13 Awesome Yamahas We’d Love To Ride

Yamaha Motor Company was established in 1955 and has grown into one of the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturers.

Over the years, Yamaha’s factories have pumped out some legendary models in practically every segment.

It was tough picking just 13 models we’d love to swing a leg over, but we’ve managed to include some cruisers, retro-style bikes, homologation specials, naked bikes, and sportbikes built for road use.

Yamaha V-Max

Yamaha introduced the legendary V-Max in 1985. While this muscle cruiser didn’t take well to corners, it would leave everything in its dust when going in a straight line.

Squeezing out 140 horsepower from the 1,198cc V-four engine was no small feat, and it resulted in a 160 mph top speed. Cruiser bikes with that kind of performance didn’t become “normal” until recently. For its second generation, Yamaha took things even further as the engine grew to 1,679cc, sending a whopping 173 horsepower to the rear wheel.

Yamaha FZR 750RR (OW-01)

Yamaha had to create a homologation special to compete against the Honda RC30 and Bimota YB4 in the World Superbike Championship. They made 1,000 FZR 750RRs, which sold for more than double the cost of the FZR10000R road bike.

That’s a small price to pay for what’s essentially a factory race bike, though. Because that’s what it was. The OW-01 FZR 750RR may have had lights and mirrors, but those were more of an afterthought; it was designed from the ground up to be a racing machine. Its four-cylinder, four-stroke 749cc engine produced 121 horsepower, which gave it a 160 mph top speed.

Yamaha RD500LC

The 1984 Yamaha RD500LC was an 88-horsepower 500cc V4 two-stroke GP racer for the road. Yamaha had a lot of success in GP racing in the ‘70s and ‘80s, so they figured a road-going replica of the actual racebike would probably be a hit with consumers. 

They were right, and the RD500LC (Race Developed 500cc Liquid Cooled motorcycle) became such a success that Suzuki and Honda followed suit the next year with the RG500 Gamma and NSR400, respectively.

Yamaha YZF-R6

Yamaha introduced the YZF-R6 in 1999 as a sportier alternative to the good but rather docile YZF600R Thundercat. The R6 was like a smaller R1, and with 120 horsepower, it immediately showed the segment it was the boss.

Over the years, the R6 kept getting more track-focused, making it increasingly uncomfortable to ride on the road. In 2021, Yamaha limited sales to race-only specification in most global markets. Our favorite version is the R6 introduced in 2006 — especially in white and red.

Yamaha YZF-R1

No manufacturers really had a response to Honda’s astonishing Fireblade that arrived in the 1990s. The Yamaha R1 was the manufacturer’s first bike that could really compete with. Actually, Yamaha did better than that; they went on to dominate the superbike market with the R1.

This bike was pure genius. Its compact 20-valve engine and transmission design gave it the size and weight you’d expect from a 600cc sportbike, and it handled like a 750.

Yamaha YZF-R7 OW-02

Yamaha is no stranger to homologation specials, and the 1999 YZF-R7 OW-02 is one of their best.  They only built 500, with 50 of them going to the U.S. Getting your hands on one is nigh-on impossible and certainly won’t be cheap.

In its base form, the engine delivered 106 horsepower, but Yamaha offered a race kit, and power immediately shot up to 135 wild stallions — enough to leave liter bikes in its dust.

Yamaha R7

Today’s Yamaha R7 shouldn’t be confused with the 25-year-old homologation special. The modern R7 is a middleweight bike, and although its geometry is similar to that of the R6, it only has a 73-horsepower parallel-twin engine.

It’s not all about power, however, as this is one of the most fun and affordable bikes available right now. Ride it on a twisty road, and you’ll see what we mean.

Yamaha SR400

The Yamaha SR400 was in production from 1978 to 2021, which proves how great this single-cylinder, air-cooled, retro-style bike was. Well, actually, it wasn’t really retro, as it was a genuinely old design that received some updates over the years.

It’s fun to ride in standard form, but there’s an absolutely mahoosive aftermarket out there, so it’s possible to turn the humble SR400 into a proper British Norton café racer lookalike.

Yamaha XSR900 GP

Motorcycle enthusiasts have been waiting for a bike like the Yamaha XSR900 GP for what seems like forever. It has received glowing reviews thanks to its retro design that evokes memories of the golden era of GP racing combined with modern tech.

Whereas the FZR and RD500LC we mentioned earlier are only available to those with seriously deep pockets, the brand-new XSR900 GP offers the same style for sensible money. It also comes with the reliability one would expect from a modern bike.

Yamaha Bolt R-Spec

When Yamaha created the Bolt, they pretty much made a better version of the Harley-Davidson Sportster. 

There’s no denying that Yamaha was clearly inspired by the iconic entry-level Harley when designing the Bolt. However, the Bolt R-Spec offers better ride quality than the now-discontinued Sportster, and produces more power than the 1200cc American bike. However, it’s still not a Harley.

Yamaha RD350LC

Long after the other Japanese bike manufacturers had moved on to four-stroke bikes, Yamaha continued to churn out old-school two-stroke-powered performance road bikes.

The RD350LC produced a fairly impressive 59 horsepower. Its wet weight was only 328 lbs, making it a rapid bike. Unfortunately, chassis technology lagged a bit behind, so it didn’t exactly offer world-class handling.

Yamaha MT-09

The Yamaha MT-09 has been the talk of the town on the naked bike market for a decade already. With an all-new, liquid-cooled, four-stroke triple in a lightweight package, it received rave reviews in the motorcycle press.

After receiving updates in 2017 and 2020, the current MT-09 is better than ever. Its new 890cc engine churns out around 115 horsepower, which is plenty for everyday use.

Yamaha MT-10

Whereas the Yamaha MT-07 and MT-09 were all-new models, the MT-10 is practically just an R1 stripped of its fairings. 

It’s one of the most aggressive-looking Transformer-styled motorcycles on the market, and it packs a mean punch to back it up. The R1’s cross-plane crankshaft engine has been re-tuned to deliver 160 horsepower and tons of low-to-mid-range torque, making it a seriously fast naked bike.