YAMAHA XMAX 250 (2004 - 2017) Review

Year: 2006

Very good practical transport that can be thrown about like a bike if you want or tour if you prefer. I've had it for 5 years now and can find nothing better for everyday or touring (apart from my Guzzi V7, which is great but far less practical)

Buying experience: Bought used showing 9K miles, datatagged and looking carefully used

Version: Sport

Year: 2010

Good bits: Fast (for a scooter), loads of storage, 75mpg, indicated 90-95mph, build quality & reliability great, looks good, handles and brakes well, good 2 up. Bad bits: Exhaust gets ridiculously hot and rusts quickly, I have tried everything to get it looking better, over the counter ultra high temp paint to having it powder coated, everything burnt off. Have now fitted Delkevik race can, problem solved, looks better, obviously louder, and a smidge quicker. I have also fitted a tinted Yamaha short screen, much better than the original thing

Buying experience: Bought private from Gumtree 2 years ago from a man in his 80's. Realistically if I sold it I would sell for about the same price I bought it for

Year: 2010

Having been a biker for years on a traditional bike, for some strange reason I'd though I'd have a go at a super scooter instead. I saw in my local dealer the Yamaha Xmax and thought it looked quite a nice bike. I wanted it mainly for commuting to work which is only a 6 mile trip so it would be ideal. I loved it from the moment I got on it, however after years of conventional bikes it took a while to get used to the clutch being a brake! I had a couple of whoops moments on the way home! The bike is incredibly comfortable and surprisingly nippy around town. The transmission pick up is almost instant and once out on dual carriage ways it keeps with the flow. There is tons of space in the underseat storage and I had a top box fitted for more storage should I need it. I've only had the bike a few day's so I can't give a full unbiased report on it as yet. If any one who was looking for a commuter bike was to ask if I'd recommend,then so far yes! go for it.

Buying experience: I bought the bike from Stephen Bilau's in Darlington. I cannot praise this dealer enough. The bike was advertised for £2595 and I paid the full price as the bike had extras like datatool alarm, after market screen, wet weather leg covers. He also fully serviced the bike for me and stamped the log book and put a years road fund licence and a years MOT. The bike has only 6150 miles on it so it's not even run in yet. Not a bad deal as far as I'm concerned.

Bought as a commuter (have an FZ1 and an R32 Golf and needed something less thirsty...). This thing is great fun and, door to desk, is faster than both of my other transport options over a 5 mile journey through traffic. Superb balance and handling, great finish, plenty of storage space and importantly for people who also ride 'real' bikes, this 2010 version actually looks cool. Still running-in but, for a 250, I was expecting a bit more power. I expect that once I can 'pin-it', I'll replace the standard can (Devil do a pretty good one) with something that'll at least make it sound less like a sewing machine and may add a tad more ooomph. Buy one - they're hilarious!

I bought a 1 year old 250 X max for a good price on Ebay. My plan is to use it for a 7 mile each way daily commute and then up to another 20 miles a day in an around Cambridge. I had a 60 mile trip to bring it home on a cold day with rain that wouldn't stop. My other bike is a BMW R1100R with big screen and heated grips and I wasn't looking forward to plodding up the A1(M) in freezing spray for hours (my last scootering experience was a Vespa SS180 I sold about 40 years ago). When I first got going it felt like I was sitting on a kitchen chair with handlebars after only riding conventional bikes for decades. It turned out there was nothing at all to worry about, the Xmax easily keeps up with motorway traffic, 70 is a practical cruising speed with a useful reserve for safe overtaking. I had initially got lost in London for about 45 minutes so I really appreciated the benefits of twist and go automatics and quickly forgot about my unfamiliar posture. Once I got onto main roads I seemed to get home very quickly. For for my day to day riding it's ideal, the underseat storage means I can transport my workgear (construction site PPE) then, when I get to site securely stow my riding gear. It's simple to ride, light enough to drag around the garage when I want to get the BM out etc. The Yamaha is very impressive, but the list price new looks a bit chunky. My reliability score shouldn't be taken too seriously, I haven't had the bike long enough to comment with any authority.