Welcome Jenn!
your best option for a REALLY comfortable seat is Sean Morley's Muscle Seat. His website is on the top right of this page, or you can email him at
[email protected].
The R1 calipers are a straight bolt-on with an '01 I believe, but some years may require adapters - other who have done it will tell ya. The best and cheapest brakes upgrade is to swap the pads for EBC HH ones - the difference is like night and day.
I love my stock exhaust's quietness because I do a lot of miles, but a lot of people like the Kerkers for less weight and more power - bear in mind that to maximize the power appropriate jetting is required, and again Sean Morley is your man!
The poor handling is mostly a result of heavy weight, chassis and suspension flex, and average factory suspension. The most immediate upgrade to the front end is a beefier fork brace - some swear by it while others think it makes no difference.
The most important handling upgrade IMHO is the tires! Do yourself and your Max a favor and trash the OEM Dunlop or Bridgestone items for a set of Shinko T230 tires. They are inexpensive (great deal from bikebandit.com) and really good quality V-rated grippy rubber. They come in the stock sizes (110/90 x 18 & 150/90 x 15) or you can choose to go with 120/90 x 18 & 170/80 x 15 for better looks.
Personally, I went with stock front size and the 170 rear, but only because I live in FL where 90% or roads are straight. :confused2: For twisties I would stick with the original sizes.
The easiest (and cheapest) handling upgrades are to the suspension: get some better fork springs (Progressive or similar) and slightly heavier fork oil for better damping, and upgrade your rear shock absorbers - again Progressive is what most people swear by.
After that - if you're still not happy - my understanding is that the next best thing is to remove the rubber motor mounts and replace them with solid ones.
Also popular are frame braces to stiffen it, and swing arm bracing as well.
Then, talking about really big bucks now, you can swap the front end with a modern upside down forks setup from a GSXR or similar, and you can also get $$$ lighter wheels of better diameter (17" or 18") which will give you a better choice of tires, adding low profile radials which are not available in the stock wheel sizes (especially the rear wheel).
My advice is get good tires first, and at least Progressive springs for your forks. And then remember that with the shaft drive, speed changes mid-turn do have interesting results!
For the best deal on all Yamaha parts, get in touch with Gary McCoy @ Mondak Motorsports - he gives us VMF members a 20% discount and is the nicest guy to boot!
Most of all - enjoy your V-boost.. :eusa_dance: