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motorcycles
Buy a used Yamaha TDM 850
Buy a used Yamaha TDM 850
Sound of singles
The TDM driver is usually left alone with the standard exhaust noise.
Michael Allner
01/24/1996
What should a two-cylinder motorcycle sound like? Maybe with a dull thud while idling. Or growling? A kind of shooting would also be appropriate. Or a bubbling. And at the top more of a pithy hum. Maybe a full roar too. The expressions of life that a TDM makes, however, are far from it. Quiet is okay, after all, it not only protects the ears of the neighbors, but also those of the driver on long journeys. But this pronounced tinny exhaust noise gives rise to fuzzy childhood memories of the Augsburg Puppenkiste. You know, the knights in tin can armor who always rolled down various hills on command. It’s actually a shame, because the interesting appearance – frog face and designer buttocks – takes a back seat to the viewer when the engine is started.
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Enough of the noise, does such a TDM at least drive well? And whether. Thanks to two effectively rotating balance shafts, the engine runs with low vibrations; the motorcycle only shudders at a speed of around 4500 rpm. The pressure at lower revs is decent, the brakes are top notch, the engine is reliable and durable and the seating position, especially for tall people, is very relaxed. The chassis is very handy, and the enormous ground clearance means that even moderate terrain is possible if necessary. Smart and extremely rare: a second spring in the central spring strut that can be switched on with a simple handle under the seat bench allows the spring rate to be quickly and effectively adjusted to various load conditions. Is there anything to complain about??
And if. The motorcycle sounds … wait, we already had that. The load cycle is pronounced and the gearbox is rough. As standard, the TDM swallows far too much fuel, the fork seals do not last long, the choke and fuel tap are hidden, and the trim parts boom every now and then. The fact that no main stand is mounted on a street motorcycle is annoying not only when tensioning the chain. And also the service friendliness left a lot to be desired. While the spark plugs can still be unwound with the help of the on-board tools and articulated spider fingers without dismantling work, it gets bitter at the latest when the necessary replacement of the air filter: Down the seat, remove the two side and top parts of the cladding – only then can the tank, which covers everything, go down . When assembling, the “thread rubbers” to hold the side panels usually fall into the frame.
Naturally, things get even worse when the valve clearance is to be checked, because a lot more has to be removed here. Yamaha prescribes this act only every 42,000 kilometers. Experience has shown that an adjustment is often due after the first 25,000 kilometers, since the clearance of the inlet valves tends to zero.
The TDM, which came on the market in 1992, has already undergone a number of model upgrade measures. The initially rather gritty appearance was made a little more neat for 1993 by some retouching (chrome-plated silencer and handlebars, engine and frame lighter, peg bracket polished). In addition, this vintage got a controller with a larger heat sink, as the old one showed premature failure symptoms on some models.
In the 1994 edition, the facelift went deeper, more precisely into the depth of the engine, because Yamaha finally wanted to teach the TDM gearbox sensible manners through modifications to the shift forks, the clutch basket and the transmission shafts. However, to this day nothing has been known of the resounding success of these measures.
Around 5500 TDM 850 Mitsui has been able to sell in Germany so far, so the range of used vehicles is quite large. Models of the first year of construction cost around 8,500 marks, almost regardless of the mileage. No wonder, because the engine is hard to break. After the 50,000-kilometer long-distance test by MOTORRAD (issue 1/1993), only the exhaust valves were slightly leaky and a gear wheel from the gearbox was slightly nibbled – the piston and cylinder showed no weaknesses.
You don’t need a lot of specialist knowledge to inspect a used TDM. In principle it looks like this: With a worried furrowed forehead, slide along the standpipes and check whether the fork seals still hold what they should, namely tight. Then skeptically jerk the rear wheel across the direction of travel in order to identify any defective wheel bearings. And finally do the obligatory test drive and comfort the probably once again worn out shock absorbers – that’s it, you can trade.
Anyone who has caught a somewhat dull-looking 1992 model can easily add a few highlights to their machine with a few small interventions. For example, many buyers order their new TDM 850 right away with an exhaust system from the accessories and thankfully forego the original pots (they don’t sound good, was that mentioned here?) – probably not having a clue what kind They carelessly leave a treasure behind, as the chrome-plated original costs over 2000 marks. Incidentally, Mitsui was shocked himself when leafing through the price list and wants to reconsider the calculation of this part. These orphaned exhaust systems are now just lying around at some dealerships – too good to throw away, but actually useless for anything – waiting for them to be taken away for little money. If the chrome-plated handlebars of the 1993 model are then mounted on polished brackets, everything looks a lot nicer. And true gloss fetishists, as the icing on the cake, polish the engine protection and the bracket on the rear bumper.
If, on the other hand, you prefer to do something useful, you can at least mount the mirrors of the XJ 600 S, which allow for better consideration. And if you are faced with the agony of choosing a tire, you should choose the Metzeler pairing ME Z1 and ME Z2, which offer a very good compromise in terms of adhesion and durability.
Oh yes, at the end maybe a few words about the exhaust noise of the TDM: Since it sounds ghastly, quite a few people drive around with mufflers from the accessories. MOTORRAD will therefore subject these pots to a comparative test in the near future. If this makes the noise better, TDM drivers will probably no longer be alone.
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