my friend told me that yamaha...

[xr250ryder]

My friend told me that Yamaha wr 426 engines are crappy and dont hold up good but they have alot of power... is there any truth in this?

[Birdie426]

No. They hold up very well. They do make a poop-load of power

[Rip Wheeler]

My friend told me that Yamaha wr 426 engines are crappy and dont hold up good but they have alot of power... is there any truth in this?

Yes, they have gobs of power, the rest is a lie! I've owned a WR426F prior to my 450, so I speak from first hand knowledge

[MotoGoalie]

My friend told me that Yamaha wr 426 engines are crappy and dont hold up good but they have alot of power... is there any truth in this?

Your friend knows nothing about yamahas.

[tp3dxf]

My friend told me that Yamaha wr 426 engines are crappy and dont hold up good but they have alot of power... is there any truth in this?

It seems your friend doesn't own a 426. I think the 426 just may be the most reliable engine of 400, 426, 450 yamaha 5 valve motors. They are all good.

This may or may not more true for the other japanese water cooled thumpers but not for the blue bikes.

[Kx250FRiDeR651]

haha ur friend is an idiot...how old are u guys? 13? this is the same kinda crap that i hear from the lil 13 year olds on the internet trying to act all harcore dirtbiker

[firestarter]

My friend told me that Yamaha wr 426 engines are crappy and dont hold up good but they have alot of power... is there any truth in this?

Tell him that his momma is fat . . . but she cooks allright

[RADRick]

My friend told me that Yamaha wr 426 engines are crappy and dont hold up good but they have alot of power... is there any truth in this?

Sounds like your friend has the IQ of a turnip. I suggest finding smarter friends.

[btc20mx]

maybe he came to that conclusion after so many dnf's in the backyard racing by himself, fricken squid. people will just spew anything filth

[xr250ryder]

Well, thanks for the infor guys, illbe sure to tell him to go shoot himself... maybe he just didnt want my bike to faster than his And for your info im 16 hes like 56

[MotoGoalie]

Well, thanks for the infor guys, illbe sure to tell him to go shoot himself... maybe he just didnt want my bike to faster than his And for your info im 16 hes like 56

Does he drive an ice cream truck?

[crashing_sux]

I'm starting to wonder about the reliability of these bikes myself after riding mine twice (less than three hours total) and having the bike get stuck in gear. I read up on them extensively here before buying one and everyone said how fantastically reliable they are (I only searched for the words "reliability", "reliable", and "maintenance") but now that I've had one a day and am looking at close to a thousand dollar repair bill I searched on transmission, kickstarter, and gear and find many posts with people saying the bikes have tranny problems, third gear problems, getting stuck in a single gear problems, woodruff key problems, starter problems, and problems with breaking internal parts that are expensive to get in and fix when the engine kicks back while you're trying to start it. I mentioned the kick back thing to my girlfriend and she asked if all bikes did that (kick back once in a while). I said, yeah, all big four strokes do. Her response, "isn't that kind of stupid to make a bike that will break when something so common happens?". Wow, talk about hitting the nail right on the head.

I'm a little afraid to keep the bike now, I'm getting the kickstarter and shifter fixed but it's not like a part is being upgraded, the bike will be every bit as fragile after the fix as it was before and the next time it kicks back the same thing could happen again, and I have no way of knowing if that will be a week or never again. Doesn't make me feel real confident about going on long rides.

I wonder what other forums say about the bikes, are they really that realiable or is this just a case of everyone who owns them talking up how great the bike they chose to buy is? I hope they really are that realiable but my two rides on a just purchased 03 WR450 (which admittedly could be a fluke) and all of the tranny problem posts I've mentioned aren't making me want to tell any friends to go blue.

[ISBB]

ive had mine for 3 years with no major problems..

[crashing_sux]

I hope my next three years are like that. Seems like many of the problems come from kickstarting it. Maybe if I could get the starter to work I could just quit kickstarting it. While I'm at it, does anyone's electric start actually work decently?

Can you tell I'm a bit peeved at my bike right now. Feels like my options are a kickstarter that will break the bike or an electric start that's broken from the factory

That's not quite true, the electric start will crank the engine for a couple of seconds, that's just not enough to get it to start. Seems like it doesn't crank it fast enough, because it almost always starts on the first kick but almost never starts with the e-start.

[clark4131]

I've got an '05 and the starter works like a dream. I think I've kicked it less than 5 times, and that was either just for and giggles, or to clear it after a wreck. I've had no reliability issues whatsoever in my first 1000 miles other than self-imposed jetting issues. I had grease in all the right places from the factory, the valves needed adjusting only after break-in and the electrical system has worked flawlessly from day one. You've got to remember folks are more likely to bitch about things publicly than they are to give praise. When things run the way they're supposed to, nobody says much. When they break, it's mother-, piece of ? at the top of their lungs. These are good bikes, but like all things automotive, with so many moving parts, every once in a while something slips through and then it's your turn in the barrel. Sorry to hear about your problems, but I'd bet things will be fine once it gets repaired...SC

[RADRick]

I hope my next three years are like that. Seems like many of the problems come from kickstarting it. Maybe if I could get the starter to work I could just quit kickstarting it. While I'm at it, does anyone's electric start actually work decently?

