Yamaha has unveiled the new MT-10 flagship model at this week’s EICMA motorcycle show.
The MT family has been at the top of the sales charts all over Europe and Yamaha says its new one-litre bike has the potential to challenge all comers in the naked bike class.
Featuring aggressive mass forward styling with an ultra-short 1400 mm wheelbase, the MT-10 is powered by an engine developed directly from the latest YZF-R1’s 998cc in line 4-cylinder crossplane unit.
For day to day street usage, the engine features a number of technical changes that are designed to deliver strong low to mid speed torque, including newly designed intake, exhaust and fuelling systems, as well as an optimised crank balance.
Yamaha engineers say a number of model-specific settings have also been adopted in order to enhance the connected feeling between the throttle and the rear wheel that is associated with the crossplane design.
The engine has three running modes as well as a 3-mode traction control system that can be deactivated if required. There’s also an A&S clutch and cruise control that can be activated in 4th, 5th and 6th gears between 31 mph and 112 mph.
Like the engine, both the chassis and suspension are also based on the latest generation YZF-R1. While the latter is a full-on supersport bike, the MT-10 is geared for all round daily usage and the Deltabox frame therefore gets a revised strength/rigidity balance.
For suspension, KYB upside down cartridge forks with 43 mm tubes and 120 mm of travel feature at the front. At the rear end the bike is equipped with the YZF-R1-type upward truss type swingarm that pivots close to the machine’s centre. The extra-long aluminium swingarm operates a KYB rear shock through a bottom link Monocross system.
In terms of stopping power, the MT-10 is fitted with dual 320 mm front discs that feature radial-mount 4-pot opposed piston callipers with sintered pads. A 220 mm disc is fitted at the rear, while ABS comes as standard too.
The new bike is scheduled to hit the market in May 2016.
Source: Yamaha
