As the new Yamaha VMAX 2009 hits the Indian shores, we travel 24 years back in time to the genesis of the legend….
A quarter of a century ago, when cubic capacity ruled – Yamaha captured the true spirit of the time and revealed what over 23 years later has become perhaps the most legendry bike ever built, the V-Max. A class of its own, a class of muscle bound image and brutal acceleration.
In 1983, Akira Araki was appointed as the project leader for developing a die-hard muscle bike . He and two of his team members spent almost a month in USA to understand the culture and the market for such an outrageous concept. Soon, a team consisting of Akira Araki (Project Leader), Yasushi Ashihara (Engine Designer), Makoto Kurachi (Chassis Designer), Kentaro Yamamoto (Styling Designer) and an American freelance artist, John Reed sat down to get the first sketches of this concept in place. Nobody including the designers who saw their final product could have imagined that Yamaha V-max would last over two decades, but the fact is it has.
The mad acceleration rush and the deep growl of the V4 motor together offered crazy levels of thrill and excitement to the adrenaline junkies of the world. The V-max was fast and violent. The bike had Hooliganism stamped on it from front to rear. With its massive 1,198cc V4, 4-stroke, 4-valve DOHC engine kicking out 140PS, this radically-styled muscle bike became an instant legend which established itself as the definitive cult-bike. With around 100,000 units sold during its production run that spanned three decades, the original VMAX made history by being included in the Guggenheim Museum’s ‘Art of the Motorcycle’.
The first generation V-Max unveiled in 1985 remained largely unchanged for next twenty years albeit with minor upgrades like better brakes and improved suspension components to aid its infamous handling characteristics. The second generation model, known as Yamaha VMAX, was showcased in June, 2008 with an all-new 1,679cc V4 engine and lightweight diamond shaped aluminium chassis. The new 2009 VMAX successfully carried forward the design philosophy of its predecessor but with a more mental powerplant and equally competent cycle parts to give the new bike respectable handling and dynamic ability.
From the hand-polished aluminium air intakes to the four black mufflers, the VMAX shouts power and adrenaline. The beast’s acceleration sensation intensified to the max thanks to Yamaha’s cutting-edge developed electronics technologies YCC-I (Yamaha Chipped Controlled Intake) and YCC-T (Yamaha Chip Controlled Throttle).
There has never been anything to beat it since 1985…until now…by Yamaha V-max 2009. The rebirth of a legend , a mega-muscle bike with drag-strip acceleration for the biggest adrenaline kick on the street.
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Riding d Beast 