YAMAHA TDM900 (2002 - 2011) Review

changed the brake lines and only 1 time the ABS did his work! No problems

the low rev issue has been solved by a simple mod. The only flaw to be found is that the clutchcan make some noise when pulling up fast! That isse did occured on the 850 also, the right gearbox oil makes it less squeeky

No problems what so ever. Some minor mods make it a very reliable bike!

Chain and sprokets oil changes and air filter.

Altering a new handlebar to a superbike handle bar by ABM gives it is a more active riding experience.

Brakes are excellent but as with the R1 they can bind if you don't keep them clean.Ride is good but a bit soft at the front, particularly if you are two up or touring. If, like me, you do one thing a year to modify and improve the bike, a properly rated set of linear springs and emulators transforms the bike and is an easier option than swapping out forks and yokes for something more modern . Treat yourself to a professional suspension set-up, especially if you've made any modifications, you will reap huge rewards from it.

As the reviewer says, it's characterful and plenty torquey enough but as stock, the power delivery is painfully lumpy at low revs making filtering and laden take-offs a pain.However, undertaking the simple and common airbox modification, of which there are numerous self-help videos available on the web, smooths out the low-end lumpiness problem completely - you will kick yourself if you already own a TDM and haven't done this believe me. You can also tune the fuelling from the dashboard and that, in turn, smooths out lumpiness further up the rev range and adds a little more poke. Neither modification will fail an MOT if done right and the joy is, you can do them yourself for free, they take 5 minutes and are totally reversible. Do your internet research and boost your riding experience for nothing.

Very good overall and will take years of all-weather use as long as you keep it clean and lubricated.

Change the oil regularly, I do mine once a year at the end of a summer's riding, so around 3-4k. Chains and sprockets last well and its excellent balance and lack of mega-grunt keeps tyre wear down to something affordable.. It costs me virtually nothing to run.

Perfectly adequate with clear clocks and a decent screen to start with. If you're touring I'd recommend a taller one. Benefits from handguards and heated grips. Adjustable levers are, I think, a must - cheap, easy to retro fit and make the bike so much easier to ride.

Handling is surprisingly good, very nuetral and easy to hustle trhough bends, we had this one re-worked by MCT which really improved the fork action in particular and it now is very good. Comfort is also good, nice riding position, no significant weight on wrists and reasonable leg room, screen takes weight of chest, but helmet is in the wind, but no buffeting like on many bikes with much bigger screens.Braking is more than adequate with R1 calipers - more bite than my KTM 1290 adventure.

The engine is really nice, with a good spread of power from around 3000 rpm to the redline, very easy to ride and overtakes are a breeze, ultimate top end is down on 600's of the era, but 99% of the time it is all you need, and much less cog swapping than a mid weight 4 cylinder.The only issue with performance is very low speed fuelling, below about 35mph on a whiff of throttle it is jerky, I have tried the o2 setting adjust and a "Booster Plug" and its still a bit crap, but you soon forget about it as you hit the open road again.I would imagine with a power commander and some dyno time it would be perfect - but that's a bit pricey for what is a budget bike really.

Now at @35k / 16 years old it still looks and rides like new, and in 11 years we have owned it only a front brake switch has gone wrong.

Running costs are low, reliability has been excellent (a mate stuck 90k on his and it still ran fine) fuel consumption seems pretty good, at a steady 80mph (true speed) blasting along french motorways its doing close to 60mpg, mixed riding probably around 50.Hard to put annual costs as some years it did many miles, and the last 5 we have had COVID and a child so it is doing a few hundred a year, but home servicing is really cheap, and even dealer servicing not too bad as its a simple twin cylinder machine and tappets only need checking every 28,000 miles.

I think the centrestand we have is a 3rd party and they're not fitted standard, also got some engine / crash bars which I am not sure came with the bike.Not sure what people expect on a 2008 bike which was a bit of a bargain at the time, certainly not radar cruise and traction Control.It has fairing, grab rails, decent seat etc.

Slow speed/revs shows up the early injection system, a bit snatchy at low speeds, but fine when going at speed.

Great all rounder.

Can be snatchty at low revs du to its odd crank set up but soon learn to compensate. No lack of power for overtaking, mid range torque is great.

