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2010 Yamaha YFZ 450X ATV Bill Ballance Edition
2010 Yamaha YFZ450X ATV Cross Country Test Ride Review

Union, SC - The growing market for purpose-specific ATVs has brought many new choices to the consumer, when shopping for their ideal machine. Yamaha has listened to their customers and has offered up a new, powerful machine that fills a void in the woods and cross-country realm, the Yamaha YFZ450X.
2010 Yamaha YFZ 450X ATV Bill Ballance Edition
2010 Yamaha YFZ 450X (above right) & YFZ450X Bill Ballance Edition (above left)

ATVRiders.com was invited to the Yamaha YFZ 450X press intro and given the opportunity to test out Yamaha’s newest race inspired ATV in Union, South Carolina, which has been home to the Big Buck GNCC for the past thirteen years. Yamaha took the liberty of having a 10 mile loop specially designed by GNCC Racing’s Lieutenant Trail Boss, Buren Hamrick, which included tight trails, hill climbs, off camber turns and even a the legendary Big Buck creek jump. The course utilized various sections from previous GNCC race track, so it was basically the perfect environment to put Yamaha’s new cross-country quad to the test.

2010 Yamaha YFZ 450X ATV Bill Ballance Edition
A fleet of Yamaha YFZ450X ATVs waiting to hit the Big Buck Trails

When we arrived, the track was a little on the wet side, with many puddles and some mud, which is pretty typical of any GNCC race. And much to our delight, there was no dust to contend with, making for good visibility. We were excited to give Yamaha’s YFZ450X a try and couldn’t wait to get suited up and hit the trails to check out every aspect of the ATV.

2010 Yamaha YFZ450X ATV
2010 Yamaha YFZ450X ATV
The Yamaha YFZ450R is 48.8" wide, but the YFZ450X is 2.7" narrower, which was reduced by shortening the length of the rear axle & utilizing the orginal YFZ450 wheel hubs (above left), and up front, the A-arm width was reduced to narrow up the front.

The new YFZ450X is based on the YFZ450R and will be replacing the original YFZ450, which has been discontinued for 2010. The YFZ450X has kept a narrowed up design for those who prefer to stick to tight trails and woods type of riding. In fact the new YFZ450X uses the same rear hubs as the original YFZ in order to keep it narrow along with a shorter axle. At just 46.1” wide, the same width as the original YFZ450, the YFZ450X fit on the tightest trails that we encountered and its 5lbs lighter weight than the YFZ450R, made it feel even more nimble than its motocross inspired sibling in the woods.

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