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• “We’ve spent a couple hours riding the new WR450 and so far are loving it, thanks to the fuel injection and all new frame and suspension” |
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• “Finally a new WR is here and it’s one of the most impressive bikes of the year”
• “The bike has excellent low end power and a seamless transition between off and on"
• “The WR is narrow and agile, and you can toss it around very easily” |
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• “Well, Yamaha’s 2012 WR450F is the end results of a whole bunch of listening, tuning, tweaking, theorizing, manipulating, fixing and breaking stuff all in the name of finding the closest thing to perfection”
• “Stable at speed, confident in the corners and solid, the bilateral-beam aluminum frame seems to blend the best of both worlds old and new”
• “The new bike is more nimble and reacts much faster to rider input. In case you make an unintelligent input, the bike helps you cover your mistakes a lot better as well”
• “The 2012 motor feels just as responsive and powerful as ever, and the response is off the charts. Right off idle, the bike cracks off with a gallop of torque and acceleration that should be patented. Great roll-on power through the bottom end starts to accelerate into the mid quickly”
• “Race situations provide unique, real-world feedback you can’t find on a casual trail ride or a photo shoot. From out-braking a competitor to a corner to wheel-hopping a whoop rhythm section to bust past a ledge, the 13-mile lap of a GNCC course brings everything from rutted swampland to high-speed grass track. The WR made all conditions seem like it was born to perform there. It was very impressive throughout” |
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• “The new WR has a much more energetic and racy-feeling motor. Grab a handful of throttle, and the motor responds instantaneously with plenty of power off the bottom and with gobs of torque”
• “Steering is light, and it responds much quicker to handlebar input than before and simply goes where it’s told without debate”
• “our first impression of the revamped WR was without doubt a very good one”
• “We were very impressed with the WR’s new chassis” |
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“A true testament to the suspension’s quality, was that it not only handled the high-speed stuff but it also did a fantastic job of soaking up small chop and gliding over roots and stumps without deflecting or completely unsettling the bike. When pushing at race pace, there is never a feeling that you’re over-riding the bike’s capabilities, which can sometimes be the case with enduro-spec bikes compared to often-used MXers”
• “An immediate benefit is that the new frame makes the bike feel smaller, allowing the rider to easily move around and also making the bike easier to handle”
• “The WR whipped through the twisty, tree-lined course. Less energy is now necessary to control the WR, which should be nice for lengthy off-road races”
• “In making the WR a more-focused machine, Yamaha has made the $8090 WR450F an all-around better motorcycle that will continue to suit the casual trail rider as well as the weekend racer” |
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• “I was so excited to hear that Yamaha opted for Kayaba SSS suspension on the WR450. In my mind the Kayaba units are the best stock units in the motocross market”
• “Throttle response was instantaneous while riding, even as the temperature climbed or I rode from slow sections to fast straights”
• “The bike looks sleek and dialed in”
• “What’s the verdict on the 2012 Yamaha WR450? It’s an eye-opening experience riding a bike that can handle the rigors of tight woods trails, deep sand whoops, river crossings, and intermediate terrain with nary a stumble. I was overwhelmingly happy to spend over two hours navigating the GNCC course on the WR450, because it was forgiving when I needed it to be and was ready to rip when I had enough energy to hammer the throttle” |
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