This bike is very much at
home on open, flowing
trails and it works well
for that
KYB supplies the suspension and they’re
the same as found on the YZ450F but with
enduro specific settings. Compared to last
year the forks have gone up a spring rate
to 4.6N/mm and have 150ml more oil,
whilst the rear shock has dropped 350g,
following Yamaha’s push for a light enduro
bike. The conditions at the test track were
very dry and dusty, very close to sand like
conditions, with a lot of rocks. I found in
these conditions the forks were too hard
and deflected off the rocks. I tried going
softer on the compression by three clicks.
While this was an improvement it was still
a bit too harsh for me. However, they were
very good at taking the big hits. I think the
initial stroke was too soft allowing it to
blow through to the mid-stroke, which then
firmed up a bit too quickly. Other changes
to the chassis include a shorter swingarm,
a new more compact side-stand and a full
cover bashplate all helping to shed a little
weight.
Apparently Peter Payne was the driving
force behind Yamaha producing a proper
enduro bike, one capable of being raced
straight out of the box. I think the changes
have made it a lot more competitive than
it was, and with some minor changes it
could make a good race bike. I really liked
the engine, which is definitely very capable
of racing. However, the handling out of the
box lets this down on a ready-to-race front.
I found unless there was a rut to follow
the front was hard to turn. I think this was
because it was low at the back and tall at the
front making it hard to get over the front.
That said, the second day was more of a trail
ride and I had an absolute ball on it. This
bike is very much at home on open, flowing
trails and it works well for that.
The WR leaves the showroom floor as a
fully road registrable bike, which will make it
an attractive proposition to many Kiwi trail
and adventure riders too. It comes with a
competition kit includes a more free-flowing
exhaust, a map switch and Communication
Control Unit (CCU), which is used for the
smartphone tuning app. In my opinion the
WR450F is a trail bike when it is stock from
the showroom floor, but I think the changes
for this year have made it much easier to
turn it into a full-on race machine.
KIWI RIDER 45