The others
Matt and Jim decide to swap bikes — but nothing else…
Matt and Jim swap rides
IT’S EASY FOR experienced bikers to dismiss machines like the Tracer 700. With just 70bhp to play with and a diminutive, unimposing stature, for many it’ll be written off before even beign ridden. But a year after I last it, I was reminded how spirited, enjoyable and able it is.
In February last year, in a world before Covid scuppered international travel, I sampled the new-for-2020 Tracer for the first time. Basking in the winter sun of a sub-tropical Tenerife, it flicked and flacked though the mountainous switchbacks with gleeful abandon, delivering comfort and exuding friendliness.
And now, 14 months later, it feels more or less the same as it bobs and bounces over my fave Cambs B-roads. For the last year, custodian Jim has been using the Tracer for commuting and long-distance riding and he’s tailored the bike to his needs. He’s added a throttle-stop as a crude form of cruise control (I’m not sold), he’s fitted
Yamaha’s accessory touring screen (it’s pretty good) and softened off the suspension to improve the ride-quality (it’s too soft for my weight and riding). But despite the definite feeling of riding someone else’s bike, its bare-bones still work for celebratory, fun-loving riding.
There’s a weightlessness, an accuracy to the steering that makes it a joy to guide at any speed — and that in effect is its main advantage over bigger-capacity sports tourers. Comfort is decent, too. One of the great things about the Tracer is the way that it can accommodate a wide variety of riders without modifications and though at 6’2” I’m right at the top of the size spectrum, I’m not cramped and I don’t feel like the whole bike has shrunk in the wash. The pegs are low enough for comfort as well yet high enough for enthusiastic riding.
Which is more than can be said for the centrestand. Offered as an official Yamaha item, it just isn’t up to the standard of the rest of the bike — it looks like a crude bolt-on and seriously scuppers groundclearance if you’re a) an enthusiastic rider, b) heavy or c) take a pillion.
Jim himself admitted that the scraping had sapped his confidence, so as a temporary measure I increased the rear preload to gain more rideheight and added a bit of
rebound in to stop the bike wallowing as much mid-corner. The end result is less scraping and nicer steering, even if the bike does feel a little harsher on sharp compressions. But I’ll take that.
The surprise for me is the engine. Yamaha’s 689cc CP2 parallel twin has always been the class leader thanks to its wonderful flexibility and neat fuelling. And it is still very good, delivering drive across a wide rev-range and a reasonable turn of pace. But after sampling Triumph’s Trident last month, it’s made me realise that Yamaha needs to move the game on, even taking into account the weight of the Tracer. The CP2 just doesn’t have the immediacy or throttle connection of the Triumph; or sound as good.
The current Tracer’s a very good bike, but I’m looking forward to the next step in its development as, with a bit more urgency and slightly better suspension, it could be truly outstanding. You’d be even more wrong to dismiss it then.