Servicing cheap as I do it myself.

Everything is good in the front without something special from the brakes or the suspension.The back brake is rubbish and the ABS on it is useless but the multi adjustable schock does the job for everything you want.

Low performance,jerky ride in low rpm even in 1st gear due to long gearing and poor fuel management.Good torgue in the midrange and high revving for a parallel twin.More of an everyday commuter engine.

Front fairing materials and construction is cheap and they get damaged easily from minor falls or hits. Realible as hell and good quality everywhere else on the motorcycle.

Cheap and easy to maintain.

It has everything you need and nothing more,mine is the ABS option so i give it 5.

Good to excellent.

Excellent in town and country.

Admittedly it's always been garaged, but pleased with condition.

Easy to do most repairs yourself.

Long legs. Recommend handguards and heated grips.

200 miles is no problem before needing a break. More is possible.

Love the way it goes out of bends. An extra 10 bhp and this would be a brilliant engine but for everyday use, it suffices. Yamaha missed a trick here.

Very well finished. Reliability is second to non.

I service the bike myself so all i spend money on are the parts.

Not much in the way of extras but the internet is awash with them. I have put crash bars , chain oiler and power point on mine. Top box and side panniers were added. Michelin tyres are brilliant but other makes are too.

Very comfortable and brakes are fab

Once you get used to the narrow torque band it is great fun to Ride. A bit more power would add the extra star.

Great build quality. Better than the modern Yamaha's. ACF 50 coatings required if you run it through winter and an annual brake clean to keep the salt off.

TDM 900 has 6000 mile service intervals. If you use top quality oil like Yamlube there is no need for more regularly oil changes. Plugs and oil filter change every 12000 and new air filter every 18000. Grease suspension every 2 years and that's pretty much it.

Equipment is basic but all you really need. Add heated grips and centre stand if not already done. Touring screen helps if you do lots on the motorway. I use Bridgstone BT023 which offer good all weather grip and around 10000 miles.

Suspension pretty good for its age. Seat good for 2 to 3 hours at a time and perfect for my 5'9" height. Very easy to ride quickly and handles really well in corners.

I like the characteristics of this twin. Good pull up to 5500rpm and then a nice punch up to 8000 red line. If you get it right you can have loads of fun, but 100bhp instead of 86 would make it 5 stars. Economy very good also. 50 to 60 mpg.

6000 mile service intervals mean this bike is extremely cheap to service, especially if you do most of it yourself.

As standard it is basic but functional. I have fitted handguards, heated grips, centre stand and touring screen which all help. Tyres I use are Battlax 023's. Great all weather tyre and last ages.

The ride is fine. The seat is fine too. Both stock on my bike and I have no urgent plans to upgrade. Perhaps I’m just easily pleased or have low expectations, I’ll check my school reports...

I would like it to be a bit more punchy at lower revs, below 3,000 rpm, but I’m now used to using the available rev range and the gearbox appropriately. I love the engine!

10 out of 10 for reliability, the TDM drops a star for the flaking engine paint. Perhaps a little harsh because the rest of it seem really well finished. I think the black painted engines (post 2007?) don’t suffer.

This is a very frugal engine which does not consume any oil between services. It’s an easy for the home mechanic to work on. Without lots of plastic to deal with, most things are accessible pretty easily. OEM and aftermarket parts are readily available. On pre 2005 models check you have the upgraded cam chain tensioner fitted.

Yamaha haven’t provided much to look at, play with or generally distract you other than a fine motorcycle and the view ahead! I think their vision in designing the ‘TDM experience’ was the creation of a zen-like quiet space, ideal for inner contemplation in a distraction free environment. Actually, that’s not true. The information you really need is there though an ambient temperature gauge would’ve been nice. I really like the digital speedo (easy to convert to kph read out abroad). Michelin PilotRoad 3 seem to be one of the most highly recommended tyres for the TDM. I’ve had a set on mine for the last 6,000 miles and have no complaints in the wet or dry. And, there’s still plenty of life left in them yet.

Much better than most people might imagine with great brakes. A really easy bike to ride.

