XSR900 Demo Ride, Scratch and Dent sale!

The day finally came when I could throw a leg over the new Yamaha XSR900. Ever since Yamaha released the FZ-09 and subsequently the FZ-07, they have been killing it on the sales floor. With five models in the FZ/MT lineup, two sub-model styling packages and a sixth model rumored to come out soon, there is something for everyone. I got the chance to take an extended test ride on an XSR. Here are the notes from my ride.

Having my friend's FZ-09 in my garage has been nice for me to experience the 09 triple engine. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that engine. There is some jerkiness off of low throttle openings, but once you get over that, you are golden. My V-Strom has a snatchy throttle off idle as well so it doesn't bother me. The ergonomics of the FZ-09 are what killed me from getting one off of Craigslist. I was hoping the XSR's layout would suit me better.

The view from the riders seat is very nice. The round offset gauge pod is very informative and easy to read. I like the center decorative cover with the cool XSR logo on the tank which is a nice touch. Once I sat on the bike, I was in love. The seating position is much more reminiscent of an older UJM bike. Just like my TX750. All of the controls just fit and I felt like I was on a bike I'd been riding for years.

Here is a good pic of the unmolested left side. I have to say that thanks to the events that happened after I got my ride on the bike. The local bike shop that hosted the ride was doing 40 minutes rides, once an hour. They did the usual ID card, waiver, sign away your life thing and after that you signed up for a bike you wanted to test. Due to the number of riders and bikes, they said you can only do one test ride. I waited and hour and a half to get my turn on the XSR, but it was worth it.

After my 12:00 ride, I signed up for a 2:00 ride on the FZ-07. I wanted to compare them back to back to really decide which one I was going to get. I went to the ride with the expectation of coming home with a bike. While the 1:00 group was rolling out the door, the rider testing the XSR didn't quite navigate the uphill left out of the parking lot all that well and dumped the brand new 85 mile XSR on its left side. There is nothing like the sickening sound of the crunch of a bike NOT rubber side down.

They pulled a tech from the shop to check the bike out and gave it the ok for the next demo. Amazingly they gave the guy a second chance to do the demo where he promptly put it on its side once again. He was done after that and the bike was benched for the day so the shop could see what the damage was. The shop takes the chance when they host these things, but man was it a bummer to see the bike lying like a dead bug on the ground. I'm glad I got tot ride it before the carnage happened. 

After witnessing the abuse of the XSR, I had the salesman pull my V-Strom into the shop for a trade in evaluation. While that was happening I took a ride on this beautiful Armor Grey FZ-07. I really like the color combo. The bike was as good as I remembered it from Japan. The peg position is just a bit too high, but with a thicker seat and some drop pegs, I think it would be perfect.

I describe the difference between the triple and twin of the two FZ bikes is that the twin has enough fun power and the triple has extra fun power. You have to wring the twin out a bit, but it growls and snorts and gets right to it. The triple is just so linear in the power delivery that you always feel like there is more there on tap. Both bikes are great and both will be good for anyone that wants a good multipurpose bike with excellent engine characteristics at a value price.

Speaking of value price, they shop came back with some numbers for the trade and of course I could do almost twice what they offered myself on Craigslist. I also made a reference to picking up the crunched XSR. They let me check it out and made me a good discount offer on it versus a new one from the warehouse. I had to mull it over overnight since my military duties make it hard to commit to a multi year loan when I might actually transfer overseas soon. I decided not to pick up the XSR. I did let them know that if they got an FZ-07 in a trade to call me up. I need to clean up the V-Strom and do some service. After that I will do some fishing on Craigslist to see what I can pull from the private market. An FZ-07 for about $5,000 would be worth changing bikes around.

Well I hope you enjoyed this dramatic tale of test ride drama. I will be digging into the Yamaha TX engine very soon and am planning a trip with my KTM owning buddy after he gets back from deployment. I also have a track day at the kart track planned so more content is coming soon.

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