Photo by Dean Groover ....
It's hard to know where to start with Yamaha's new Road Star. Engine displacement is an issue. So is the configuration of the engine, which some will see as a blatant attempt to copy Harley. Belt final-drive gets people talking too. And how about the price? How did Yamaha build an entirely new engine and motorcycle of this quality and displacement and slip it into such a slim price?
Once you ride it though, all those paper issues and imagined controversies fade from your consciousness. This motorcycle looks right, feels right, sounds right, and rides even better. That big motor -- the biggest engine currently built by a motorcycle manufacturer -- exceeded our expectations. And not just for power, but for smoothness, appearance and accessibility as well. Details of its construction appear in the accompanying sidebar, so we'll focus here on how Yamaha's new monster-twin performs.
The 1600 V-twin made Yamaha's...
The 1600 V-twin made Yamaha's V-4 Royal Stars seem like pretenders, and they soon were discontinued,
The most remarkable character of this 1602cc V-twin is its massive low-rpm torque. It will literally idle in fifth gear on a level road, with virtually none of what is termed "chain snatch" on a bike with a chain. The massive flywheel effectively smoothes out the power pulses, and though it gets slightly jerky when you open the throttle at that speed, it accelerates willingly, smoothing out completely in just a few hundred rpm. The power simply continues to flow until you hit the rev-limiter at 4200 rpm, and it never gets buzzy along the way. At 60 mph, it is just reaching its 2250-rpm torque peak, where Yamaha claims a massive 99 foot-pounds on tap.
That all translates into effortless departures from a stop, even if you pull away in second gear. Sometimes, while carrying a passenger we did so deliberately, to smooth the departures from stops, even if you pull away in second gear. Sometimes, while carrying a passenger we did so deliberately, to smooth the departure and eliminate one shift. If you pull off in first, you may want to shift to second as soon as the clutch is out. And the first-to-second gear change presents the largest ratio gap in the wide-ratio five-speed. Short-shifting is the rule with this bike, and despite the ultra-overdrive top gear, there is good power to pass traffic with just a twist of the wrist. In our top-gear acceleration tests, it out-performed most big twins, and those that do outrun it (the new Harley, the twin-carb Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 and Suzuki's 1400 Intruder) have a gearing advantage. It also left behind Yamaha's own Royal Star.
Instrumentation includes a...
Instrumentation includes a clock in the LCD set into the tank-top speedometer. The two-piece handlebar mount includes rubber mounts.
Probably because of its relaxed, low-rpm gait, the engine didn't seem to be pulling that hard, and we would have guessed it was slower. Tall gearing translates into a relaxed, solid drumbeat from the engine on the highway, and also permits great fuel mileage. We approached 50 mpg during immoderate highway use and averaged 43 mpg overall. Throttle response was smooth and clean, with no abruptness or flat spots. Although it required choke to start in the morning, the big V-twin warmed soon after.
Looking at the specifications won't prepare you for the uncanny smoothness of the engine. Unless they have counterbalancers or offset crankpins, twins configured with that 45- to 50-degree V-angle are supposed to vibrate quite a bit. And bigger V-twins should do so with proportionately greater magnitude. But though the Road Star won't fool you into thinking it has an electric engine, its vibration is never intrusive or tiring. Until we were told otherwise, we believed it did use a counterbalancer or at least rubber mounts to isolate the engine. As it turns out, it has neither.
Since it is a single-crankpin design, the exhaust beat is classic big twin. And, at least in its American version, there is enough weight to the stock bike's exhaust note to let you know it's armed with some real displacement.
Equal parts syling and engineering,...
Equal parts syling and engineering, the engine is a classic example of Yamaha's approach: ask customers what they want, then make it.
Bikes with heavy flywheels tend to lurch away from a stop unless they have controllable, progressive clutches. Fortunately, the Road Star's clutch is flawless. And because it is cable-operated, you can adjust it to fit your hand. We also give top marks to the five-speed transmission, which has a heel-toe shift lever. Shifts are smooth, positive, light and quiet. Despite the extra transmission shaft, there is little lash (i.e., play in the drive line) in the Road Star. The Kevlar-reinforced, final-drive belt is quiet and clean, and requires little attention.
