The all new Yamaha WR450F came up trumps in the ultimate reliability test when four of the top six positions were taken by WR450F owners at the 2012 SA reliability test, with all eight 2012 model WR450F’s that started the event finished without any issues.

Now in its 80th year, the Swann Insurance 24 Hours event in Kapunda, one hour north of Adelaide, puts bikes and riders through a gruelling test that pushes performance to the limit.

Testing conditions with rain and showers in the area only made the job tougher for the riders but the new WR450F proved to be the machine of choice notching impressive results.

Sean Throup led the Yamaha charge to take second place at the event, just a few minutes behind the race leader. Despite the rain and wet conditions, Throup had a smooth run and was able to park his WR450F in second place just ahead of fellow Yamaha competitor, Rowan Pumpa, in third.

Previous race winners, Chris Power and Shane Diener all finished well taking fourth and sixth places respectively. That makes four Yamaha WR450Fs in the top six and evidence that the bullet proof durability that the WR is renowned for is firmly intact with the new generation 2012 machine.

Long-time Yamaha service technician, Rob Del Balo, is the man behind setting up the WR450F’s for the event but this is the first time working with the new generation fuel injected machine.

“On the WR, the least of our concerns is having to nurse the bike through the event as the bike is as tough as nails,” he said. “My main focus is equipping the bike with enough lighting to get through the night so the riders have enough vision and race safely.

“Like previous years, we had no problems with the WR and it was just a case of fuel and simple servicing at each stop. With the tight times of the event, sometimes even simple servicing is difficult and that’s where the WR450F shines.

“They never missed a beat. The bikes ran strongly throughout the event and are testament to the great build quality of the WR range.”

Yamaha also posted a 1-2 finish in the Rally class with South Australia rep Robert Baumann taking the class win over the super spanner man, Rob Del Balo.

For a for more information on the event, visit www.24hrtrial.com and for a full list of results you can see www.mylaps.com.