2016 YAMAHA YZ250F
FIRST RIDE
P50
day long without thinking about
the suspension again.
Yamaha did, however, jump
on the "oversize" front disc
brake bandwagon. It's now
270mm in diameter, which is up
20mm. Brake pad material has
also been changed for better
bite. The larger disc plus the
new pads equal much-improved
braking power up front, so much
so that it took a little getting used
to. Both our test riders were
quick to compare them to the
well-liked Brembos found on the
KTMs.
The rest of the bike pretty
much feels like it used to, which
is, of course, a good thing.
The YZ is still a solid-handling
machine that is graced by one
of the best suspension setups
in the business. It still turns well;
sure, it might not be the quickest
turning bike in its class, but it's
pretty darn close. It's good in the
ruts and loves both sweeping
and 180-degree turns equally.
Even though we only have a
few hours on the bike, we can
safely say that the 2016 Yamaha
YZ250F is, overall, an improved
bike with it's much stronger front
brake, improved bottom-to-mid
power delivery, more positive
shifting and more supple rear
suspension (but heavier riders
might disagree with that). We
also like that fact that the Yama-
ha is the only 250F motocrosser
that is available with two color
options—traditional Yamaha Rac-
ing Blue and, new for this year,
Yellow 60
th
Anniversary Edition.
The yellow version cost $100
more. CN
It's just as good in the air
as it is on the ground.
