Yamaha SR400 test: the return of the granny

Evicted from the French catalog in 1982, the SR400 reappeared in 2014! With its good old single-cylinder motorcycle, Yamaha intends to vibrate the nostalgic chord of French bikers. Site was able to test it for a day. Contact !

The Yamaha SR400 is back in France

If the importation into France of the SR400 stopped in 1982, its production has never stopped. In Japan, where this small single-cylinder roadster comes from, it continues to delight thousands of motorcyclists who ride on the original 500 cc version (derived from the XT in 1978) or the 400 cc version, which Site is testing today.

SR400: availability, colors and price

Availability: immediate in the Colors: matt gray or "Yamaha" black Price: € 5,999

"The SR 500 was marketed in France until 1981", reminds us Yamaha Motor France. That year, the 500 disappeared from the French catalog"due to the reform of the motorcycle license, in favor of the SR400, accessible with the A2 or A license. This machine will remain in the catalog until 1982".

Back in France between 1992 and 1997, the SR500 had a total of 4,816 registrations on the French market, compared to 659 for the 400 cc version … "The reintroduction of the SR to the European market in a 400 cc version may seem strange", we recognize at Yam ‘.

But according to the Blues, "it is justified by the fact that Yamaha has constantly kept this model in production for its domestic market where it is the object of a true cult. And it has been fitted with an injection power supply which again allows it to meet European standards.".

"We therefore decided to import the SR 400 in limited quantities depending on the demand from tuning specialists and customers for this type of model.", specifies the European head of product planning, Oliver Grill:"this machine is a true classic, a unique motorcycle which responds perfectly to the current trend towards motorcycles with character".

Surprise guest at the Milan show last fall (read), little Yam ‘indeed has serious assets to seduce fans of "MILR" (Granny I’d Like to Ride)…

Its typical "Seventies" look will immediately please: round headlight and indicators, cubic brake light, 18-inch aluminum spoked rims, thin inner tube tires (!), Air-cooled single cylinder fully polished and housed in a double steel cradle, tank aligned on the flat saddle … Everything is there !

The more fussy will be able to verify it for themselves: the SR400 is mainly made of "good fat" metal, like the mudguards, chain guards, headlights, casing of meters and mirrors generously coated in chrome … Only the turn signal brackets are plastic, but they do not mismatch.

Very "vintage" also, rubber bellows protect the fork tubes. Similar protections can be found above, at the level of the two levers (not adjustable). Still on the handlebars, the handles and commodos (re) also plunge the pilot 30 years back…

Other finishing touches are remarkable, such as the "SR" inscriptions which appear in relief on the sides, or the "Yamaha" badge which dresses the back of the saddle. However, the orange border of the same rear part will be criticized for not being protected by a layer of varnish, unlike the border which adorns the tank..

No need to beat around the bush – treated with a special nanofilm coating to prevent discoloration: this Yamaha is eye-catching! Faced with modern roadsters, it fully plays the card of old-fashioned charm … or rather "of" the old, since it is strictly speaking. !

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