Yamaha Motorcycle Reviews on Cycle Insider (4,540)
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I went from a V Star 650 to the V Star 950 Tourer and love my new ride. I did have to buy the wind deflector for the forks as the wind came up around the tank and hit me in the chest. Once those were installed all is great. I can't wait to get on the road.

I own two Yamaha cruisers, a '87 1300 Venture Royale (yes, with an E), which I bought the summer of '19 w/86k on it (all stock) which still runs like a champ..an incredibly smooth riding machine! One negative at least for me is, unlike the passenger who has floorboards, the driver has foot pegs instead, which makes a huge (comfort wise) blood circulation/leg muscle cramping difference, floorboards all around makes more sense on a cruiser. I bought my '07 1300 Midnight Venture late summer of '20 w/17k on it, runs like a beast. There are two negatives so far, one (unlike my '87) no passenger arm rests option, at least not that I can find, which I think is odd since it is a "2 up" cruising bike and the other is the trunk is way to shallow. I prefer full-face helmets but can only fit "half" helmets in it, unlike my '87 which easily fits two full-face helmets. As for riding/handling characteristics of either bike under various weather conditions, I cannot comment, I am a "fair weather rider". All-in-all..so far, both are awesome bikes!

Bought my 2015 FJ09 at Diamond Motorsports in Dover Delaware. Excellent sales rep Bill Poyer was great. My first time buying a bike on here and Bill made the experience positive! I highly recommend DMS and Bill Poyer! Love my new bike!

I own the 2003 yamaha roadstar silver edition. I own #108 out of 1600 that were built. The bike is comfortable for a stock machine. Reliable and is absolutly a head turner. I would put this up against any fatboy. My next add on is going to be a wind fairing.

Bought it in 2014, quality is Yamaha, never had any issue with the bike. Only downside is it is not very comfortable for a passenger (2 up) that is why I traded it and got a Goldwing. Now I am trying to reverse that decision. Even on the highway, I prefer the Tenere over the king of touring Goldwing. Plus it is great on gravel and dirt roads. I would not take it where I would take a dirt bike, but there are some people who would. The bike is heavy and a little front heavy. But on the highway and through the twisty roads, it is great.

I purchased a 2015 Yamaha Stryker Bullet Cowl model used form Integrity Auto Sales recently and am very pleased. I have only had Honda motorcycles up to this point that were all shaft drive. The Stryker is a belt driven custom cruiser that has great power, performance, and handling. It is comfortable, easy to find accessories for, and a great pleasure to ride, a head-turner everywhere I go.

The Yamaha Vmax 1700 Gen2 is a great bike. After owning a 1985 Vmax I had to get the gen 2. This is the perfect muscle bike with many companies offering upgraded performance parts. I did a Nash Flash with a Arko mid pipe, K

BEST SPORT TOURING OUT THERE. I loved my 07 for thousands of miles. simple Japanese bullet. goes fast when wanted and needed but tours like a champ. I cashed it a few days ago and I'm distraught. looking for a new one.

Best bike for over all power. cross plane motor sound is amazing truly out of the box fastest 1000cc made. So easy to control, wheelies nearly every gear factory settings, minior tune and pipes just open this bike up unbelievable

I think it is heavy for a 250cc but I'm 62. I put close 8,000 miles on it in just a few years. I took it up to Duluth twice and rode it in a day long dual sport ride over widely varying terrain. It's fun but it is dated. I cashed it in for a 2021 Honda Trail 125...the penultimate old-dude bike.

Power, beauty, reliability, fun. That is what you get with this bike. I've always loved the Warrior and the other power cruisers. They are all great bikes. What makes me prefer the Warrior is the perfect combination of old school, air cooled V-twin with beautiful pushrods, and awesome sound, paired with new technology. With aftermarket pipes, this bike sounds just amazing.It's not to heavy, but is big comfortable, and stable. It pulls so strong, is impressive and puts a big smile in my face everytime I roll that throttle. It's fast, reliable, fun, and feels great. I've owned seceral cruisers, but the Warrior is the best of all. I do not recommend this bike as a first bike, because it's to powerful, so you need to know what you are doing, and respect this beast. No other power cruiser has the perfect Combination and character of the Warrior. I love all bikes, but the Warrior is really something extraordinary. The perfect combination of size, weight, power, and sound. I've waited years for mine and it's worth IT. I would like to ride a Yamaha Raider, because it should be different but awesome too.

