Five years after the launch of the first XSR900, Yamaha has rebuilt its neoclassic from the ground up, hoping to finally gain a foothold in the popular neoclassic / retro segment.
It is fair to tell us that we have had mixed feelings about it from the start, with the XSR models with which Yamaha thought they could score well in the neoclassic annex retro segment. It has never been a matter of driving characteristics, if you ask us they were even a lot better than the MT models, but yes… in the end the eye wants something too and beauty was not exactly the strongest point.
“If you zoom in on the details, they’ve done some pretty nice things, but it’s like they’ve put together the wrong details,” Wrenchmonkees’ Nicholas Bech put it well three years ago when we spontaneously visited Copenhagen there. “It’s not a balanced whole.”
The good news is that they have finally realized that at Yamaha and have now been the first to completely redesign the XSR900, but just to add the bad news: the new design isn’t much better. In fact, compared to its predecessor, it suddenly doesn’t seem all that wrong.
According to Yamaha, the XSR900 is technologically and aesthetically inspired by the 1980s, which has been a glorious and significant period in the brand’s history. And it is also different from many neo-retro models.
They are absolutely right about the latter, the XSR900 is completely different from everything else on the market, but different is not necessarily better. Or more beautiful. Well, of course that’s a matter of taste.
Not only in terms of design is the XSR900 completely new, the same can also be said of the bicycle part. Yamaha speaks of a completely redesigned frame, with increased longitudinal, lateral and torsional stiffness for more straight-line stability, without sacrificing maneuverability.
The headset has also been lowered by 30 mm, allowing the handlebars to be mounted lower and a more aggressive riding position has been created. According to Yamaha, this has resulted in a better feeling in the corners and in combination with other adjustments, the inertia has been reduced by 14%.
The swingarm is also new and now 55mm longer, which has also increased the wheelbase by 55mm and is now 1,495mm, which will not have benefited the flashy handling on paper. As for the suspension, Yamaha has opted for a KYB upside down that is fully adjustable and a KYB monoshock that is almost completely hidden from view.
Following on from the MT-09, Yamaha has now also used the 889 cc CP3 in the XSR900, the three-cylinder with 3 mm longer stroke for 43 cc extra displacement. Power and torque are the same as the MT-09, or 119 hp at 10,000 rpm and 93 Nm at 7,000 rpm. The block is also equipped with a slip-assist clutch.
Electronics are no stranger to the XSR900, Yamaha has equipped the bike with a 6-axis IMU, which controls lean angle dependent traction control, slide control and wheelie control, as well as the cornering ABS. The new XSR900 features 4 riding modes, with Mode 1 being the most aggressive and Mode 4 the friendliest. An up/down quickshifter is also fitted as standard.
The XSR900 is available in Legend Blue, Cyan and Yellow with gold fork and wheels,
and also in Midnight Black with red accents and black fork and controls. Available from March 2022. How much it should cost will be announced at a later stage.
– Thanks for information from Motorfreaks.