Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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under brakes, won't squat from the rear too much under acceleration—all in all, it's very good. Comfort from the heated seat is excel- lent. Admittedly we only covered 270 miles during the day whereas many Eluder riders will easily crack 500, but I only started to become uncomfortable on the 27.6-inch tall seat as we cruised into San Diego at dusk. The back pad on the seat is angled a little rearward from vertical, which allows you to sink in and not curve your lower back too much. The bodywork has one major flaw in that the screen is unadjustable. The Eluder's screen is at the perfect height for the wind to totally rattle my head, so at 6'1" I either have to sit as tall as I can and cop the wind blast to the chest or I have to duck down somewhat and have it go over my helmet. Not ideal. The only way to fix this issue in the short term is to wear earplugs, as they will cancel out much of the wind buffeting. Another issue is the Eluder doesn't come with heated grips as standard fit- ment. I understand that much of what a dealer makes when they sell a bike comes from accessories, but if you're dropping $23K-plus on a touring bike, heated grips should be a standard feature. Despite these flaws, the Star Eluder is still an excellent motorcycle. As part of the Transcontinental Touring category, the Eluder brings a style quite far removed from the Venture, which will go head to head with something like Honda's Gold Wing. The ride experience is extremely good on the Eluder—which it ought to be considering the price tag—and it's made the choice in a bagger even more difficult if you're in the market for one. CN SPECIFICATIONS 2018 YAMAHA STAR ELUDER ($22,499/GT $23,999) ENGINE Air-cooled, V-twin, 4-stroke DISPLACEMENT 1854cc BORE X STROKE 100 x 118mm COMPRESSION RATIO 9.5:1 CLUTCH Wet multi-plate, slip and assist TRANSMISSION 6-speed CHASSIS Steel main frame and CF die-cast aluminum sub-frame FRONT SUSPENSION 46mm telescopic fork, unadjustable REAR SUSPENSION Monoshock with remote preload adjustment FRONT WHEEL TRAVEL 5.1 in. REAR WHEEL TRAVEL 4.3 in. FRONT BRAKE 298mm discs, dual four-piston calipers, Unified Braking System, ABS as standard REAR BRAKE 320mm disc, single-piston caliper, Unified Braking System, ABS as standard FRONT TIRE 130/70R18 Bridgestone Exedra REAR TIRE 200/55R16 Bridgestone Exedra RAKE 31° WHEELBASE 67.6 in. SEAT HEIGHT 27.6 in. FUEL CAPACITY 6.6 gal. WEIGHT 875 lbs. (curb, claimed). COLOR Liquid Silver, Impact Blue, Raven The Star Eluder is certainly capable of covering a lot of ground in comfort. 118 BUYERS GUIDE CYCLE NEWS CRUISER BUYERS GUIDE