Tribute to the YTM 200 Yamahauler

[hawaiirider]

wanted to give a tribute to one of the best trikes and by far best unsuspended trike ive ever owned, the YTM 200E and its counterparts.

This trike looked very oddball to me when I bought it, motor under seat, odd gas tank panels etc, not a Honda look alike at all

It turned out to have more power than a Honda 200e,m or s and would outrun my 200x on topend as well!

It also handled extremely well, better than a Honda, ive owned them all... You can literally stop on a steep uphill and then keep going with no fear of flipping backwards!!

Deep water did not stop this beast, the front wheel just floated up.

No problems with durability either.

Very impressed with this machine, it tamed valdez Alaska, the snow capital of the world (Thompson pass avg. 50ft per yr)

Wanted others to know what a great trike they are as the bigred steals the spotlight

Side note I also had a YTM 225DR at the same time and it handled more of a normal style trike, (it was a tippy machine) and the power seemed down compared to the YTM200 as well, ill take a 250sx over the YTM225 anyday

[dustrunner]

You can literally stop on a steep uphill and then keep going with no fear of flipping backwards!! = You feeling all rite ?

[Jmoozy27]

It's still probably my favorite of all my trikes. It sits for most of the year but still fires up when needed. One day I will rebuild frame up. One day!!!

[El Camexican]

There were a lot of things built into that trike that didn’t get the credit I thought they deserved…

- The dent-proof, rustproof, stainproof fuel tank that let small amounts of spillage from overfilling flow under the tank cover and not onto the seat.
- The cross-under fuel line that let you use every last drop of fuel in the tank
- Easy access simple carb
- Great intake and wiring, practically water proof till you were over your belt buckle
- Super torquey engine that revved out well past what you’d expect in something that was so strong down low
- Engine was bullet proof
- Indestructible foot pegs.

They also had their share of short comings…
- Open wheel/axle bearings with cheap dust seals. One water crossing in sub-zero weather and they were shot
- Front wheel bearings are too small
- Terrible rear brakes
- Flimsy choke lever, broke one almost every winter.
- Terrible forks, possibly the worst ever made
- Poor air filter design. You can’t even tell when the seal tears off and ends up sucking in dirt.
- Motor was too far back (Not Yamaha’s fault, that was due to a Honda patent). Loves to tip backwards going uphill.
- Notchy shifting, almost difficult.

I never ran into any stock Honda four stroke 250cc or smaller that could out accelerate or top end it. The 225 was slower than the 200’s like you said. I suspect the shaft drive was to blame for that. If I had a YTM 200 engine mounted in a Tri-Z chassis I suspect it would be my favorite ride.

[Chopsaw]

I bought one out of a barn in Illinois for 200 bucks . It cleaned up like new . It ran strong , but had the no start on the e start , Had to pull the rope . You could see your reflection in the plastics . It was a wheelie machine , so not sure about stopping on a hill ,,, not me anyway . It had alot of cool to it ,,, but I like my red's better .

[hawaiirider]

the trails in valdez, especially hogsback were extremely rocky and steep.

I once did not make it up a hillclimb and thought I was going to roll backwards. it was a super steep and everybody down below was screaming to bail. I hit the brakes and it hugged the hill, I then realized how balanced this thing was and tried climbing and to my surprise it crawled right up!
it was know as the mountain goat by all after that, yall might not agree but this under seat motor design works incredibly well.
one thing I did notice was the bike performed a lot better all around with 25 inch tires, 22 inch threw its design off

[Jed]

I really like the gray and black seat, how do like those J wheelz?

[hawaiirider]

I really like the gray and black seat, how do like those J wheelz?

the j wheelz are awesome in snow and mud you must run a 25 inch tire to use them though