[thedoc46]

I'm going to chime in here. I own an FZ09 not an XSR, but build quality will be on par with each other and i rode a FT last night for the first time, (new owner woo hoo) and it felt more refined and polished with better fuel mapping.. I was expecting the reverse. Hopefully it'll be as reliable as the Yammy ? Hope so.

 

[DesmoDeanna]

Okay, I'll chime in too...

My wife and I were deciding between the XSR and a Duc Scrambler a couple of months ago. We've ridden the FZ09 and liked it, and the XSR wins hands down against the Scrambler in the tech department, unless you simply don't want tech (which is your prerogative).

Looking at the spec sheet the XSR wins, especially when the two bikes are roughly the same price, and I genuinely think we'd be happy with the Yamaha. So what did we do? We spent $4000-$5000 MORE by putting money down on an Italia Independant Scrambler model, even though its only 'upgrades' from the regular version are cosmetic.

Why? The Scrambler and the XSR are both great bikes IMO, and have mostly the same intended purpose, at least for us. We currently have a 2015 Monster and a 2014 Triumph Street Triple R and both of those bikes make me smile (like an embarrassing, full grin that I can't get rid of) when I put my leg over them, for reasons that I can't entirely articulate. The XSR, or at last the FZ09 upon which it's based, didn't do that for me. I am not knocking the Yamaha, and have every reason to think it will make many owners very very happy.

For us though, putting a leg over the Scrambler instantly elicited that silly grin again. Maybe some of that is the fun engine character and exhaust note. Maybe some of that is the Ducati badge, which really makes no rational sense (I'm in Canada; why is Italy any more exotic to me than Japan?). Maybe some of it IS the simplicity of the Scrambler.

My point is they're both awesome bikes. Heck, my local dealer has awesome bikes of various makes and models filing the showroom floor. For us, the Scrambler just hit the mark. If the XSR hits the mark for you I look forward to seeing you with it on the road - we can share silly grins as we ride by

 

[DucRider]

I think between the two, I'd find the XSR's offset speedo/tach unit, less unnerving, in the long-run, than the Scrambler's single, left-sided shock. The XSR's monoshock system wouldn't even phase my confidence, riding down the highway.
But I guess the single shock helped the Duc save weight? Or?

Anyway, looking through the posts, which will help me decide on which bike I'll pull the trigger, no one's mentioned anything about the Scrambler's smoothness, unless I didn't look hard enough. There's a reason why the Scrambo was given to Thailand to mass-produce.
The XSR's Japan homeland, OK, we'd all kind of expect that, right? not right? What?

Also, I read somewhere that the XSR was not meant "to re-introduce a retro bike to the Yamaha line-up".
Even though several clues would lead one to think "Oh yes they did."
The yellow speed block paint scheme? For me, the Yamaha's style looks like any upright, standard bike style.
The mile of space between the rear fender and the tire, which both bikes share?

IMO, this is not a good comparison between 2 bikes. But, I don't want to try and influence a newbie to this site, one way or another.

I've not even found performance numbers anywhere. I think the Scrambler has considerably more torque, right? What about HP? Top speed? 1/4 mile times?

 

[jkblaq]

I have an Yamaha SR400 and a Scrambler. The XSR was what I wanted Yammy to produce, I literally uttered the words they should take the FZ-07 and make it a retro/modern mashup. When the XSR came out I was ecstatic. However, seeing it in person I was disappointed, the tank is huge, the seating was uncomfortable and just felt odd there just didnt seem to be room enough. I initially defended the radiator but it truly is hideous. In the end I was happy I picked the Ducati, the XSR I wanted to love but just didnt. Obviously this is mostly aesthetics/egonomics Im sure the XSR is a great bike in every other category.

 

[al800]

I have test rode both not for long time. I think the Ducati is something in the sweet spot between retro and modern motorbike. Is a modern motorbike very well disguised. The XSR700 is a modern bike too but the disguise failed...I think though that Yamaha did not target the totally retro audience. They built a bike that is easy to customize...just remove 4 screws and the rear frame goes away...I would pick the yamaha if it had some more dual sport orientation...The Ducati is the real deal of having a modern motorbike with retro look...