Jeff swapped the long term D'elight for a Yamaha YDX-Moro 07. Here's our first update. This month, Jeff does 230km and Toddy does some fire trail blasting... Words: Jeff Ware/Toddy Chappo
So it’s not a motorcycle but at least it is a Yamaha. In a first for BikeReview, we’ve got a bicycle as a long termer. Don’t judge us! It’s electric, it’s mega and loads of fun off-road. It’s also perfect for Jeff to rehab his knees on and shed a bit of weight at the same time…
Jeff and Yamaha’s Sean Goldhawk. This is around the 15th Yamaha Long Termer Jeff has had in the past two decades but the first with pedals! After having both knees reconstructed, the electric assist is exactly what he needs…
Without going on about it, I almost went a full 12-months without riding a motorcycle after my big stack in March 2022. With two busted hands, it was Yamaha who came to the rescue and gave me an awesome little Yamaha D’elight 125 to use for six months and regain my road sense and keep me on two wheels until I could use a clutch again. It was great, read all about it here… Jeff’s Yamaha D’elight.
The opportunity came to continue my rehab with the assistance of the YDX-Moro 07. The idea is that I can regain some fitness and lose some weight without doing further damage to my knees. I can’t push down on pedals, only pull up clipped in and that’s a pain, I don’t want to go down that road to be honest, so with the YDX, I can push to my knee’s limits and then back out and let the assist help me.
Read our full YDX-Moro 07 Launch Report by Mike Cameron here…
After Mike attended the launch in Sydney (see link in above), I was really keen on the idea of having a YDX for a while. After some chatting with Sean Goldhawk, it was arranged, and I returned the much loved Yamaha D’elight and came back to BikeReview HQ with a YDX-Moro 07. I jumped straight on and went for a ride that afternoon. I was only going to go around the block but ended up doing 10km…
I jumped on eBay that night and ordered some cheap kit, a pair of mtb shorts, a few pairs of padded bike pants, some fingerless gloves (I also have MX gloves), and a new hydration pack. I usually just wear skins underneath and an MX summer jersey for off-roading. I do need to order some knee protection and elbow protection next month, and sort my own helmet as I am using one of Mike’s.
I’ve been riding the BikeReview YDX-Moro 07 for a month now, while Mike took it for a week and Toddy also took it for a week. I haven’t done any serious dirt yet as my right hand is still painful and I am waiting on further surgery, so need to ride with caution, but I’ve done a fair bit of on-road, grass, and dirt road. I’ve covered 230km in four weeks, generally a 40-50km weekend ride on a Saturday morning, the rest just riding to the office and back. I use Eco mode for commuting and usually Standard mode for the general pedalling, dropping to Eco if I need to save battery. Up hills, I go High Performance mode!
Jeff has clocked up around 230km so far on his BikeReview YDX-Moro 07 and reckons he has been smiling every second on it.
I haven’t worked out the range based on load and mode just yet but will update you all with that next month. I’ve loved every second of the YDX and really am so happy to be back on a bicycle after 25-years without one aside from a bit of fun on BMX bikes. The last mountain bike I had was to get around the tracks and pits on in my 250 Proddie and Supersport ASBK days in the 1990s! Living back in the area I grew up in, a place chockers full of lanes and firetrails, I am loving reliving my youth where I have great memories of riding my bikes around these areas. I smile non-stop on the YDX…
Available in Icon Blue colour, YDX-Moro 07 is priced at $8999 inc GST ready to ride and is available now…
QUICK TEST BY TODDY CHAPPO
Toddy here for BikeReview and this is my short test of the Yamaha YDX-Moro 07 eMtn bike. I’ll start off with a disclaimer that I am in no means any kind of expert/pro mountain bike rider, and any or all of my skills may or may not have been acquired from jumping over my friends on a three-speed stick shift and going home when the street lights came on!
I now had Yamaha YDX-Moro 07 in front of me. “Here take this for a test for me!” are the words I recall. So after a quick basic rundown on the operation, I was off!
I’ve ridden a lot of pushy’s, I’m 50+ and still ride. My current bike is a 29 Hardtail that’s basically used to run around town and keep my cardio up. And that’s kinda how I ended up on the Moro. See my motorcycle had a flat battery and Jeff had loaned me a charger and I was returning it on my 29+. Before I knew it my 29+ had been whisked away from me and I now had Yamaha YDX-Moro 07 in front of me. “Here take this for a test for me!” are the words I recall. So after a quick basic rundown on the operation, I was off!
Toddy explored the local National Parks and fire trails on the Moro and absolutely loved his first eMtb experience.
So with the basics from Jeff kinda sketchy I turned to YouTube and Mike’s launch report for an education on the Moro motor and how the electronics operate via the bar thumb control. OK. Got it. So let’s go! Being surrounded by National Park and magnificent views, I took advantage of some of local fire trails that I’d never attempt on my own bike.
So after riding about 2km on flat ground with one small hill and a dirt track around a cliff face, I found myself at the base of a steep fire trail. Thinking to myself that I’m way out of my depth if I think I can ride up there… It’s steep. Around 1km to the lookout. Hmm…
As a lifetime bicycle and motorcycle rider, Todd was able to appreciate the crossover of the YDX while appreciating the assist of the 85Nm PX-X3 motor. With plenty of battle scars from years of riding, the assist is a welcome thing!
A quick press up on the ‘bar control and the hill assist activates. What is this magic? This bike is just climbing this hill with minimal effort from me. By the time I arrived at the lookout, which didn’t take long, I already wanted my own YDX. It has some power when it comes to climbing hills, even to the point of some rear tyre spin on small loose rocks! So after a few photos and still having plenty of energy in myself and 3 bars of power on the charge indicator I decided to explore more fire trails.
The more I rode it the more I wanted to keep riding it. It’s that good. I found the ride from the suspension to be plush in the rear shock. Not sure of the settings, I rode it as I picked it up. I weigh 70kg. Coming back down the trail I just rode up was a blast… The Moro has a bit of weight, which seemed to help it plant itself back firmly onto terra firma after getting airborne on a couple of dropaway sections, making landings really stable.
The brakes will stop the Moro on a dime. Yes it will stoppie on command! The MAXXIS Minion DHF New EXO+ /3C MaxxTerra (f), Rekon New EXO+ /3C MaxxTerra 2 tyres are grippy and soft. Overall I put 50km on them and they were starting to show some wear with scolloping on the rear. So now for my overall review… Did I like it? I LOVED it. Do I want one? Hell Yeah. Can I afford one? No!
“The Moro took me places I wouldn’t of dreamed of taking my bike…”
Would I recommend it to others? I already have and will continue to do so. Yamaha have a good thing going into the future with these ebikes. I can see now what all the hype is about. The Moro took me places I wouldn’t of dreamed of taking my bike, and you just want to keep on riding it. I’m sure the people who ride mountain bikes for a hobby will love it as well. Can’t wait to get it back off Jeff. I’ve got plenty more trails to explore… Todd.
2023 Yamaha YDX-Moro 07 Specifications
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