YAMAHA V-MAX (1991 - 2004) Review

The terrible cornering and braking is a massive plus for me. I have no self-control whatsoever and have always ridden my multiple previous sports bikes waaaaaaaay to fast. The Vmax takes me down several notches. If there is a straight up ahead, with no parked cars and no junctions then I can let my power junkie take over. It rips my arms out (yes, not as fast as an HP2 etc). But I can't carry that speed constantly through twisties and roads with junctions. It's a case of slow down or risk a big accident. This takes the speed momentum out of rides and keeps reeling me back in to a riding style that occupies a safer zone.

Like being attached to a huge bungee. Brilliant.

I've only had mine for a month so can't really comment. For 26yrs old it's going pretty well.

A new back tyre will be needed regularly, and an oil change.

No equipment. Can't even see the rev counter because it is tiny and is set into the top of the false fuel tank'

behaves like a crackhead monkey in most turns because you want to feel the power of the incredible engine

power is closer to a rocket

tach is not in a good place to read at full throttle

The bike is alot of fun to ride.riding with your buddies or bouncin town to town awesoime, short rides are okay any more than 4hrs at a time gets uncomfortable.

i have so much more than the stock unit, i love my V4..

Mine is a 99 people every where mistake it for a new model it has held up amazingly well. Has never broken down or left me sit. never had to work on it except for upgrades

The aggressive look and sound is always a head turner.my favorite has to be the 3 stage V boost control I added, and the 4 into 1 exhaust.

Bike at its best on medium distance journey.can be surprisingly practical,can easily go 2 hours or until need fuel without needing a break.

Closest thing to the excitement of an old two stroke with the 5000rpm powerband.very flexible engine ,efforless overtaking with out changing gear.

Only the usual wear and tear items ,only fault has been the starter clutch coming loose, which is a common fault of the factory not locktitn the bolts properly .

Oil and filter approximately £ 30

For what it's intended for,little needed loads of parts available if you want to customise or bling it up,a screen is useful if you want to do motorway journeys.

The brakes need extra hand pressure than most to slow down this bike. The factory seat is not an all day sit and ride type of seat.

Having v-boost is my favorite feature of this bike. It sets this bike apart from all other naturally aspirated bikes. The Yamaha wind screen is a very nice accessory for this bike.

Brakes are not up to the engine power, but adequate. I only ride for 1.5 to 3 hours and at that no problems. I use it as an all around bike, my only one. No problem with pillion due to power. Will need to replace back shocks (replaced front springs with Progressive shortly after buying due to diving during breaking).

Great, smooth powerful engine, modded from Yamaha's Venture.

Bought this with 26K miles on it and have added another 25K in 5 years. Had to replace the stator, possibly due to low oil level / cooling problem. Was a year ago and no problems since. Only tires, normal wear as I don't ride over aggressively.

Costs for set of tires and oil/filter change. Each done yearly. See above also. Costs have been low so far. Just replaced a clutch switch.

Added stiffer front fork springs, saddle bags, and a mid-size windshield. Use Shinko Toruing tires for compromise between handling and longevity.