L
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