TRACK MATE!

The race track is a place for bikes with big muscles, generally with motors as big as 800-900cc ruling the circuits.

So at first it felt odd to be seated on a 155cc bike in the pit lane. Sure the new Yamaha YZF R15 v3.0 looks like a thoroughbred racer but does it move like one? There was only one way to find out and that was to go a few laps around the Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT), in Chennai under the burning hot sun.

DESIGN, STYLING AND FEATURES

Yamaha has managed to top the looks of the R15 v2.0. The new R15 draws a lot of inspiration from the R1. This is most evident at the front as the twin headlamps have become sleeker and now get LED lights in place of halogen bulbs. There is a triangular fake air vent between them and even the nice big wind screen is just like the one found on R1. The fuel tank looks sharper and gets gills just above the fuel fill cap. Even the LED tail-lamp has become slimmer and looks better. The pillion seat has been pushed down a little while the rider seat height has gone from 800mm to 815mm. While not immediately evident, the clip-on bars are slightly lower and the foot pegs pushed back. All of this makes for a very aggressive riding position and leaning in is fairly easy. However, I am not too sure if this aggressive position will make for a comfortable ride in the city.