I have a 2008 Raider I purchased from a golf pro 2 years ago. This is an incredible bike that stole my interest. I was shopping for a muscle cruiser, I had just test drove a Harley Breakout and was going to suzuki dealer for M109 when I saw this red bike that look similar to breakout. I ended up test driving it. When I got back, grin on my face would not go away. Why haven't I seen or heard about this bike before.Amount of tourque this bike has nearly scared me at first. then as I drove it, I knew I had to have it. never made it to suzuki test drive. I ride this bike whenever temps are over 50 degrees. I am not a speed demon but, I love the way this bike gets me up to speed in a blink of an eye.I wish they had designed a tachometer on this bike. even though this is a cruiser and you don't really need a tach, i would have loved seeing that needle buried so fast in every gear. I have read a few reviews and some have said this bike is therapuetic. I agree 100 percent. When I have stress, a 15 minute ride does the trick for me. My riding group is around 8 bikes, (harleys, indians and triumphs) every time people come around to check out our bikes, they always end up asking me questions about the bike. some even ask if they could test drive. i have owned many bikes in my 56 years and 40 years of riding, this bike will always have special place in my heart.

I bought the bike in October 2012 with 13000 miles on it only put about 150 miles on it. Then in spring of 2013 until 2020 I put 17000 miles on it. I have joyed all the miles I put on the bike. But this past year I learned that the V Star 1100 as a starter clutch issues with it. My bike was starting up hard and when I did some investigating I found out this was a issue with the V star 1100. I need to replace it this spring it will cost me about 450$ just for the parts and 3 hours of labor at 78 dollars an hour. That's the only issue I have Yamaha should have done a recall on them. The bike is extremely comfortable for me I'm 5 8 weigh 160 lb I'm 62 years old I will keep the bike until I can't physically ride it anymore. Then buy a Cam Am Spider.

The 2009 Stratoliner S that I have is very powerful, quick, comfortable, stylish, with agility. I have ridden motorcycles for 50 years and am 61 years old. The Stratoliner is the travel version of the roadliner. The only thing that I can think of that I would change about the Stratoliner is for the motorcycle to have increased breathing for the cooling system. It has an 1854 CC / 113.1 Ci engine that requires optimum cooling.

It's been a great ride, until the CDI (part of the ignition system) needed replacing. Yamaha doesn't make the CDI anymore, and nobody on EBay or anywhere I search has one. Am I stuck w/ an otherwise perfectly good Vino because the CDI failed? Can anyone help? Please email me

My first heavy cruiser is like a big old truck. Good power to rear wheel and can pull out of 1st gear at idle speed ( like a big truck in 1st gear). Handling always suggest to (just Cruise at the posted speeds). Is capable of highway speeds with more to spare. The 1998 Yamaha 650 also I have preforms close to the 1100 and is very capable in the street and highway also! They are Not a dirt bike. Cross bike or sport bike . They have a quirky, fun and casual feel to them. Reminding me to Just Cruise and ( get there when You Get there). Whether taking a 100 mile trip or cruising around town it is reliable and casual! Outfitted with windscreen and saddlebags , it is a good fit for my riding style! Compared to larger Yamaha’s and other Brands of Cruisers, I am very satisfied with the Vstar 650 and 1100!

I have ridden my 2009 Stratoliner S for nearly 10,000 miles of highway/city/country roads... The bike runs and performs very well. The finish, performance, and reliability are tops. The only problem I have had is that 1854 CC can get very hot especially in warm weather temperatures. I feel that the design did not take that into account. Other than that, the motorcycle is very attractive, runs extremely well, and has not given me one bit of trouble. The odometer currently is just past the 20,000 mark.

Excellent all around Motorcycle handles fantastic extremely smooth and great on Highway and the back roads. Yamaha built quality looks fantastic and keeps up with the big Harleys and Indians. If you’re looking for an inexpensive capable cruiser look no further than the Yamaha V*950.

Bought New in 2004 and have 25K up through 2020. Have done many 14 hour days - would do 24 but can not stay awake that long - have gently put the pegs on the pavement @ 90 mph in the rain - no issues - great handling - took 3 years to adjust the suspension - lots of settings - all manual - to many different surfaces and tire combinations to ever get it "right" - Original tires were dangerous. Major dislike, engine buzz on highway (rpm too high), engine has no working effort on piston pins unless accelerating - partially corrected with 16/39 gearing changes to reduce rpm in top gear, but transmission in my 1967 RD250 6 speed had it correct - pure magic - FZ1 builders should have honored those who did it correct in 67 with 5th & 6th as double overdrive, 1st as a creeper gear (Fz 1st gear would be a good 2nd gear, and the Fz 6th gear would be better 4th gear, and with the flat torque curve in this motor - they should have changed it up from the R1 - can you tell the gear choice is a little off and that I miss the 1st creeper gear and the double overdrive - my 73 Z1 had a better stock gear box with only 5 gears - but that motor was built so it had more rpm (13K) than the FZ1. Overall, I wanted to replace my custom 1973 Z1 - and this 2003 FZ1 has done the trick for 16 years and I still do not want to part from it - it just ticks too many boxes. Now that I'm 65, I still plan to ride it for another 16 years, and from all expectations, this bike will still be good for another 25K in 2036. Should you buy one - Yes, BUT only if you know how to control your speed and enjoy the ride - be safe.

