Throw a leg over, sit up straight,thumb it into life and set off for anywhere you like, distance doesnt faze the bike or rider, not the best feedback through the bars but that's because your weight isnt concentrated over the front wheel, rather through the feet and backside, direction changes are instinctive and you find yourself thinking "where did that corner go?", would still be riding mine now if someone hadn't nicked it, hope it kills him, though it's so forgiving it probably won't!
Bought the bike on my birthday after splitting up with my wife, she would only let me buy old smokers. I can honestly say that I love my bike. I have made a few modifications, flip screen, baglux tank cover, hand guards scottoiler, Luggage etc and as I am only 5'7" I had about 3/4 of an inch of padding removed from the seat which has improved matters. The new girlfriend and I have already been to europe and are planning to overland to Sicily.
After a couple of Harleys plus Triumphs a Duke a Guzzi and a Z1b I can honestly say it's the best bike I've ridden. It's not awsomely powerful but it's got PLENTY of grunt certainly enough to get yourself a driving ban, but if you want your chin on the tank at 140 then this one's not for you. Mines got a loudish Micron system on it and it sounds lovely. I plods along at 30 to ??? in top but if you change down it realy flies. So all you racers that can only go 30 miles without stopping to relieve your aching wrists and back, buy a bike that will get you hundreds of miles in comfort, and enjoy some good distance riding. I needed something comfortable so neaerly bought a BMW. I just couldn't bring myself to do it - beautifully engineered, boring bikes. The TDM is different, fast , comfortable, uncomplicated and fun to ride. No more Harleys for me!!
i've had 2 TDM's a '96 Yellow/Silver which i did 36k miles on 'til Sept 99 when i got a '99 Red&Black one which has now done 8k.
i had a Remus replacement exhaust collector box & c/fibre non-road legal end-can, Dyno Stage 1 & K&N air filters fitted to both. The sound the Remus can produces is addictive!
i live & work in London. The bike is a "company" bike & i use it daily to commute to & from my client's Offices.
i DON'T agree with your review re hard riding round corners. Maybe fitting braided brake hoses & BT54 tyres allows me to feel the feedback, prior to pitching-in. Maybe i can't ride it. But where it DOES score, is on drive out of the apex. Any gear, it pulls like a tractor!
It looks funky. It's different. It tours, commutes, motorways, A-Roads, scratches & poses (Better than a VFR)!!!
Ok sports-bikes out sport it, Commuters out commute it, cruisers etc,etc but it does ALL of the m/cycle niches pretty well. So it out All-Rounds the rest of the All-Rounders.
Having recently bought a new TDM I have to say how impressed i am with it. Living in Ireland , it copes excellently with waht we call roads over here. The suspension has been upgraded and you can dial in/out infinite amounts of rebound and compression damping on both front and back suspension. Accessories are a must, and M&P do a nice front fender extender for the TDM . Baglux tank and seat covers really make this a trick bike.
In the orderly world of motorcycle manufacturing every bike fits into a neat little box describing its form and function - sports bike, tourer, commuter, trail bike and so on. In fact the newly relaunched MCN has decided to break its advertising section into just such a set of categories - presumably in the misguided belief that buyers these days aren't looking just for a GSX-R750; what they're actually after is a sports bike, and maybe they can't just look through ads in an alphabetical list, so "Sports Bikes" is better...
Trouble is that Yamaha's TDM850 doesn't fit into the categories very well. When it was first launched six years ago, the whole style of the bike was unlike current machines - trail bike influenced, with high ground clearance and flat bars, yet definitely a road bike with a big twin engine, low exhausts and road tyres. It developed a bit of a reputation as a fun bike - easy to ride, easy to wheelie, do anything kind of machine. It's undergone a few revisions over the years which culminated in a cosmetic makeover last year and engine and chassis changes to sharpen things up a bit.
Nevertheless the TDM remains a bit of an odd man out - no other manufacturer offers a bike quite like it, which means it holds a bit of a niche. Yamaha themselves categorise the bike as "New Sports" - which as we found out, is pretty much what it is, and nothing like the nutter supermotard-type bike everyone originally assumed it would be. Here's what we thought after a couple of weeks living with a TDM.
