Yamaha used Cro-Mo, rather than the HEAVY Hi-Tensile steel used by everybody else. This helps account for the bikes light weight!!

Go to a bicycle shop, and pick up a (cheapie) Hi-Tens bike. It will weigh a ton. Then compare that to a Chro-Mo, and see the difference!! NO SELF-RESPECTING MOUNTAIN BIKER, RIDES A HI-TENS BIKE. This has been a long time coming. Again, this raises the bar for the other manufacturers!!

 

On yamaha's website it says they used state of the art high tensile steel. I would think they would use this as a selling point if it is true.

Where did you read it?

Bat

 

August Dirt Wheels, page 40 (we all know that the magazines are never wrong!). And they say the rear subframe is aluminum.

Who knows??? You are right though, one would think Yamaha would be waving this under our noses if it were true!!! "State of the art high-tensile steel".............that's the trouble, high-tensile steel IS state of the art. Honda had better go aluminum if they want to compete. And, I see titanium, in my dreams. And carbon fiber..................

 

No mountain biker rides a Cro Moly bike! Aluminum frame just like the CRF450 will be!

 

Gotta agree with Bat, they'd be selling point that to death. Cool if it's true though. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Another bad thing about aluminum is that it will always have a finite fatigue life, unlike steel and titanium that have endurance limits. That is one reason Honda will never come out with a quad that is aluminum framed. People hang on to their quads while MXers cycle thru machines every couple years and don't keep them long enough to have to deal with inevitable cracks.

 

Wait a minute....... What's the Modquad guy doing in here? ha ha!

I think everyone is keeping up with all the YFZ info

 

I think we all appreciate any advances made in quad design no matter who does it. We all win in the end with bigger and badder machines. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

 

I have heard that Honda has been testing a Aluminum quad chassis but they couldnt keep the thing together. Now this one is a long shot but, I also heard Honda is possibly interested in buying the rights for the Cannondale quads so they could use their Aluminum Technology. But thats just hear-say. Yes, I have never seen any highly-stressed aluminum peices from Honda hold up to well such as Swing-arms like Ridley said, also Ridley is right about Dirtbikes not having the torsonial stress that quads have.