The riding position suited most riders well, though as rider height climbed past six feet, the complaints about the shape of the bucket increased. All riders wished for slightly more room rearward, and a turn-up at the back of the saddle that more closely matched the curves of their backsides. (Taller riders asked for it most loudly.) The rider portion of the two-piece saddle is otherwise well-done with good padding and width. Judging from its appearance and the initial feel, we expected it to get old quickly. But it was a few hours before we began to squirm. Smaller passengers who were narrow in the beam adjusted well to the somewhat narrow passenger pad, but it was too narrow for more amply configured back-seaters. Light passengers did say they got bounced around a bit. We point the blame for that at a slight shortage of rebound damping in the rear shock. Both ends are on the firm end of the spectrum, but only big, sharp bumps came through harshly enough to affect the rider.
The Road Star was the first...
The Road Star was the first big Japanese cruiser to use belt final drive, which eliminates the noise and mess of a chain without the weight and cost of a shaft.
All riders praised the relationship of seat to the floorboards and handlebar. At 33 inches from tip to tip, the handlebar was wide enough for confident control in town, but not so wide as to make you a sail in the highway. Moderate rise and pullback means most riders had to barely lean forward to reach it comfortably. The wind's blast wasn't broken by the headlight as much as some other bikes, but it wasn't oppressive either.
We have two schools of thought around here about what braking characteristics are desirable. One likes brakes that have a strong initial bite, offering the quickest response in a panic stop. The other prefers brakes that take fairly heavy pressure before they lock up. The latter school was more comfortable with the dual-disc front brake on the Road Star. The dual-rotor front brake serves up plenty of power, but a solid squeeze is needed to get it all. Fade was not a problem. The rear brake offers the best pedal location of any of Yamaha's floorboard-equipped cruisers to date. Power and control are also good.
Low-speed handling is very controllable and predictable. The handlebar isn't too wide, or pulled back so far that it crowds you or makes you stretch during full-lock turns. The 27.9-inch-tall saddle provides a comfortable reach to the road, and the floorboards are out of your way when your feet are down. The bike carries its weight low enough to feel quite manageable when you are pushing it around at a stop. And that light, low-effort feel remains when you get moving.
Although the aftermarket will...
Although the aftermarket will apparently offer cast wheels, both versions of the Road Star come with wire-spoked 16-inch hoops. Two 11.7-inch rotors provide braking power.
Cornering is limited by clearance, which feels comparable with the Royal Star; which is to say, on the low end of the scale. The fold-up floorboards drag first and loudly, giving plenty of warning that you are reaching the limit. The biggest danger is some riders will be alarmed, straighten up and run off the road. In fact, the bike is in control and has some available lean-angle in reserve before anything solid touches down. Despite rubber mounts, the bar feels well-connected to the steering. Steering is neutral at high and low speeds, with no tendency to tip into a corner and little propensity to straighten up if you brake in a corner. In faster corners, the rear end pumps a bit if you make steering inputs midcorner, or hit a bump -- especially with a passenger. Stability is fair. If we gave the bar a big shake when riding down the road, the Road Star would oscillate about a cycle longer than we would normally expect, though it didn't seem prone to initiate a wobble on its own. Some of the things that unsettle other bikes (parallel grooves, a series of bumps, etc.) didn't wiggle the Road Star.
The bike is finished in the general manner of the Royal Stars, which is to say, first class. In fact, the flangeless design of the tank actually raises the standards a bit. Many components -- such as the taillight and brushed-finish, stainless steel fork covers -- appear to have been lifted directly from the Royal models. The deep fenders and tank shape bear a clear family resemblance, but pieces like the large headlight bezel give it its own character. The single rear shock is tucked out of sight and controls the hardtail-look swingarm via a linkage. Polished covers for the brake rotor hubs are a welcome touch.