Big bike The first thing that strikes you about the TDM is how big it looks. The front end in particular is high, with the wide bars and fairing merging into the tank in a smooth set of curves. The redesign last year was definitely for the better - the TDM's style is really unique, and we reckon looks great. The twin headlamps look even more like eyes, the fairing is more organic-looking and although the red paint job this year isn't quite as good as last year's yellow, it's still a pretty looking bike.
It's also a long bike, and actually a pretty heavy one too; though this is perhaps accentuated because the weight is carried quite high - lifting it off the stand and wheeling it about is harder work than you expect. From the saddle the fairing is a long way off, adding to the impression of size. Mind you, the seat isn't any higher than normal, and while real shorties may still have problems, the majority of riders will find the TDM no more difficult to hold up at traffic lights than any other bike.
Real smoothie... Firing up and clunking into first, the clutch feels smooth and precise (unlike many Yams) and the bike feels well balanced at low speed - it's one of those bikes you can bring to a halt and keep your feet up for what seems like ages before it finally drops on one or the other.
The engine was a real beauty; very smooth, and with a linear power curve and nary a glitch in carburation right up to the redline, and beyond... Yamaha have chosen to lower the gearing in comparison with the TDM's sister bike, the TRX, and it's actually a bit under geared - even when loaded up would happily pull through readline in top (an indicated 130mph or so). The only thing to slow your progress is the gearbox; not as bad as some recent Hondas, but nevertheless not one of the best. Clunky and slow to change, it required a firm, steady foot to be applied. Don't bother to rush things, you'll just end up with crunching and false neutrals, once again adding to the "touring bike" image.
Mind you, don't expect any thudding twin noises 'cos this one's been silenced out of sight - in fact it's impossible to hear the engine above the wind noise once you're above about 60mph. Part of this is actually due to the fairing, which positioned as far away as it is, means buffeting can be felt unless you lean foward into the area of still air over the tank.
Bendy round the bends Hit a bit of bendy road, and the TDM is pretty disappointing. While it doesn't handle badly, it's definitely not the fast-steering, point and shoot style of bike that the semi-trail-bike styling hints at. Instead you have to ride smoothly and plan ahead to get the best from the bike - treat it rough and tough and it'll either bite back or just go and sulk.
This is mainly due to the suspension being pretty low-tech; forks are soft and with light damping, while at the rear the shock has a handle to easily change the spring preload for carrying a passenger but that's about it. Not much adjustment - we'd have liked a lot more, particularly as all round stiffening up would have improved high speed bend swinging considerably. As it was the weight of the bike is carried high, and with the suspension dive under braking the weight transfer was considerable, making the bike unstable and losing feel from the tyres at the critical turn-in point, often causing the bike to run wide just when you didn't want it to.
Stopping wasn't a problem for the brakes, which although being low-tech in comparison with today's six-piston jobs were still able to haul the bike to a stop or lock the front wheel - but the weight transfer and diving forks meant it was difficult to use them to the utmost with confidence.
Long limbed tourer So what's the TDM good at? Well the smooth engine, don't- like-to-be-hurried gearbox, and gentle suspension all tend to point to the touring life, don't they?
The riding position is certainly comfortable for all-day riding, and the seat is definitely a change from the sport bike saddles we're used to. In fact TDM's a very inviting bike as a transcontinental tourer, particularly for those riders who are more interested in seeing a little along the way; on a sunny day, cruising at a sedate 80mph or so on a broad A-road the high riding position gives you ample opportunity to take a look around and enjoy the scenery.
The fairing is placed a little far away to offer the best protection, but then it's not a full dustbin job anyway. We got around 42mpg thrashing the nuts off it, so on a longer run with less throttle wringing a range of 150 miles to a tankful should be easily possible. Even the footrests have little extensions on them which allow you to place your feet in a variety of positions, a bit like foot boards but without the ground clearance problems.
Summing up The TDM is certainly one of a kind, but definitely not what we expected.
Treat the bike as a stunt machine, try and wheelie, stoppie, throw it around bends and generally act like a nutter and you'll be disappointed - it's just a bit too heavy, a bit too long, and a bit too soft for all that.