Good spread of useable power. Great MPG when just cruising/commuting, easily tops 200 miles at 80 mph.

Bulletproof and well finished

Simple home maintenance, long shim intervals

Fairly basic, but does have adjustable suspension

superb r1 brakes dont buy abs mega nightmare if they go wrong

injection stutter at 2500rpm a pain can be sorted but its not easy,quicker and smoother than a tiger 800

never had a problem

easy to do yourself 2 drain plugs ??

Suspension is a little crude and soft by modern standards but works well enough. Make sure you grease the suspension bush pivots regularly as one of them in particular is prone to seize and difficult to remove. Brakes are excellent, less wooden than the 850 and well matched to the machine.

Very economical. I've averaged 63mpg over 5,000 miles of mixed riding. Another few bhp would go amiss but the engine is peppy, and powerful enough for loaded-up touring.

It's been 100% reliable and the build quality is a few steps up from my previous TDM850 - though the flaky engine paint is still an issue. Minor corrosion on some front did bolts but the rest of it is corrosion free after 24,000 miles.

I service it myself, everything is readily available and relatively cheap, even using OEM service parts. Adjusting valve clearances is a little more involved than the 850 but only needs doing every 24,000 miles or so.

Designed in an era before traction control, riding modes, etc. in comparison with modern tackle the TDM is spartan but actually has everything you really need. I've added a touring screen, Scottoiler, 650 v-strom hand guards and soft luggage. My favourite bits of the bike are the digital speedo (a small silly thing, I know) and the bungee hooks that fold out for luggage attachment. The 850 had 'em, and every bike designed to possibly tour should have them too - very useful.

I only gave it 2 stars because the brakes are awesome ! It's the same breaks used on R1. The ride quality is bad bad bad. The bike is VERY top heavy and for some individuals is very hard to get used to. The ride with a pillion and baggage is a nightware. No confidence aspiring in the corners or anything. The baggage and pillion just add so much weight up top the bike is scary to ride fast. And God forbid you drop it, since if you feel that it weighs 220 kg when standing, it weights about 400kg when you try to pick it up... That's how top heavy this bike really is. This is NOT a trail bike. It doesn't like the non-asphalt roads. Also maneuvering it at low speeds its very discouraging. The stock suspension is average. The ride quality for me is so bad that I wanted to sell the bike in my first thousand miles. It's just not my style of bile.

The engine is torqy but so damn unusable at low revs. The bike only likes 3k rpm+ and in 5-6th gear only likes 4k rpm +

Quality and reliability is good. No major problems in my 12k ownership.

Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain.

This bike is not equipped with proper accessories from the factory. The side fairings are very hard to protect also cause there is no option for aluminum bars or anything...

Comfortable ergonomics and excellent brakes with the use of good pads.

Parallel twin with V twin sound. Japanese magic

Japanese quality and realibility.

Cheap for parts and easy to service

Much as you need in the outback. Otherwise you are carrying too much weight with gizmos that can stop a bike and you really don't need.

Extremely comfy both for me and my other half. I got fed up with the aches and pains my sports bike used to bring on after an hour or two.....those days are gone! The brakes are excellent but the soft suspension can cause a bit of front end dive if you really yank the brakes but generally it's not a problem.

It's got a lot less bhp than my mates sports bikes but as I keep pointing out to them, how much of their 150 plus ponies can they actually use on traffic filled pot holed roads. There's more than enough grunt for easy overtakes and winding it on out of the bend and a well ridden TDM will keep up with most things on our British roads.....well mine does anyway.

I've only owned it for 6 months so can't give it 5 out 5 but so far, it's been great, no problems.

Why no centre stand? A sightly taller aftermarket screen will help too.

Ultra comfortable ride, excellent brakes (with ABS too)

Characterful with the off-beat firing sequence. With scorpio exhausts it sounds really nice with the with the road legal baffles in place. Thinking about a quick action throttle as it sometimes is a bit cumbersome to wind all the power on.

Finish is good, never broken down, only had to do routine maintenance in the last 30,000 miles

Fairly cheap to maintain, insure and fuel.

Could do with a centre stand. Mine has heated grips, hand guards, givi luggage and scorpion exhausts. I will upgrade the lights next.