$3,120
San Jose, California
Category
-
Engine
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Posted Over 1 Month
2002 Yamaha Road Star Silverado, Kentucky is an interesting place. Overflowing with lush greenery, swaying crops and small lakes, one would think it would posses near-perfect weather. From pictures, it all seemed too perfect not to. Alas, on our visit back east, it was a particularly hot and muggy week. We were in the town of Bowling Green for the Star Touring & Riding Association (the official club of Yamaha) annual Star Days rider gathering. Think of it as a Honda Hoot, but for Yamahas and you'll get the picture. Also at this gathering, Yamaha used the opportunity to introduce to the press two new cruisers and an entire range of performance products. When we talk about middle or lightweight cruisers, bikes like the V Star and V Star 1100 come easily to mind. These are the sort of machines that introduce people to the motorcycling world. Because more and more people are taking the smaller displacement cruisers seriously these days, they're becoming a more common choice of vehicle on which to commute or tour with. Yamaha noticed that buyers were modifying their machines by adding a number of goodies such as windshields, saddlebags and backrests. Addressing their customers needs, Yamaha decided to offer those parts as standard equipment on some models for the 2002 model year. Thus, the V Star Silverado and V Star 1100 Silverado were born. Think of them as the "Luxury" versions of the regular V Star and V Star 1100 series of motorcycles and you'll know where Yamaha's going with all of this. The bags, windscreen and backrest all enhance the look, feel and usefulness of these cruisers. The bags, windscreen and backrest all enhance the look, feel and usefulness of these cruisers. As a package, the new models only add to the functionality and all-around capability of the more bare-bones models. In the hot Kentucky air the adjustable windshield did its job and redirected the hot and humid air away from the rider. This allowed us to ride with our visors up in a relatively calm pocket of, well, hot and humid air. The airflow was redirected to the very tops of the taller riders in the group (6 feet and above) whereas our more average-sized friends reveled in the calm, still air. Another welcome addition on these bikes are the bags. We were glad to see that the included bags not only complemented the styling of the bike, but were also effective. Although we didn't like dealing with the buckles, Yamaha press noted that the bags were meant more for the weekender than for the round-towner. So we query, "If that's the case, then why are the bags fixed-mounted to the bike?" We surmised that if you do plan on "weekending" then you should put your worldly goods in a duffel bag of some kind. This bag would then get placed inside the saddlebag, ready for easy removal of its contents. The Road Star Silverado features much of the same treatments as its smaller brothers, with the addition of
