2016 Yamaha YZ450F First Riding Impression

Photos By Scott Hoffman

Yamaha launched the 2016 YZ450F at Competitive Edge Raceway in the high desert of Southern California to the media and Dirt Bike Test was there. The bigger YZ is seeing some significant changes at a time when the industry is just recovering from slow sales; R&D improvenments are making it to the market. The major upgrades from 2015 are the stiffing the chassis and changing the attitude of the bike through linkage, spring rate and tripleclamp offset alterations. On the engine side of things the cam shapes and timing is different and the ECU now has the addition of a launch control map and overall setting changes to increase power and drivability, especially in the lower rev zones.

We got our hands on a special edition 60^th Anniversary color scheme YZ450F and put some laps down to get a first impression. The YZ450F starts easy and with the crisp FI settles into a very nice idle, though as you can imagine it was warm outside. From the first moments on the YZ you notice that it is visually a little wider right in front of where you sit and the sound is a little different since the snarl of the air intake is underneath and in front of you. The throttle pull is light and the response instantaneous.

On the track the bike is not the lightest feeling in the way it works since there is somewhat of a rearward bias while riding in comparison to other bikes. Yamaha calls this mass centralization which has the front of the bike and the steering feeling very light. It takes minimal effort through the bars and the YZ is also agile side-to-side through the footpegs. The area that was worked on, the stability of the chassis going into the turns, seems to have worked but first let’s talk about the engine.

To some the YZ is known as a powerhouse and to others it isn’t, just depends on where in the power you ride the bike or how you have it tuned. There is no doubt that the reversed cylinder design and it’s downdraft intake can product the ponies but on a 450 it is more about how you deliver them. Right from the get-go with the deep ripped dirt we were struggling with the step in the power delivery of the stock bike. Yamaha has boosted the torque on the bottom but then we felt  there was a flat spot between bottom and where the YZ came back alive in the middle. This was making the bike hard to ride in different sections of the track based on the rider. Not only could the rider feel this, observers could hear it with noticeable on-off-on throttle applications or excessive clutching of riders trying to get through the middle without the bike wanting to stand up or wheelie coming out of turns.

Here is where the GYTR Power Tuner (sold separately $279.95) really came in handy. With a quick plug-in we were able to do a few things. First we added a little fuel at low throttle openings as the bike acted lean, especially on deceleration. The popping went away. Then we tried a map with some advanced ignition changes through the entire curve which turned the YZ into a whole different bike. It filled the hole in the power and now the transition between bottom and mid was filled for a very smooth and controlled delivery. The motor was instantly awesome. Now we were riding it a gear high without the clutch and not having to drop the extra gear to stay higher in the RPMs above the step in power. And in doing that the bike really stared to handle much better as well. It was more settled, got better traction and tracked straighter. Plus it didn’t stand up in the turns either.

Don’t worry about top end power, the YZ has plenty. And with our different map the overrev character was even better and more free. Of course this setting may have been track specific and other tracks and testing may show this. We have the bike and are out riding it to get more information.

Once we got happy with the motor our suspension tinkering really stopped and we were pretty satisfied with the stock setup, a click here or there for some comfort issues provided the rider sag was set near 100mm. The YZ rides a little lower and really loads the rear wheel while still having a very precise front end steering going into turns. If you are on the gas you steer on the rear wheel, on the brakes steering is all on the front.

The other changes to the motor in the clutch machining and shifting will take time to tell. For sure the clutch was excellent, we were abusing it in the morning before switching maps; it took it and felt good the whole time. Shifting was a little stiff but the bike felt like it needs more time to loosen up a little and maybe an oil change soon. Yamaha’s jump to the 270mm front brake rotor is a huge one and you can feel it in both strength and the minimal lever effort strong braking requires. We didn’t get time to really experiment with the launch control for the starts, we’ll be doing that soon.

Yamaha was quick to point out that there are currently over 100 GYTR accessories already available at www.shopyamaha.com, everything from blue bling to complete ported racing heads (plus that Power Tuner). Additionally there is bLU cRU Rider Benefits with up to a $500 racer incentive. The Blue YZ450 is available right now for $8590 and you can pick up a 60^th Anniversary edition starting in August for $8690. We’ll bet getting a lot more time on the bike quickly and have a full test up as soon as we are ready.