Featured In the July 2022 issue of Roadracing World:
There’s a line that I remember from the 2004 documentary ‘The Persuaders,’ a look at the rise of highly paid consultants who use technology to enhance the emotional appeals they use to sell everything from popcorn to presidents: “Everything works now. You know, french fries taste crisp. Coffee’s hot. You know, beer tastes good…”
For motorcyclists, this is generally an excellent thing. Truly crappy motorcycles are largely a thing of the past. Some motorcycles that cost less than $5,000 come with inverted forks and ABS, and bikes with traction control, lean-angle-sensitive ABS, and clutchless up-and-down-shifting can cost less than $6,000. For general street use and light Sunday-morning hooliganism, close your eyes and point in a motorcycle showroom, and whatever you select will likely get the job done.
In this context, it is possible to add a few more features or slightly better performance, or cut a few and offer a lower price, to try to attract customers. But Yamaha chose a different approach for its XSR900 Sport Heritage series, realizing that style costs nothing…
—Intro: 2022 Yamaha XSR900 Sport Heritage: More Style, by Michael Gougis
There’s not a lot new in the 2022 XSR900 from a mechanical point of view for those familiar with the latest MT-09 and Tracer 9 GT models. The vast majority of the components can be found on those two machines. What makes the bike stand out is the styling. Yamaha brought a design team to a warehouse in Japan where it stores its old Grand Prix racebikes and let them ogle, touch, and study those historic machines. Given that the new XSR900 was going to have the same chassis, engine and tank as the MT-09, they looked for styling inspiration that would work with those components. What they came up with is visually stunning. Read the details in the latest issue of Roadracing World!
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