Can you tell I'm a bit peeved at my bike right now. Feels like my options are a kickstarter that will break the bike or an electric start that's broken from the factory.

First, it sounds like you bought used. If that's the case, then your problems are more a reflection of the maintenance done by the previous owner than any unreliability with the bike itself. Judging reliability on a used bike is a crapshoot since you have no way of really knowing how the bike was maintained by the previous owner, or how it was treated while he owned it. Your problems sound like abuse or neglect by the previous owner. Second, kicking back is NOT a normal thing for a properly tuned 4-stroke. If it were, you'd never be able to get one to start with the electric starter. Lastly, there were some issues with the '02-'03 bikes. Some of the problems were dealt with by dealers. Some not. Either way, they are very well documented here on TT and elsewhere. If you did all the research you said you did, I can't see how you missed those threads.

[dbailey223]

When I lived in Washington, the starter on my 03 WR450 would never start the bike when it was cold. The dealer from whom I bought it new said not to expect it to. Kick it when it is cold, and thereafter the starter would have enough to get it going. That seemed to be the case--I could never get it to start the bike when cold.

I moved to Vegas fairly recently. After having the bike in my garage and not starting it once, I figured I would certainly have to kick it to get it going. It started on the 5th kick or so. Just as a test, I turned it off after a minute and tries the e-start, it worked. I thought the battery would be dead.

The next day I tried the e-start when the bike was cold, and she started up! First time ever. Now, it was 90 degrees and not 50s or 60s like Washington. That may be a factor???

After doing the free mods and JD kit last weekend, she started up again with e start.

[crashing_sux]

First, it sounds like you bought used. If that's the case, then your problems are more a reflection of the maintenance done by the previous owner than any unreliability with the bike itself. Judging reliability on a used bike is a crapshoot since you have no way of really knowing how the bike was maintained by the previous owner, or how it was treated while he owned it. Your problems sound like abuse or neglect by the previous owner. Second, kicking back is NOT a normal thing for a properly tuned 4-stroke. If it were, you'd never be able to get one to start with the electric starter. Lastly, there were some issues with the '02-'03 bikes. Some of the problems were dealt with by dealers. Some not. Either way, they are very well documented here on TT and elsewhere. If you did all the research you said you did, I can't see how you missed those threads.

Your posts don't make sense, first you say that the problems are related to the bike not being serviced properly, then you say the problems are well documented on the board. Which is it?

As for service, I have a very good idea of how the bike has been serviced, the previous owner bought the gold plan service contract with the bike which included unlimited oil changes, and two valve adjustments a year, which it's had. Besides a few oil changes done himself when he didn't feel like taking it to the dealer I have documentation for everything. He even saved receipts for oil so I know when the oil was changed by him, meticulous documentation.

Of course, giving you the benefit of the doubt, what kind of service would prevent part of the kickstarter breaking when the bike kicked back (my girlfriend didn't kick through hard enough, she's little, it happens) and what sort of maintenance would prevent the bike from getting stuck in a gear?

Let me guess, lots of oil changes right? Bet that cures all of those third, fourth, and fifth gear losses I've read about here too?

Truth is, it's hard to get an honest assessment of their real reliability issues as when people report problems rather than catalogue them some owners have such misplaced pride they seem to feel like letting others know of a problem is a personal attack, as if they purchased the wrong bike so they immediately start attacking the owner instead of placing the blame where it belongs on Yamaha.

Not that I've seen anything resembling that lately...

[crashing_sux]

Oh yeah, and from what I've read here properly tuned bikes will kick back if the throttle is twisted when kicking it. Or does twisting the throttle amount to poor maintenance now?

As for searching and missing threads. Whenever I searched for reliability instead of seeing problems mentioned I either saw everyone say how great they were, or the threads where I saw someone mention a problem I saw everyone jump all over them and say that it was actually due to abuse or lack of maintenance. Believing that to be true I carefully searched for a well maintained bike and thought I'd have no problems.

I'm now coming on here to say that's just not true, this is simply not a problem I'm having due to abuse or neglect and of course right on cue here comes someone who's never seen my bike, or it's maintenance records doing an internet diagnosis of stupid owner who can't maintain his bike.

Classic.

[Bamster]

Of course, giving you the benefit of the doubt, what kind of service would prevent part of the kickstarter breaking when the bike kicked back (my girlfriend didn't kick through hard enough, she's little, it happens) and what sort of maintenance would prevent the bike from getting stuck in a gear?

Are you talking about the internal part that gets mushed from too many kickbacks or letting the kicker slam up on it's own after starting?

I can't recall what that part is called but I never let my kicker slam back up after starting and always start it with a good boot on in case it kicks back (lazy kick will do it). Sounds like the previous owner let the kicker slam too many times.

I don't think there is any thing that could have been done about the gear issue.