Teching it to the Max

Yamaha has updated its tech-rich scooter for 2022

- Mikko Nieminen

Yamaha TMAX Tech Max

The TMAX has been in Yamaha’s range since 2001, and in that time it has sold 350,000 units worldwide. Unsurprisingly, 85 per cent of those were sold in Europe, mostly in France, Italy and Spain, but there is also a following for the scoot in the UK.

For 2022 the TMAX gets updated, and the latest incarnation is the eighth generation of the model. This time the Japanese factory has been working on the scooter for three years, and feels confident that it has been improved in many ways.

Only the Tech Max version of the TMAX will be sold in the UK, but given that the vast majority of the units sold so far had been the Tech Max variants, that’s neither a surprise to anyone or a problem for Yamaha.

To see what the key selling points of the new model are, and more importantly, how it rides, we took one for a spin in Valencia.

What is it?

There are a few key characteristics of the target customer for the TMAX that Yamaha considered when the latest version was conceived. The customers are likely to be males of around 35-45 years old, most of whom are repeat customers looking for a high-end scooter for both commuting and weekend trips. The sum total of all that is a customer who wants a top-quality scooter, and crucially, is willing to pay for it. This is key as the TMAX Tech Max has a pretty hefty price tag of £12,500. Sure enough, you get a lot of tech, refinement and sporty character for the money, but it’s not a budget option by a long shot.