Motorcycle Sport

2016 Yamaha XSR900 New Features

Without a doubt, one in all the foremost exciting engines to come back on within the last few years is Yamaha’s 847cc in-line triple. Churning out quite a hundred rear-wheel HP, it packs a punch and also the “crossplane concept” style, with offset crankpins and even firing intervals, infuses it with a feisty mix of sound, feel and torsion. The potent, versatile triple has steam-powered 3 new models in as several years the FZ-09 naked sportbike for 2014, the FJ-09 journey sport tourer for 2015, and currently the neo-retro XSR900 for 2016.

“Neo-retro” isn’t as oxymoronic because it could sound. Reaching back to Yamaha’s own XS750 triple from the mid-’70s for inspiration, designers gave the XSR900 a spherical headlamp and a traditional-looking fuel tank with knee cutouts and hand-finished aluminium covers. just like the SR400 and Star Bolt C-Spec, the XSR900 is another model that Yamaha hopes can faucet into the recognition of vintage-style bikes like café racers, scramblers and trackers. headlamp supports, fender supports, radiator shrouds Associate in Nursingd aspect covers fabricated from blank aluminium provide the bike an elemental, hand-built look, Associate in Nursingd customizing the XSR is straightforward with accessories like an aluminium seat cowl, clubman bars, screen and alternative bolt-ons.

2016 Yamaha XSR900

Throwing a leg over the XSR900 at the press launch in city, the bike felt each acquainted and new. Atop the bar could be a lovely brushed aluminium plate with the Yamaha tuning-fork emblem that holds the only meter offset to the proper (as on the FZ-09), however it’s a spherical unit (as on the Star Bolt) with a novel, terribly trendy white-on-black show that’s jam-choked with info. just like the FZ-09, the 3.7-gallon tank and seat area unit slim, however the XSR’s seat is slightly taller 32.7 inches vs. 32.1 on the FZ and positions the rider a pair of inches farther back. The bar and footpeg positions area unit an equivalent on each bikes, that the XSR puts the rider into a a lot of aggressive, forward-leaning posture.

Hitting the starter and blipping the throttle brought music to my ears the robustious growl of the quick-revving triple. just like the FZ-09 and FJ-09, the XSR900 uses the Yamaha Chip-Controlled Throttle (YCC-T) throttle-by-wire system and has D-Mode, with A, STD and B modes that regulate throttle response and engine output. As i might shortly resolve, embarking on a 130-mile check ride on back roads and town streets, the herky-jerky throttle response that plagues the FZ-09 and FJ-09 is additionally a retardant on the XSR900. Throttle response is especially abrupt within the sport-oriented A mode, however even within the alternative modes it presents challenges at low speeds and once making an attempt to incrementally roll on or off the throttle mid-corner. What’s most puzzling regarding the XSR’s erratic throttle response is that I had simply place four,000 miles on Yamaha’s FJR1300ES, that uses an equivalent YCC-T system nevertheless has terribly precise and predictable  throttle response in each of its modes (Sport and Touring).As we have a tendency to learned with our FJ-09 semipermanent check bike, you'll adapt to the throttle response over time. And you forget all regarding it once you’re on the pipe. Keeping the throttle open and also the revs up is like drinking from the fountain of youth. It takes Pine Tree State right back to after I 1st intimate with the pure epinephrin rush of speed on 2 wheels—that visceral sensation of power felt through the grips and seat, between the knees, white-knuckling the grips and equalization on a rope between concern and excitement. The triple feels raw and unfiltered, however not rough or unbalanced. Its temperament shines during however not at the expense of refinement. At road speeds the engine hums all along, and also the new assist-and-slipper clutch reduces effort at the lever and makes gear changes on the 6-speed transmission a breeze.