IT WAS IN 2015 THAT THE YZF-R3 was first launched in India. It marked an important blip in the enthusiasts' timeline because it was a motorcycle that bridged the gap between beginner-level sport machines and the more serious stuff. It was a friendly yet fast motorcycle that offered the thrill a rider expected without being too demanding. Emission norms removed it from our reach for a while. Now, in 2023, as it makes a comeback, Yamaha took us to Thailand for a three-day tour so we could properly experience all that the latest R3 has to offer.
We rode 700-plus kilometres around northern Thailand's beautiful countryside and towns. Somehow, each corner unfolded before us a landscape that was more magical than the previous one. Even when faced with such stiff competition, the R3 stood out. Some of us may be familiar with the previous model but Yamaha have given the latest R3 a completely new front end. The LED headlights are separated by an air duct and the whole thing is placed in an aggressively shaped cowl. The top extends in a smooth arc to accommodate a bubble-type windscreen. Below the cowl, a new upside-down (USD) fork steals the show. The fairing has been reworked to accommodate the front cowl and it is a significantly more seamless design than before. The 14-litre fueltank is the last in the list of aesthetic changes and the most shapely of them all. It flows into the rider's seat quite nicely and its contours immediately make one feel like they are astride a much larger machine.
From the seat onwards till the end of the motorcycle, nothing has changed compared to the previous iteration. However, it is a timeless design and does not feel out of place with the latest styling changes. As an owner of a 2016 R3, even I am hard pressed to pick a favourite between the two. Standing on 17-inch wheels, all the proportions look just right and as before, we do get blue wheels with the blue R3.
Denne historien er fra January 2024-utgaven av Bike India.
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Denne historien er fra January 2024-utgaven av Bike India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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BMW F 450 GS Concept
EICMA 2024 IS GENERALLY NIRVANA FOR MOTORCYCLE ENTHUSIASTS as they're treated to plenty of new machines from a number of manufacturers. BMW Motorrad are one of them.
Toprak is the 2024 World Champion
Toprak Razgatlioglu took home his second World Superbike Championship (WSBK) title after a good battle with the Italian rookie, Nicolo Bulega of Ducati.
A Toprak Sandwich
The battle for the title heated up as Toprak Razgatlioglu won Race One and Race Two while Nicolo Bulega won the Superpole Race in Estoril, the penultimate round of the 2024 World Superbike Championship (WSBK) season.
Navaneeth Wins Double
Navaneeth Kumar S, Rohan R, and Yogesh P were the winners in the second round of the J K Tyre Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup INDIAN RACING
Ross Branch and Team Hero MotoSports are the new FIM World Rally-raid Champions
TEAM HERO MOTOSPORTS was founded in 2016 and Ross Branch joined in 2022. Since then, he has been a Hero MotoSports rider and their years of toil have borne a particularly sweet fruit: Ross Branch and Hero MotoSports are now the FIM World Rally-raid Champions.
The Rise of a New 'Rad'
Reise Moto invited us to the COASTT High Performance Centre in Coimbatore to experience their all-new radial road tyres, the traceRads.
Feels Like Graduation
The third and final round of the TVS Young Media Racer Programme (YMRP) saw us take P2 in the race and P3 in the overall championship. Here is how it went off
In the Shadow of the Colossus
TVS have given the base Jupiter a complete overhaul, including a new engine. We had checked it out on a closed course back in August. This time we let it loose on the urban jungle and observed if it could survive there
Pay Win
THE ATHER RIZTA WAS LAUNCHED TO much fanfare in April this year and then we got to sample it for a short burst in May.
Agile and Aggressive
The Kawasaki KLX 230 is a superbly built dual-sport that has the ability to take on some big hitters in our market. We hopped on it for a while and kicked up some dirt at the Prodirt Adventure Park.
