Yamaha Road Star Warrior 1700 Motorcycle Road Test

When you thumb the big motorcycle's starter button, the engine cranks reluctantly, and for a moment you think, "Damn, the battery's flat." But then the compression release opens so the oversized piston is no longer balked by that extra compression and the engine spins quickly, catches, and emits a deep, full-throated rumble.

"Oh yeah," you remember with a smile of anticipation, "this is the hot rod."

Each motorcycle manufacturer seems to have taken a different approach to the emerging muscle-twin class. For Honda, it was an entirely new machine, powered by the biggest production V-twin motor in the known universe. The liquid-cooled 1800cc engine in the VTX employed modern technologies but used them to make plenty of power without a lot of rpm. The VTX1800C's styling was not shy about stating its performance leanings. Harley's muscle twin, the new V-Rod, was its first all-new bike in half a century with a very modern, efficient mid-size engine built to rev. The liquid-cooled 1130cc V-twin arrived with aggressive styling that screamed performance (which the engine thoroughly backs up despite its lack of sheer displacement). Kawasaki lightly massaged its existing liquid-cooled Vulcan 1500 engine and cloaked it in styling with a high-performance message to crreate its Mean Streak.

Yamaha, too, built on its existing V-twin, the 1602cc Road Star, but when it was done, there was virtually nothing of the original left, other than the look and basic configuration of the engine. Though Yamaha believes muscle-twin buyers want some traditional aspects of a cruiser, like the air-cooled V-twin engine, it also sees a new, younger group of customers buying performance cruisers. As a result, the Warrior is a creative melding of the conventional and innovative, with an eye on the performance of the chassis as much as simple acceleration.

Yamaha started with the standard Road Star powerplant, bored it out to 1670cc, hopped it up to significantly boost the power (see sidebar below) and painted it black. However, the engineers and designers started with a clean sheet of paper when they drew up the chassis and other components. It was something of a surprise to learn that the old-tech air-cooled pushrod V-twin engine is wrapped in an ultra-modern aluminum frame, seemingly more at home on a sportbike than a cruiser. The frame uses aluminum tubing for the straight sections of the front downtubes and engine cradle rails, and aluminum castings for the rest of the structure. Going alloy reduces weight compared to the Road Star counterpart by over a third, or about 23 pounds. It also steepens the steering head from the Road Star's 32 degrees to 29 degrees and, in conjunction with the all-aluminum swingarm, it shaves 0.6 inches off the wheelbase as measured against the Road Star. Frame and swingarm are painted black, a disappointment to those who would have preferred to advertise that they have the good stuff.

The move to a high-performance chassis continues with 41mm upside-down Kayaba fork legs lifted from the R1 sportbike with different rates and all the adjustments except spring preload omitted. The triple clamps set front-wheel trail at 130mm, down from the Road Star's 142mm. At the rear end, the aluminum swingarm uses the same preload-adjustable single shock and the same kind of linkage as the original Road Star, but with stiffer spring rates. Smoother-working joints, including needle roller bearings in the aluminum linkage, provide more responsive suspension action.

Yamaha's remarks about the design and development of the Warrior can be read at the Yamaha Design Cafe.

Spinning at each end are three-spoke cast wheels, which contribute substantially to the 71-pound overall weight reduction between the XV1600 Road Star and the XV1700 Warrior and probably also reduce steering effort by reducing gyroscopic effect. The front hoop is over 13 pounds lighter than the 1600's wire wheel, and the rear is 12 pounds lighter. The front mounts a 120/70ZR-18 radial, while the six-inch-wide rear wheel gets a humongous 200/50ZR-17 radial. That's as much meat as any motorcycle packs these days. Yamaha lifted the front twin-piston brake calipers from its maximum sportbike, the R1, and matched them with a pair of 298mm discs.

When we first saw all that exotic chassis hardware a few months back, it had us lusting for a chance to expose it to some careening pavement. When our chance came, we promptly did just that. First, however, there was a getting-to-know-you period when we plunked down on the beast and learned how it felt. The pegs sit forward, though not as much as the Harley V-Rod. The handlebar is low and quite wide. Together, they put you into a moderate clamshell position, both your arms and feet stretching for their perches as you hunch forward from the wide but modestly padded saddle. The layout, though a bit of a stretch for shorter pilots, worked well enough in town and at moderate speeds but became a slight strain for all riders on the open road or when running through winding mountain roads for extended periods of time.

With the wide handlebar, there is plenty of leverage with the quickened steering geometry to create light steering response, which makes the Warrior very handy in low-speed corners, tight traffic and crowded parking lots. It feels substantially less cumbersome than the VTX but shares some of the line-holding issues that mar the V-Rod in corners. In some fast corners, the tires seemed to have slightly different ideas about what arc they were tracking, but otherwise the cornering manners near the top for cruisers. The chassis package is the best of any cruiser to date. The suspension rates are very well sorted, making the bike settle solidly into corners even if the rider doesn't bend it in gently. Our only wish was for a slight increase in rebound damping at both ends. Nonetheless, the suspenders offer good control over bumps and dips to keep the Warrior tracking precisely and also soak up those big hits effectively.

