Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128110
(Right) The throttle bodies have 40mm diameters, and have throttleposition sensors and an electronic c ontrol unit. (Above) These lightweight forged pistons operate in a 48-degree V configuration in g7mm ceramic-eomposlt e cylinders. The motor is d esigned more f or hig h -rpm pow e r t h an most cruiser stum p-pullers. (Ri ght) A n ew alrboz d es i gn h as increased volume c o m p ared to the Roa d Star , along w ith decreased res istance, result ing In In c rea se d t orqu e and h igher revs. (Above) The Wa rrior's heads f e ature straighter In tak e and exhaust tracts, alo n g with a revised lean-bum syste!", that is supposed to maximize power while stili keeping the Greens happy. Two spark-plugs are utilized for e a ch of the two-piece cylinder heads. '-. (Left) Yamaha was shooting for In c reas ed rigidity and d ecreased weight with the Warrior, which is why it went with an ali-aluminum chassis_ In f a ct, Yamaha' s claimed dry weight on the b ike is a full 12 0 pounds less than that of the Honda VTX. (Right) An aluminum truss-type swlngarm graces the Road Star Wa rrior, and It's sa id to be sig nificantly stiffer than the Road Star's. th rottle -bo d ies with throttle-pos ition s en s or s (TPS) and an electron ic control uni t (ECU ) that feed into allne w two -piece cylinder heads, boasting two spark plugs per cylin der. The heads featur e stra ighter intake and exhaust tracts , and a revised lean -burn system to max imize power whi le rema in ing emis sions fr iend ly . Per form anc e camshafts mate with a s ho rte r rocker ratio and new lighter pushrods for improved power and throttle res ponse, a nd the motor is said to b re athe tons be tte r thanks to an all new airbox design that offe rs a 115percent ai r-cleaner volume increase over th e Road Star. and 70 -percent le ss re sistance . It all adds up to make for a mill that produ ces far greate r torque than th e Ro a d Star and revs about 1100 rpm higher. Aiding acceleration is a revised close -ratio five -speed transm ission , which has been strengthened to deal with the Warrior 's increased muscle. But we ight, there's less: In designing the Warrior, Yamaha followed a formula to make the bike stiffer and lighter. To that end , the Warrior chas sis and truss-type sw ingarm are all new. a ll-aluminum designs that offer a c lai med 4 1 -percent increase in rigidity over the stock Road Star. An R I-derived 41 mm Kayaba fork, that is preload adjustable only. mates to the hollow -cast R I.- insp ired front wheel with twin 298mm front disc bra kes . Out back . the hollow -cast three -spoke wheel contai ns a m e a ty 200/50 -ZR17 Dun lop Sportmax radial. Total wheelbase is 65.7 inches . Yamaha claims a dry weight of 606 pounds , which is 120 pounds less than the Honda vrx. Among the more in t e r e s ti n g styl ing appointments are the rac y looking exhaust can that is part of the two - into -one exhaust system , and digital bar-graph tach , which sweeps in the same fash ion as that found on Honda 's high-tech V-twin S uperbike , the RC5!. The Warrior's LED taillight borrows a technological cue from the YZF-R6 sportbike. All th is, and Yamaha has managed to price the Ro ad Star Warrior at cue' S11 ,999 , making it a rather attractive dragster. Add it all up , and it wou ld seem that Yamaha has . in the Road S tar Warrior , a machine that is ready to fight it out on the mean streets of sport cruiserdom. It should make for one hot littl e dragster, especial ly when outfitted with Yamaha 's new line of ra cing parts designed just for the Warr ior , the goodies marketed under the S p e e d s t ar brand. . Ya m aha h a s told us th a t we will get the chance to ride o ne of these babies sometime in October. Can our inevit a ble sport cruiser shoot o ut be far behind? Sta y tuned . I:N n EO _ S • JUNE 27.2001 35