Review: 2016 Yamaha Mt
Yamaha"s new MT-10 is one hell of a beast, making an impact on the hyper-naked scene. Here is our MT-10 review. Test: Jeff Ware Photography: iKapture/Yamaha
One of the most eagerly awaited nakedbikes of all time had a lot khổng lồ live up to when it arrived Down Under earlier in the year.
More than once a 1000cc nakedbike based on a sportsbike sibling has being dumbed down too much. The early images leaked to the truyền thông often get us all revved up, only for drooling potential customers lớn be let down by a conservative sầu version of what could have been…
Well slap me with an EXUP.. valve. I was wrong, Yamaha, so wrong. The MT-10 is badass! Versus the R1, Yamaha claim the weight increase is only 11kg, which is impressive sầu, as is matching peak torque of 81ft-lbs, which has been moved from 11500 to lớn 9000rpm & power figures of 160hp at 11500rpm. Impressive stuff.
After driving 1200km straight to arrive sầu at the launch at midnight (don’t ask, you will only nod & sigh – it was an airline fail), và with the bar closed, I woke without hangover. Just as well, as I needed all the focus I could khổng lồ control myself on the MT-10. This is a bike that draws you in and makes you bad.
The top fairing is big và the side covers hide a third of that gorgeous engine. The oil cooler stands out và every time I look at the bike that is where my eyes are drawn. I get the theme and it clearly goes with the other MT bikes but somehow misses the mark for me that the MT-07 và MT-09 hit so well – that RD LC Yamaha family, fun but practical, hoon, somehow familiar feel. It’s not there for me, at least from a side view. It does however fit the FZ family well.
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I hop on and things change. The xe đạp looks snnphutho.vnpletely different & feels Yamaha familiar. There are no bits hanging off that you can see, only clean lines và neat bodywork plus the triông xã dash. So from a cockpit POV I give it a 10 but from any other angle it’s a seven from me. Of course quality is typical Yamaha high spec stuff so top marks there. Security is good too with the standard immobiliser. Now, the important thing – what’s the xe đạp lượt thích to ride?
Our thử nghiệm loop was brilliant & a top move by Yamaha when it came khổng lồ showcasing the versatility of the MT-10. It included everything from freeway cruising, which gave sầu me a chance khổng lồ kiểm tra the cruise control and highway snnphutho.vnfort, khổng lồ full noise cambered smooth blacktop và even some snotty bumpy loose roads where I could test the ABS, suspension & traction control to lớn their limits.
We were led by Yamaha Australia’s Marketing Manager, Sean Goldhawk, who knows how to lớn peddle – being an ex motorcycle journadanh sách, editor and publisher himself. The pace was fast but I had the opportunity lớn break away from time to time and push on a bit harder to find different limits.
The controls fall khổng lồ hvà well but some look bulky. The amount of stuff that has to lớn fit on a left switchblochồng these days is crazy. The dash itself is great & after spending a few minutes fiddling around I get the hang of it. Not too bad with just the three power modes, ABS & traction control plus cruise control and then the usual things a bike has.
Physically the bike feels lượt thích a large capacity naked & there is some static weight held high but overall a snnphutho.vnpact machine that is 5milimet shorter in wheelbase than the YZF-R1 & shares the same rake and trail. There is also plenty of adjustability on offer so set-up can be individualised with the suspension và lever position. I also notice just before I head off that the sidestvà is easy to lớn feel for & use thankfully as some nakedxe đạp stands are pains in the arse!
The big cross-plane four fires into life quickly with a single press of the starter button and settles inkhổng lồ a deep rumbling idle. It sounds mean, with a slight crack, and lumpy. It’s a tough sound that matches the looks. Nice… Operating temp is achieved quickly & the ride begins.
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The first thing I notice is the clutch action is super light and take up is progressive sầu. The gearbox, lượt thích the R1, is positive sầu but a firm shift down gears. On the way up I can’t snnphutho.vnpare them as the R1 has a quickshifter, something missed on this ultimate hoon machine and a feature that would take it to lớn that next level of awesomeness…
Still, upshifting is smooth và precise và I can’t tell any ratio differences between R1 & MT-10, I’d have sầu to lớn ride them back-to-baông xã on the same final gearing. Either way, the gearing and ratgame ios are fantastic và I would not change a thing. There is ample grunt & acceleration is crazy, yet freeway cruising at 4500rpm
110-120km/h is silky smooth and just humming along. The mirrors remain vibe không lấy phí at all times và there is good wind protection around the legs and knees for a naked. The airbox cover/tank sits high and I feel lượt thích I’m sitting in the xe đạp rather than on it, which is ace.
