Walk-Around: 2018 Yamaha YZ450F with Travis Preston and Michael Lindsay 1

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Click play as Yamaha's Travis Preston and Vital MX's Michael Lindsay walk you through the major changes of the 2018 Yamaha YZ450F and why they were done.

As we've all seen today, the YZ450F has gained a large list of upgrades for the new year, with the most important are the new chassis and electric start. We started off asking Preston about the new frame and how it increases rigidity but also adds to comfort, in the hope of eliminating some rider's complaints with front-end feel. From there, we talk about the engine mounting points and frame angles, how evening the distance between all these adds to these improvements.

Up for comment is also the overall width of the bike and how they've trimmed things down for the new year. Including the exact decrease in size for the shrouds, frame, and fuel tank.

We also talk about the all important electric start vs weight debate and where they've ended up on that in '18, along with actual component updates to KYB's venerable SSS spring forks and updated shock body. Lastly talking about Yamaha's powerplant changes and the new Wi-Fi controlled mapping tools from your phone.

For more information technically speaking of the new bike, check out our First Look: 2018 Yamaha YZFs.

Credit: Michael Lindsay
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