2014 Yamaha YZ450F: Ride Impression

Cameron Taylor

Fourohfour

Because multiple Australian MX and SX champ, Cameron Taylor, has been racing a YZ450F in recent years and knows the bike inside-out, we got him to join us at Yamaha’s Australian launch for the new 2014 YZ450F. So what was Cam’s take on the much-updated 2014 model? Were the performance gains as significant as Yamaha had been claiming? Was the design mantra of “mass centralisation” a gimmick, or has it actually paid dividends this year? Given that we only gave Cam a few minutes to speak on-camera about the new bike, he felt he ought to offer more detailed feedback, and emailed us the following bullet points a few days after the launch.

My Standouts

• The 2014 bike is much more planted feel in the front-end (which would be even more magnified if they’d get rid of that Dunlop MX51 front tyre). Through braking bumps, the rear-end is really predictable.
• The whole bike feels so much lighter and more agile to ride. It’s much easier to flick side-to-side and has a noticeably lighter feel in the air. And the narrower ergos makes it easier to stay seated in the right position on the seat through long corners.
• There’s more power, but it’s also easier to use. The lurchy EFI at lower revs is gone, and the delivery is smoother. Plus the 2014 pulls harder at high revs, whereas the 2013 signed off pretty quickly (it had short power for a 450 and requires more gear changes).
• The new bike’s shorter third gear lets you carry third though more corners. That reduces gear changes, and lets you ride the bike in a way that wears you out less. It’s definitely more user-friendly. The revised linkage and shock settings seem to get that power to the ground better, too. It hooks up incredibly well.
• The mods to the gearshift mechanism has made gear changes much slicker. It’s easier to find neutral, and easier to kick the new bike over in gear, too.
• It’s much better to service air filter and change shock absorbers on the 2014. And with the muffler now tucked in out do the way, it’s going to be less vulnerable to crash damage.

My Gripes

• Those Dunlop MX51 tyres, especially the front. I don’t know any good riders who like them. They’re just so vague.
• The rubber-mounted handlebars twist really easily, even in a small crash. I’d replace them an aftermarket rigid mount – such as Zeta’s Rubber Killers.
• The grips are still hard. I’d run a softer-compound grip.
• The 95mm rear-end race sag that the Japanese engineers were suggesting we use doesn’t work. For me, the chassis feels better at a more conventional 102-104mm, and then lifting the forks 3-5mm up through the triple clamps.

To check out our American ride impression on the all-new 2014 Yamaha YZ450F, click here. Inside Transmoto’s October Issue, which goes on sale this Thursday, we put the 2014 YZ450F up against the 2013 model, and also compare it with Kawasaki’s 2014 KX450F. Be sure to grab yourself a print or digital edition.