2010 YAMAHA YZ450F FIRST RIDE:

    On Yamaha’s dime, Dennis Stapleton and I were flown to Washington D.C. over the weekend and given the opportunity to ride the all-new, revolutionary 2010 YZ450F on the famed Budds Creek National track. I know what you’re thinking. We’re pretty dang lucky to be given such a sweet invitation. I won’t argue with that assumption.

    What’s better? After kicking our boots off from a full day of riding the bike under mostly sunny skies on Monday, I remembered that we’ll ride the bike again today on the same pristine track! But enough gloating. But enough travelogue, you probably want to know our first impressions of the 2010 Yamaha YZ450F.

MXA test rider Dennis Stapleton spent the day learning the Budds Creek track and acquainting himself with the 2010 Yamaha YZ450F.

    Power: The four-valve engine is powerful. How powerful? With a slight twist of the throttle the YZ450F sparks to life with immediate acceleration. Thanks to the 12-hole electronic fuel injection system, throttle response is instantaneous. The bike barks through the midrange and has a ferocious feel to it. It will be interesting to see how long the YZ450F can pull down a long straightaway without jumps (the Budds Creek track is littered with doubles, tabletops, and flyoffs that hinder any type of calibrated power comparsions).

    Suspension: The Kayaba SSS suspension has been a favorite of the MXA wrecking crew for years, and for good reason. The suspension offers excellent bottoming resistance and is very plush. On the new YZ450F we struggled somewhat with the balance of the front and rear suspension, but with more time we will have everything dialed in.

Got air? The 2010 YZ450F feels quite comfortable in the air.

    Exhaust: Gone is the stupid ice cream cone muffler of the last two years, which choked up the engine performance on the 2008-2009 YZ450F. In its place is a “Tornado” exhaust that looks like a curly cue french fry. The exhaust is very unique, to say the least. While it looks significantly shorter than the 2009 exhaust, the new system is actually six inches longer (and has a responance chamber on the head pipe). At low rpm the exhaust sounds rather quiet, but the bike sounds loud under heavy acceleration. We also noticed that the bike makes a sound unlike any other bike Stapleton or I have ever ridden. Thanks to the air intake system, air filter under the gas tank and exhaust pipe under the seat, the YZ450F gives off a whirling sound that’s unique. It’s not a good or bad trait, but is certainly weird. There is a significant amount of intake noise.

    Set-up: Today (Tuesday) we will start trying different set-ups (gearing, suspension, height adjustments, etc) and learn more about the 2010 Yamaha YZ450F as we spend more time on the bike. On the agenda for tomorrow? More testing. Yamaha’s Jonathan Belding, Steve Butler, Alan Olson and Tim Olson will be busy spinning wrenches as Stapleton and I make them earn their paychecks.

    It should be noted that MXA does not write one-day tests of production motorcycles. This is a quick impression and nothing will appear in MXA until we get the bike back to our home base and start riding it at Piru, AV Motoplex, Sunrise, Cahuilla, Glen Helen and other tracks that we are intimately familiar with. Of course we will be racing the bike in as many classes and with as many test riders as possible over the next couple months. Then and only then, we will write a full-blown test. The Budds Creek adventure is just a shake-down period…not a test. How do you test a bike when the only bikes to compare it to at Budds are other YZ450F’s?


Promoter Jonathan Beasley has done a tremendous job of prepping the National track for Yamaha and the media guests.