At general transport section speeds in Mode STD the fuelling is silky smooth, with a very svào yet controllable, tractable power curve sầu that seems to just feed quái dị torque endlessly lớn that fat rear S20. Mode B is super snappy & nasty and not quite right in my opinion, while A is a bit more aggro than STD with less initial snap that B, which was dubbed ‘beast’ mode on the ride.
The Yamaha press kit states the opposite for the modes A & B but the B mode is definitely the more agro one. However, around town I find STD is the best. I have TC mix to lớn the most intrusive sầu, cấp độ 3. This is where I would leave sầu the xe đạp if it was my daily rider. It’d work in all conditions.
We climb a bumpy narrow road, which is seriously sketchy so a great chạy thử of the suspension & agility of the MT-10. The pace is hot & it’s more like a motocross race I think khổng lồ myself as I brake, turn, gas, brake, turn, gas on the 10 – the TC working overtime not to mention the ABS. This is the kind of road that requires snnphutho.vnmitment và confidence in the mechanical grip of the xe đạp & the ability for the suspension to lớn keep the tyres on the ground.
There’s not a lot of feel on a road lượt thích this and the Yamaha is making an easy job of it. The electronics are helping, too. I would not push on this hard on a bike without traction control & ABS on this road. Both rider aids not only make my job easier, they also make the ride less risky.
Brake feel in these conditions is a tough one as I am slamming them on inkhổng lồ turns pretty hard – then firing the xe đạp off the corner. Power nguồn wise in this situation there is good initial bite but that is well damped so not khổng lồ cause sudden dive sầu & there is plenty of power there. Out the back the rear brake is a gem và as a rider who burns through rear brakes through corners I appreciate a good one.
The brake to lớn throttle transition in STD with TC on either 3 or 2 was smooth & had a nice predictable pickup for balancing the bike and getting momentum happening. That cross-plane engine is just so, so nice to lớn play with và it’s a case of piông chồng a gear, any gear, as there is endless torque on tap.
Wheelies between corners are all part of the fun. Overall after our first stop my notes highlight a really nice balanced chassis and a svào, linear engine that climbs to lớn a cracking top kết thúc.After a quiông xã lunch stop we headed off for the rest of the ride.
To say I’m impressed is a massive understatement as I start touching the ‘pegs down from corner to lớn corner in the higher gears on the MT-10. The front-kết thúc is so planted I feel I can vị anything & feedbaông chồng is first rate. The R1 genes are showing và the ride is incredible. The suspension, still on stochồng settings, is brilliant under these conditions of being progressively loaded then unloaded, then loaded again from one big sweeper khổng lồ the next, always maintaining chassis balance.
Brake feel is intimate & keeping the front tyre on edge with a bit of safety margin up the sleeve sầu is made easy with this brilliant front-over package. At the baông chồng the rear is super stable & there are no signs of fade as we push on. Ground clearance is the limiting factor but the ‘pegs touch just at the right time và I would not raise them at all. They are a great indicator & messenger – don’t crank it over any further!
The MT-10 has stable yet sharp initial turn, steers brilliantly on or off the brakes, then is really nice và progressive through khổng lồ full lean angle, where line can happily be modified with the simple nudge of the ‘bar and push on a peg. Impressive stuff and I prefer it lớn the YZF-R1 although obviously this is the street and the R1 would eat it at the trachồng.
After some more frantic testing I follow the rest of the crew baông chồng lớn the hotel, where we mô tả a few beers and our thoughts on the MT-10. There are a lot of smiles và that is always a good sign that the job has been done right & the xe đạp must be a good one.
If you are in the market for a naked sports that could be an extremely versatile motorcycle to lớn own, get lớn your local Yamaha dealer & take the MT-10 for a decent, proper test ride.
