Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

NEW BIKES 1998 Yamahas (Left) The all -new VZFR1 lea ds the way in Yamaha's lineup for 1998. The bike features a 998 cc in-line four that pumps out a claimed 150 hp. (Below) In an attempt to garner sales in the ' mlddleweight-c ruiser market. Yama ha ha s Introduced the new V· Star, powe red by a 655c c versi on of the Virago 535 V-tw in pow erplant. t was perhaps a little disappointing to see that Yamaha isn't offering a big V-twin open-class sportbike in its 1998 model lineup, but judging by the looks of things, Yamaha doesn't need one. Enter the all-new, 998cc, inline-fou r-powered YZF-RI. In Yamaha's own words , the R1 was designed to be the "bes t p erformin g mo to rcycle on mountain road s," to "de liver speed and exciteme nt" and to "feature the cornering ability of a 600 along with the power and torque of a one-litre machine." If it does in fac t d o all th ese things that Yamaha claims, who need s a big V-twin anyway ? Ob viousl y Yamaha doesn't think it does. At least not yet. The R1 isn't the only big new s coming from Yamaha for 1998, as the compa ny unveils its first "fu ll-size" middleweight retro cruiser, the V-Star, Like its olde r sibling, the Royal Star, the YStar features that classic long-a nd -low stylin g with, of course, the required low sea t height and wide tires. The machine is powered by a n air-coo led, 40-cu bicinch (655ccl V-twin en gine with shaft final drive. Despite its su b-700cc d is- which feature; long, deep fenders. and the Custom, which feature; a bobtailed styling along the lines of the Marauder. Both Y-Stars feat ure th e same eng ine and shaft-drive compo nents. The Classic will be available in November at a retail price of $5899, and the Cu stom at $5599. Th e Cu stom won't be availab le until Janu ary . . There will be many more big-bore Royal Star mod els to choose from in '98. In 1997, Yamaha had three basic models from which to choose; now there are seven, each featuring different accessory 'packa ges and color schemes (a nd , of course, p rices). You r cho ice s are: Cheyenne, Boulevard, Silverado (variously equipped versio ns of the basic Royal Star); Tour Classic an d Tour Classic 11 (likewise); and Tour Delu xe Solitaire (seating for one), and Tour Deluxe Deuce (seati ng for two) ed itions. Retail prices start at $13,749 for the Cheynne Ed ition and top ou t at $15,149 for the fully equipped Tour Delu xe Deuce ed ition. In the off -road department, as you pro bably already know, Yamaha will be offering the all-new YZ400F four-stroke mot ocrosser for '98, righ t alongside the YZ80, 125 and 250cc MXers. Missing fro m th e lin eup is th e WR25 0 woods bike. That's because it has been replaced by the WR400F thumper. Unfortu nately, Yamaha is still being tight-lipped about (Below) Yamaha 's Royal Star li ne remains fundamentally unchanged - you can lust get the bikes in many more flavors. Various accessoryoption packages are offered tor whatever your taste desires. Pictured is the Tour Deluxe Deuce, a twoseater vers ion of the hard-bagequl pped Tour Deluxe. (Below right) The WR400F steps up to IiII the cabable shoes 01 the old two-stroke WR250 in Yamaha 's li neup. Based on the all- new YZ400F l ourstroke motocrosser, expect the usual otfroad-worthiness alterations to gearing and po wer Characteristics to make the bike more trail-friendly. I:'-. 0\ 0\ ...... N N .... OJ ..0 o ..... u o 22 placement, Yamaha is quick to poi nt out tha t the Y-Sta r is ai me d a t 800cc versions of the same type of machines tha t some of the o the r manu factur ers are offering, such as Kawasaki' s Yulcan 800 Classic, Suzu ki's Marauder 80 0 and Hond a' s 750 Shad ow. The 1998 Y-Star will be offered in two styles: the Classic, the WR400F, bu t you can surely guess that it' s basica lly a YZ400F with lights a n d a ll th e o the r u sua l off-roa d cha ngeo ve rs tp mak e it mor e trail friendly. The WR400F will be priced at $5899 and is schedu led to be available next Marc h. But perh aps it' s the R1 o f which

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