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| Review |
Okay, I’m certainly no font of all knowledge but, having owned and fettled a 1998 Canadian import from new, perhaps some of my ramblings may prove helpful.
First of all, there seems little point in buying a V-Max if you plan on spending your entire riding career avoiding the ‘V-boost’ zone like a dose of clap. This is where all 262kg comes alive and she gets ‘kinda squirrelly’ to coin an outdated phrase. (The purchase, incidentally, of a castrated UK model, circa 1991, with a view to liberating all that 125-odd horsepower-at-the rear-wheel-potential, is rarely a viable proposition, unless 1) it’s very, very cheap 2) your brother runs a breaker’s yard, and 3) you’re awfully handy with spanners.)
That glorious dinosaur of a V4 lump is the heart and soul of Max and always demands respect from your right wrist. She’ll cough and spit until warm (don’t overlube the carb.mounted choke mechanism!) but will soon talk and sing to you, even throbbing softly in a most beguiling fashion as you trickle slowly, feet up, green light glowing ‘neath your chin, to the head of the queue. Most of that humongous mass sits very low in the chassis (including the fuel tank), endowing the machine with excellent low-speed poise. In fact, for gentle pottering, a Max works surprisingly well. But, if the urge does comes over you to take her up to around 6 or 7k whilst eyeballing the xmas tree, sorry, lights, and then dumping the hydraulic clutch, be quite sure that the standard 15” rear tyre (no ‘sports’compound here) is well warmed up. Never attempt this sort of lunacy a few degrees off vertical, unless you fancy joining the J. Toseland Academy of Flight….
Should you then plan on continuing down the road at a decent lick and surviving a few corners, it’s definitely prudent to make one or two modifications from standard. (Sooner or later, that ‘deceptive curve’ will show up and you’ll discover new ways to clench buttocks). After all, these things don’t handle do they? Every roadtest you’ve ever read says so. Well, it’s a very physical experience and a lot depends on the rider, bars, positioning etc., but basic set-up is very important. A well-sorted V-Max steers surprisingly sweetly and a lot better than a used Speed Triple I rode recently. Aside from the obvious things like sound head bearings, decent tyres at proper pressures, and rear shocks adjusted equally, there are major improvements to be made, only limited by the size of your bank account. Number one priority is replacement of those shockingly pathetic ‘biro’ springs for a set of progressives up front. The best £80 you’ll ever make, probably. Whilst you’re at it, drain the fork oil (by inverting each leg on later models as they don’t have fork bottom drain screws) and replace with around 620cc (so much!) of 15-20wt. Later Maxes have beefier 43mm stanchions and, once fettled, can safely be raised through the top yoke by 20mm or so. Voila! less fork dive, stiffer set-up- especially with a decent aftermarket brace- and better turn in. (Be careful with the fork oil level: too much and the wheel simply won’t follow road bumps, making for an unpleasantly choppy ride on cold mornings.)
The standard rear Showas are surprisingly capable when new, but will ‘pump-up’ and cease damping if you really push them on a series of bumpy corners. Suspension travel is very limited anyway, probably to help control both the weight and the ‘jack-up’ effect of the shaft drive under fierce acceleration. I’d love to try something more exotic; Ohlins at £600+ anyone? Similar money again will buy you a beautifully machined, 17” rear wheel which will not only accept stickier rubber, but is rumoured to effect a major improvement in the agility stakes. But to my eyes, only the standard wheel/tyre combo looks ‘right’.
So there you have it.The tank range of 80-90 miles (best leave the electric reserve switch set to ‘on’) is no better on the latest incarnation, which I reckon is 10 years too late anyway. Unlike so many of today’s japanese rockets, the old V-Max has bags of character, can be surprisingly practical (re-shape the seat) with a superb shaft drive and time-proven durability, and can be individualised to suit the heart and wallet of almost anyone. Moreover, I suspect that you’re a little less likely to be pulled for speeding because most riders can’t hold on for too long over the ton! (Buy the dinky little Yamaha screen- pricey, but effective.) And, yes – you will put on muscle.
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| Rintintin in Chichester, West Sussex on 02/04/2009 |
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