But forget the sporting tricks and think of it as a do-everything tourer, and you'll not be far off. The engine is the star of the piece - it's a refreshing change from a four, and generates some really smooth, effortless power. The brakes work, the handling's fine until you start to push it, and the riding position is good for the long haul.
If you're looking for a general-purpose bike and want something a little different, try a TDM - but if you want to emulate Boris Chambon, get a dirt bike and put Akront rims and fat tyres on it - the TDM's just too nice for all that hooligan stuff!
Yamaha TDM850 Engine:Liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, 10-valve, DOHC, Parallel-twin Bore x Stroke: Displacement:849cm3 Compression ratio:10.5:1 Carbs:Mikuni BDST 38 x 2 Max. Power:80.2HP(DIN)/7,500rpm Max. Torque:80.4Nm/6,000rpm Ignition:Transistor Digital Starter:Electric Transmission:5-speed Final Drive:'O'-ring sealed chain Dimensions (LxWxH):2,165 x 790 x 1,285mm Wheelbase: 1,470mm Seat Height:805mm Wheels:Alloy 3 Spoke
Tyres:
Front - 110/80 ZR 18 Rear - 150/70 ZR 17 Suspension: Front - 43mm forks adjustable for spring pre-load Rear - Monocross with adjustable pre-load Brakes: Front - 2 x 298mm discs with four-piston calipers Rear - 245mm disc with dual-piston caliper Dry Weight:198kg
Great bike,I bought one last year(1996 model) and travelled Europe for 4 months 2up.It was so comfortable my wife fell asleep on the back on many occasions. We covered 8000mls without a problem,although I did get the oil changed in Corfu as I thought the bike deserved it(after 4000mls). I recommend this bike as a good allrounder,from the French motorways to the Swiss Alps.I only bought it to tour on as i own a cbr600 also,now i cant make up my mind which one to part with!! I found the gear change improves greatly if the chain and clutch are adjusted at regular intervals.I also fitted a scottoiler which keeps the chain nicely lubed.
Owned for 1 year.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed February 2004.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
Bloody brilliant, thought I was going to trade in for a jap custom cruiser but just can't bring myself to part with it, 5 trouble free years on a 1994 model... what more can you ask
Owned for 5 years.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed October 2002.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
The G.box of the 850 is said to be very noisy, but I found out that switching gears at low speeds makes it much smoother. Often even soundless. A maximum of about 3000 RPM works fine for me and the bike is very tolerant as long I don't open the gas to high. I agree that when you don't look far enough ahead, a curve in the road will suprise you because you cannot lay down the bike as low as a was used to. I think this is because the TDM is a very high bike. Both me wife and I ride it and for being very tall we can hardly find a bike that sits so heavenly. Even after a long ride we don't feel anything.
Just got an S Reg TDM850 after writinoff a Suzuki 750GSXF (Not my falt) The G.Box is clunky but the tourque means less gear changes. Better riding posisition and ballance. Had a number of other bikes(Kawasaki GPZ600,600Monster,1100 Varago to name a few!)this is a good, fun all rounder I am using it all weather for short runs to work and long tours.
Owned for 3 months.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed August 2001.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
The dogs watzitts
Owned for 6 months.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed June 2001.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
Good all rounder bike
Never owned
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed June 2001.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
Can just about keep up with most sport 600s with a bit of effort. Get a race exhaust - sounds great!
Owned for 3 years.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed January 2001.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
nice big torque M/C. Quite good enough for the sporty experience but a great every day commuter. Low fuel consuption, and a far enough cruising speed of 140-160 Kmph. Great brakes and easy steereing.
Owned for 6 months.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed November 2000.
Performance
Reliability
Parts Availability
Overall Value for Money
great A road performance,let down by a dodgy gearbox and wobbly handling on none radial tyres. Reliable if looked after but don't run it as a hack.
All ratings and reviews are submitted by visitors to this web site, and represent their own personal opinion. They do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of Preloved.
You use this information at your own risk. Preloved can not be held responsible for any damages or loss resulting from the use of this site. Please see our Terms and Conditions for more details.
