My new toy...Yamaha MT-01

I have named the bike, the BEAST...and I luv it!!

My original choices for bikes were as follows:

Suzuki Bandit 1200S/1250S...good do it all bike, comfort, power and reliable...
Suzuki Boulevard M90...cool looks and great sound...
Suzuki DL1000 V-Strom...has the power and great comfort with a huge fuel tank for great range, but odd looking...

then I found the Yamaha MT-01...it had the comfort and power of the Bandit, the cool sound and looks of the M90...but it had a smallish tank @ 15L and a big engine @ 1670cc, not the best combo for touring...oh yeah, and it's naked...no wind/weather protection at all...it vibrated like a mad machine and the mirrors were no better than my existing bike (read kinda sucky...good view of your arms)...there is no, and I mean NO under seat storage and the pillion pegs are sourced from the R1 (knees level with ear lobes)...but you get on and it fits like old slippers...nice wide seat (almost cruiser like)...firing it up is like an event, exploding to life...not straight pipe loud, but you know I'm there...the brakes and suspension is sport bike spec, so it stops and turns really, really well...

Then you start to let out the clutch...there is enough torque off idle that you don't really need to use the throttle to get moving, so manouvering isn't as bad...(still a heavy bike @ 570ish lbs wet)...the hardest thing to get used to is the low redline... @ 5500rpm the rev limitter steps in, so you have to shift quickly...I'm used to my commuter bike with a redline @ 11,000rpm, so there is a learning curve there...but it has tall gearing so you are going faster than you realize quite quickly...

Once under way, the weight is noticable...turn in isn't the same as the 420lbs bike I'm used to, but it is a lot more stable...and the suspension doesn't bottom out all the time like the "little" bike...out on the open road the bike is stable, but because of the nakedness you get jostled around a bit...more on that later...now we get to talk about the good part...the engine...there isn't a lot of power (90Hp), but the torque is unbelievable (110ft-lbs)...top gear roll on is enough to pass most traffic, but if you drop a gear and twist...your gone (just remember to shift around 5000rpm...or you run into the rev limitter :ddog)...I still haven't figured out the sweet spot for riding rpm...my last tank I averaged 7L/100kms...not great, about 34mpg US...I may be playing with the torque a little too often ...

Here is a pic of the bike on my first ride...down to Cochrane from Sylvan Lake to show off the new toy and go for a ride...



When I got home from that ride...I realized that I needed two things for the bike...a center stand (SW Motec makes one...will order later) and a windshield...I had one on my GS500, but I couldn't get it to fit the same way on the MT-01...but I played with the mounting brackets a little, moved the clutch over a little and it fit...

Now I'm in the process of selling the GS500, and putting gas in the tank of the MT-01...

Here's a pic of the two bikes together...then a couple of the MT-01 with the windshield...






I hope you enjoyed the write up and pics...I know I did...

Later.

awesome!

The MT-01 is a beast.

Sweet.
Nasty rumble to these bikes.
A sound clip would be nice!

A guy at my office rides one of these. He jests it is the slowest bike he's ever owned. There's too much torque; any time he tries to go fast he just ends up lighting up the back wheel

I love the look of these bikes. Massive motor, a pair of wheels, and a rider. Nothing else needed, nothing else given.

Congrates on the fun (and fairly unique) toy.

What is the size of the tank on that bike?

Jim

PS Not my style, but definitely a raw quality about it!

If you have to ask, then you don't get it. That's Harley code for "we don't know and we don't care". I know, this is not a Harley but the saying kind of fits. The tank is pretty small and no doubt provides a fairly short range on the bike. Probably doesn't matter a wit to the owners.

here:

And I kind of agree with andoulli - if your concern is range, then this bike is probably not for you.

To the OP: congrats. That bike is uber cool. A cruiser with tons of torque that handles like a sport bike. Not for everyone I know, but still cool. You've picked up a new left over?

No need to be defensive, I was asking a simple question, not making a judgement.

This bike is obviously not designed as a touring bike, so tank size isn't a big deal. I just noted that visually it doesn't appear to have a lot of room for much gas and was curious.

I misread this as the M90 had the small tank!

Jim

That bike rocks! Shame we never got that here...

Oh, great, as if I don't have enough problems, now I am defensive about a bike I don't even own.

it's not a Goldwing... 4 gallons is plenty for a naked brut... any bigger and then we would complain how heavy it is...

Very cool bike. It exudes character! I dig it.

Cool, I like it

There are a lot of things to not like about the bike, and fuel range is one of them...I ran out of fuel on the way home yesterday...:huh

I got 214kms out of the tank (133miles)...luckily it died just as I was turning into the gas station...if you're gonna run out, that's the spot...

I was a little surprised at how soon it ran out...most guys I talk to get around 220kms (138miles) before the low fuel light, mine came on at 170kms (106miles)...I shouldn't be too surprised, most cruisers are in that range ish...I must be playing with the torque a little too much...

I changed the tune on the PCIII and with the windscreen added, it should get a little better...it would be nice to be able to hit 200kms before low fuel warning (125miles)...we'll see...

Thanks for the positive feedback...some get it and some don't...it isn't a bike for everyone, but I'm into muscle cars so it makes sense to me...

I will attach a sound clip tonight...I forgot to last night and can't from work...damn censors...:fyyff

Later.

Man, that's a cool looking bike!! Great stuff to work with, I'd toss that headlight and have to come up with an exhaust that is more passenger friendly.

How many miles are on it? I had a Roadstar Warrior (basically the same engine) which got awful mileage until about 10,000 miles and then it shot up to about 55mpg. I rode that thing hard, never had an issue with the engine but couldn't stand the riding position. I would have been much happier with the MT-01.

It is just under that...15,500kms ish (9700miles ish)...but I was just on the MT-01 forum and the guys are telling me that I should remove the programmer until I do exhaust and intake, otherwise the stock program is better...no quite sure why there would be a programmer in it if there were not mods done?? But I'm pretty sure that is the only mod to the bike...so I'll pull it out until I decide to change parts...

I'm actually amazed at how comfortable the bike is...very standard riding position and nice wide seat...

I luv this thing!!

Later.

I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the Mt-01 but his character is amazing. I mean the sound of this beast (I think you did find the right name for this machine) is breathtaking. It's a cruzing machine and your windshield work makes it look very nice! As I said, not a fan of it but your windshield makes it good looking ) should show it to Yamha, think they'll like your solution

I'd love to ride one of those things, I have a Warrior with the same engine, I'd like to try it in a different type of bike.

My mileage varies a lot with how I ride the bike, I have a power commander, pipes and open air filters, if I ride it without care for mileage it gets about 30 mpg. If I ride conservatively I can get 45 mpg. But I love to grab big handfuls of throttle and feel the torque, so....