Yamaha R15..

I have been waiting to test ride the very much hyped Yamaha R15 for sometime now. During the initial period the Yamaha Dealers weren't giving test rides of the R15. But today evening when my friend and blog regular, Sajal came down to visit me.. we decided to visit the Yamaha Dealer here at Gurgaon (Pick Up Yamaha, Sushant Lok-1) and see if we could at least get the test ride of the FZ16 if not the R15.

The Yamaha R15 has given me a taste of how a Proper Sports Motorcycle should behave..

Such a capable chassis needs few more extra horses to scare the hell out of someone like me..

But this time we were in for a pleasant surprise.. the Yamaha Dealer at Gurgaon not only was providing test rides for the FZ16 but also had an R15 for Test Rides..!!

Posted below is the brief report/review of the test ride experience of the Yamaha R15...

Sajal on the Yamaha R15

I'll keep it short and simple this time and go straight to the "Likes" and the "Dislikes" of the bike..

R15: (Likes)

• Front Design of the bike:
  
  Makes it look like a Yamaha R1 cousin and is easily one of the "Unique Selling Points" among the current crop of production bikes sold in India. The view of the full fairing from the riding position gives the rider a feeling of riding a proper sports bike and to the onlookers it gives a visual cue of a fast bike even at standstill.

• HANDLING..!!
  
  I have read a lot about the excellent handling of the R15.. but now after the test ride I'll have to admit that the best thing about the R15 is its Stable Handling. Currently no other production bike in India can match up with the handling capabilities of the R15.. Period..!!
• Riding Position:
  
  The riding position of the R15 is the sportiest in the country.

R15: (Dislikes)

• Rear Design of the bike:
  
  Unlike the front portion, the rear end doesn't quite gel with the styling.. Even if the rear tyre has more than enough grip under all situations, a wider tyre would have given the rear end much more muscle and character.. doesn't matter even if it was just cosmetic.

• Lack of Low End Torque
  
  One has to rev the R15's engine the extract the best out its liquid cooled engine. It might be a good thing for racing around race tracks or for fast rides on the highways.. but it also means that in congested traffic conditions one will often have to down shift just to stay in the meaty rev range.
• Why not a 20 plus bhp engine..??
  
  Call me a "Nutcase" if you will.. but the fact remains that "While Riding the R15, I wasn't scared"..!! The frame of the R15 is so well balanced and the handling so stable that even when given the stick the R15 doesn't lose its poise.. and remains quite err.. "Docile" (also the same "personal" reason why I wasn't that impressed with the Avenger 200 DTS-i).
  
  According to me such a capable chassis needs few more extra horses to scare the hell out of someone like me.. Specially is someone is realy to shell out 1 Lakh (1,00,000) Rupees for that bike. Never mind if one has to bring in the extra "cc's (cubic capacities) if required.
  
  According to me, it was this particular "Fear Factor" which made the RD350 and the RX100 such cult bikes.

Overall I was quite impressed with the Yamaha R15.. it has given me a taste of how a Proper Sports Motorcycle should behave.