What year WR should I get?????

[150 Fuelie]

I have had an 01 and 02 YZ426. I have left dirk bikes for a while and am not up to date so I'm looking for advice. What year is arguably the best for the WR? And 400, 426 or 450? I want the lights, WR tranny and electric start would be nice too. I'm 6'3" and seem to remember reading that recently Yamaha shortened the height so I want to stay away from those years.

Thanks in advance.

[minion]

I have had an 01 and 02 YZ426. I have left dirk bikes for a while and am not up to date so I'm looking for advice. What year is arguably the best for the WR? And 400, 426 or 450? I want the lights, WR tranny and electric start would be nice too. I'm 6'3" and seem to remember reading that recently Yamaha shortened the height so I want to stay away from those years.

Thanks in advance.

I've heard that 05 and newer bikes (yz and wr both) are far better than prior years for suspension and center of gravity. I own an 05, so I can't tell you from experience, just what a friend at the dealership tells me.

[PBDBLUE]

The 450's all have e-start. The 03/04 WR450's were the taller ones. I would stay away from the 03's unless the bike has had the 04 starter upgrade. A significant number of 03's had starter problems. The 05/06's are a little lower (~1/2") with a smaller tank (2.1 gal vs 2.65 gal for the 03/04) and a slightly lower compression ratio in the engine and purported to handle a little better. I've owned all 3 generations of WR4xx's and the 450's are definitely a significant improvement over the predecessors. Any of them would be a good choice.

[ARin]

i will also agree that any of the 450's are an excellent choice, and VERY competitive bikes in their own right.

[MountainMax]

I am 6'4" and i put handlebar risors and a taller seat to make mine more comfortable for me, Love the E-start when stalling in sand or when in an awkward position, just press the magic button and you can get out of it without dropping the bike.

[Numskull]

2001

[steve lemley]

My mildly built 99 400 blows the doors off the new stock crf450X. With a little work making it the way you want it, they are all great and totally competitive bikes...

[virgil06]

i'm also looking at getting a WR, my budget will allow either an 00, 01, or possibly an 02 model. I know usually the safest bet is to go as new as you can afford. But any other opinions?

Also, there are a few 01 wr400's as well as 01 wr426's. Any suggestions as to which way to go between these two 01 mods?

[Numskull]

426 has a nice ring to it

[virgil06]

what is the difference between the steel valves in the 400 and the titanium valves in the 426? Titanium is better??