I just purchased this 2009 MC used for $3800. 2960 miles in seemingly perfect condition w/windshield (after-market), roll bars, padded passenger/sissy bar, everything else is factory. I've owned 3 previous 1100 cruisers. The 950 seems spunkier, easy to handle, smooth, and comfortable. Several reviews on YouTube, all of which laud this bike. Now, it's too dam hot to ride!

Overall very good bike for not a lot of money. Handles like it’s on rails and is extremely stable. Good power can do 85-90 miles per hour for the entire day (have done it several times) and the bike is still very stable at these speeds. The bike is pretty big a little bigger then an older model Harley Davidson Heritage Classic and heavy enough without being to heavy at 655 pounds. I traded my 2011 Yamaha V-Star 650 that I bough new in July of 2012 for a new 2015 V-Star 950 Tourer in August if 2017. I had put over 50,000 miles on my 650 and as of today I have 34,000 miles on my 950. Bottom line Yamaha makes very good motorcycles for not a lot of money and the Yamaha V-Star 950 is an outstanding all purpose motorcycle. In conclusion, it’s a reliable and very capable worlk-horse of a motorcycle.

I have owned my 1988 SRX6 Japanese model for a year now.It had done 57000k's when i bought it and only a couple of problems I've had include a leaking valve seal, so did the rope in the plug hole trick and the socket and magnet to remove valve springs and replace the seals. Only other problem was a leaking gas tank but did a POR15 seal job for that. I own a 1995 Yamaha fj1200 as well but the SRX is by far the best handling and most fun bike I have ever owned.Way better than the SR500. I've owned over 35 bikes from 1968 to 2020 and this one is just awesome. Shame they don't make them again.I love the attention it gets when I go on club rides and I've spent lotsa time and money restoring it to original. Great bike for our New Zealand roads that's for sure

The 1977 Yamaha XS360D2 was the first bike I ever purchased back in 2004 at 16 with 2900 miles on the clock. The price was 550 from a local dealer in a small town in northeast iowa. It was pretty clear it needed carb work right from the start as most of this age will by now. It was the blue one with spoke wheels, front disc, kick starter, and points ignition. Aftermarket emgo megaphone mufflers were also fitted and were plenty quiet. I wish I had the jetting skills I have now because it seemed as though it could have been a very nice little bike. All I could do was clean the carbs back then and they were stupid lean even before I fitted foam filters. Starting was always hard. I would often run the battery down to nothing (probably weak to begin with) then continue with the kick starter until it popped off. I suspect the starter was just a bit too slow, or the idle circuit was just a bit too long (lets out way up on the top side of the carbs) also often resulting in stalls on takeoff. That said, it always idled nice once running and ran well with few flat spots besides the lean top end (my own fault). Because of this fuel economy was amazing at 60mpg+ but I often struggled to do 65. I still put over 6000 miles on it in one summer and always got compliments and questions wherever I went. When you're a kid on a metric bike from the seventies everyone notices. Handling was steady enough to enable full speed back road riding if I so desired, and at 17 and stupid I often did. The bike was also very light and I only dumped it once trying to do a u-turn on crushed rock. Ah, fond memories of learning hard lessons. I didn't get burned too bad and was actually able to lift it off my leg. The engine was a parallel twin with a 180 crank and no balancer, oddly enough. Top end was SOHC, 2 valves per cylinder and tappet type adjusters (no shims required). Something about the sound drove dogs completely mad. Weirdest thing I've ever seen and I've heard others say the same thing. Shifting was always smooth with the exception of a somewhat remote feel to the clutch. This again, could also have been down to poor maintenance (cables) but it made it a bit hard to find neutral sometimes. Suspension was also pretty soft but it mattered less to me back then. All in all it was a high quality, stable, tough, little bike that would have been dead easy to maintain. Had I been as handy back then, it would probably have been a good performer too.

Had to lower it, 2nd gear slipps, super fast, not the most comfortable but I am in the wind. I hear loosing second gear is notorious on the R1. Midprocess of repairing 2nd. Biggest bike I've owned since my CBR929.

This motorcycle is extremely quick and sensitive. This bike is not comfortable. This motorcycle is very flick-able. This motorcycle has a good maintenance schedule. It is also a good looking bike in white.