Though we'd never have thought to complain about the standard Road Star's rigidity or stability in corners, if you ride the XV1600 and XV1700 back to back, you can instantly tell that the aluminum-framed bike is more rigid and steadier, tracking truer and remaining settled as you bend through a turn. It's easier to correct your line mid-corner too, and the Warrior does it with less drama than any other big twin. Of course, there is more lean angle than you get from the standard Star, which has less cornering clearance than almost any bike around. The Warrior lets you tip it in significantly deeper before a footpeg starts scratching the road then a couple of degrees farther before anything solid touches down. Though we wouldn't say it was particularly generous, the Warrior's cornering clearance is acceptable. One word of caution for those who like tilting the horizon: take care to make sure you don't drag your heels as a few riders have done. This is a bigger problem for those who are pigeon-toed and turn their heels out or who put the balls of their feet on the pegs, letting their heels hang down. Dragging heels can injure ankles or jam knees.

Though we were hopeful that the changes to the engine might bring a solid kick in the pants when we hauled on the throttle, engine performance is about what we anticipated. The 1670cc version of this engine ("the largest air-cooled V-twin," Yamaha reminds us) pulls harder and turns more rpm (5200 to 5700, depending on the gear you're in) before bumping gently up against the rev limiter than the 1602cc mill, which signs off at 4200 rpm. Yamaha tweaked the power delivery so that there is a slight surge as revs build. Though you don't notice it particularly, the power delivery is probably a bit more dramatic than if torque built in a nice, smooth, barely curling line. However, the sensation is smooth power delivery, increasing steadily with engine speed. The engine retains that under-worked feeling of the Road Star, and some riders said that the speed just sneaked up on them, frequently surprising them when they consulted the speedometer. Between the shortened gearing and the added power, acceleration is impressive, and to folks like us who feel that there is no such thing as too much power or acceleration, the added boost is a definite plus. It noticeably shortens passing distances, lets you squirt away from lights more quickly, and simply delivers more kinetic thrills per gallon.

Of course, we always want more, and there was a little bit of disappointment that the power tapers off sooner than we'd like. Unlike the Road Star, which just pulls back the spark when you hit the redline, the Warrior ends the party more gently in the first two gears (starting at 5700 rpm), using a combination of fuel injection and spark timing. The Warrior, at 12.71 seconds and 103.0 mph through the quarter-mile, easily runs away from the Road Star (14.85 seconds, 86.6 mph) and bests Kawasaki's Mean Streak (13.90 seconds, 94.2 mph) but gets left behind by Harley's V-Rod (11.92 seconds, 112.8 mph) and the big, bad Honda VTX1800C (12.30 seconds, 105.45 mph). Suzuki's aging Intruder 1400 (13.71 seconds, 93.2 mph) also plays in this league.

Throttle response was slightly sensitive off idle, but the progressive clutch made it easy to launch smoothly, either gently or hard. No one commented about the added clutch-spring pressure. Shifting was smooth, quiet and precise, and neutral was easy to come by. There was little lash in the drive train. Fuel mileage wasn't as good as the Road Star's, though we don't know yet if that is caused by the engine or just the effect it has on throttle hands. Riding behind the Warrior and a Road Star, the deeper, more solid drum of the Warrior's single-muffler exhaust is immediately apparent.

To keep up with all that forward energy, the R1-derived brakes up front make hard stops a low-effort event. One rider felt the rear brake was a bit too sensitive, but others didn't complain. We are pleased that Yamaha chose not to link the brakes. The front brake lever offers a screw-type adjuster to position the lever to fit your paw, a nice touch but not as nice as the cam-type adjusters which allow you to easily adjust for changes from thin to heavy gloves.

The ergonomic appointments were a satisfactory match for solo rides of a couple of hours and the occasional day trip. The rider's saddle is broad and well shaped but not deeply padded. The shape and position of the handlebar grew uncomfortable and tiring after an hour or so on board, and the width spreads you out in the wind. One rider spent a couple of days charging around on curving mountain roads and reported sore shoulders and upper arms, something that had never happened with other bikes. The footpeg position, though popular for profiling, wasn't comfortable for long. However, there is no alternative on long rides, since the passenger pegs, placed up high to clear the big muffler, are out of reach except to professional contortionists. They are even too high for passenger comfort, but that's not much of an issue because no one is likely to sit on the standard bitch pad (so called because anyone who does try to is going to bitch). Vibration was not significant, and the suspension does an admirable job of absorbing bumps and divots, large and small.

Some riders had difficulty taking in the information from the instruments at a glance, though this will probably improve with familiarity. The instruments are lit with a unique blue lighting at night, and the tach has a LCD band that shows rpm. A clock is part of the package too. Other unique lighting features include the reflector-type headlight and the LED taillight, which appears white until illuminated.

Overall, determining how the Warrior scores depends on your priorities. We'd say it is among the top cruisers, including other musclebikes, for chassis performance and handling. It's also among our top scorers for aesthetics, though this will depend on how you feel about the traditional engine, the appeal of that cutting-edge frame, that big muffler, and details like the taillight. We found it less comfortable than the VTX or the Mean Streak but more pleasant than the V-Rod. However, it can't match the V-Rod or VTX for sheer acceleration. At $11,999 the Warrior is second only to the Mean Streak in bang for the buck. There is no obvious all-around winner among the muscle twins at this point, but we'll know a lot more after our Big Twins comparison in the next issue.