Yamaha YZF-R15

A quick, communicative and involving motorcycle that also doubles up as an effective learning tool

- Rishabh Bhaskar

Circa 2008. Yamaha India, launched the YZF-R15, a true blue supersport that brought an interesting and involving flavour for a maturing market. It went on to win accolades and rave reviews whilst re-establishing Yamaha as a performance-oriented brand. A decade later the Yamaha YZF-R15 Version 3.0, an all-new motorcycle, promises to elevate the R15 experience to a whole new level.

Design and build

Remember the 1:18 scale models by Maisto? Well, that, in a nutshell, is what the R15 looks like, a scaled-down version of the Yamaha YZF-R1 and R6. Every detail looks similar, from the front fairing to the floating tail section and the vertical LED tail lamp. My favourite angle, however, is when the bike is viewed head-on. The sleek LED headlamps on either side of the faux air duct make the bike appear sinister. It is the most proportionate looking YZF- R15 to date, and probably the best looking as well.

That said, the build quality is not up to the high standards that Yamaha themselves have set. The plastic quality feels half a notch below, the ugly weld spots are an eyesore and the stitching on the test bike’s seat was giving away, with barely 700km on the odo. It’s an area I wish Yamaha had paid closer attention to.

Ergonomics