[TusharK]

Yamaha has showcased the MT-09 SP streetfighter at the ongoing Bharat Mobility Expo.



The Yamaha MT-09 SP is based on a lightweight aluminium frame suspended by a 41 mm USD fork at the front and a mono-shock at the rear. Braking is handled by dual 298 mm discs at the front and a 245 mm disc at the rear.



The MT-09 SP is powered by an 890cc, inline 3-cylinder engine that produces 117 BHP @ 10,000 rpm and 93 Nm @ 7,000 rpm. The engine is paired with a 6-speed gearbox.



The Y-AMT version of the MT-09 SP doesn’t get a clutch lever. Instead, the bike relies on an actuator to operate the gears based on throttle input, lean angle, etc. The bike featured at Auto Expo 2025, though, is the 6-speed manual version.



The latest iteration of the MT-09 SP comes with a sport bi-functional LED headlamp and minimal bodywork. It has a 2-piece stepped seat and a TFT colour display.



Riders can choose from three riding modes: Sport, Street and Rain. Safety features include a 6-axis IMU with Back Slip Regulator, traction control, slide control system and a front wheel lift control system.

[no_fear]

The bike in the pics is the SP variant and not base. I am not sure MT-09SP is scheduled for launch in India.

[TusharK]

Yamaha R7 & MT-09 SP to be launched by mid-2025

Yamaha recently showcased its upcoming big bike range at Bharat Mobility Expo. Among the bikes presented at the event were the Yamaha R7 and MT-09 SP, which are expected to be launched in India by mid-2025.



The Yamaha R7 is a supersport based on the CP2 platform, which has the same engine as the MT-07. It is a 689cc, twin-cylinder unit that puts out 72 BHP @ 8,750 rpm and 67 Nm @ 6,500 rpm.

In India, the R7 will compete with the Kawasaki Ninja 650 and Honda CBR650R.



The MT-09 SP is a middleweight streetfighter powered by an 890cc, inline 3-cylinder engine that produces 117 BHP @ 10,000 rpm and 93 Nm @ 7,000 rpm. The engine is paired with a 6-speed gearbox.

Yamaha showcased the SP variant at the Bharat Mobility Expo. This variant comes equipped with an adjustable KYB front fork, Ohlins rear mono-shock, and Brembo Stylema brake calipers.

Source: Autocar India

Link to Team-BHP News

[hikozaru]

Ah, the R7. One of the last completely manual bikes. My wallet is in huge danger if this or the CBR600RR shows up on Indian shores at a competitive price. Will be a tough sell in India against the feature laden striple or the Z900.

[Entsurgeon]

Originally Posted by TusharK

The Yamaha R7 is a supersport based on the CP2 platform, which has the same engine as the MT-07. It is a 689cc, twin-cylinder unit that puts out 72 BHP @ 8,750 rpm and 67 Nm @ 6,500 rpm.

In India, the R7 will compete with the Kawasaki Ninja 650 and Honda CBR650R.

Did I read 72 bhp? Thats zx4RR territory.

Originally Posted by hikozaru

Ah, the R7. One of the last completely manual bikes. My wallet is in huge danger if this or the CBR600RR shows up on Indian shores at a competitive price. Will be a tough sell in India against the feature laden striple or the Z900.

Tough sell against the above? I reckon its not even in the same performance category.

[hikozaru]

Originally Posted by Entsurgeon

Did I read 72 bhp? Thats zx4RR territory.


Tough sell against the above? I reckon its not even in the same performance category.

Some of us don't care that it is only 72hp. It is blisteringly fast on our B roads and still really fast for the tracks down south. R7 is peak rider engagement in today's world.

Throughout its rev range it keeps up with a striple, ZX4RR and a 600RR, 650R. Revving to 12-14-16k rpm even with a stock exhaust is a sure fire way to get the police on your back in the city, dogs jumping out on you on B roads, scaring the pants out of wildlife in forest areas.

I don't want to lug around a heavy 200kg+ bike like the Z900, 650R in the parking lot. R7 has a better aftermarket than all of them. The only main problem with the R7 is the Yamaha tax makes it quite expensive even outside India and from a purely VFM perspective it is hard to beat the striple and only that. It is a decent buy at ~7L ex showroom.

[nkrishnap]

Typical of Yamaha, showcases the products, but launches nothing. The cost being primary reason, it will be priced high and will dead of arrival.

Most of these products from Yamaha are solely for display purposes in India.

[LiamJose]

Sometimes I wonder why would these companies go with twins instead of screamers. The fact is we don't have a sports-tourer with a 4-cylinder middle weight. 2 cylinders with 270 degree sounds pretty good but they aren't as refined as the 4 cylinders and most importantly can't really go at low speeds without lugging its engine, especially in top gear.

[b16h22]

Originally Posted by LiamJose

Sometimes I wonder why would these companies go with twins instead of screamers. The fact is we don't have a sports-tourer with a 4-cylinder middle weight. 2 cylinders with 270 degree sounds pretty good but they aren't as refined as the 4 cylinders and most importantly can't really go at low speeds without lugging its engine, especially in top gear.

MT09 is a triple FYI. We have the CBR650r which is a sports tourer with a 650 i4. The reason for not having many i4s in the middleweight category is cost and weight. A CBR650r is the heaviest among the 650-700 sports bikes and by a decent margin. R7 is a lightweight supersports and it is made to compete in the supertwins class of racing. The R7/MT07/T7 engine (CP2) is considered one of the finest engines of the last decade. Btw, have no idea why someone would want to lug a sportsbike engine even if it is a tractable one. It is a bad practice and always use the revs.

[Deepakea83]

Since the YZF-R7 is going to be a CBU from Japan (unlike from Indonesia or Thailand), it should cost close to ₹10 lakhs ex-showroom.
Could be different if India Yamaha Motor decides to price it very competitively.

[doga]

Originally Posted by b16h22

The reason for not having many i4s in the middleweight category is cost and weight. A CBR650r is the heaviest among the 650-700 sports bikes and by a decent margin.

It's cost only really. They can be made light but then cost would escalate!

The erstwhile CBR600f4i, which the CBR650f is the spiritual successor of (one may argue that the CBR600RR is the true successor of the f4i) weighed around 190kg wet. The CBR650f uses a lousier steel frame whereas the f4i had a proper twin spar aluminum frame.

Totally agree about the of the CP2 engine, these bikes have been the most popular and best-selling big bikes for Yamaha in recent times.

[b16h22]

Originally Posted by doga

It's cost only really. They can be made light but then cost would escalate!

The erstwhile CBR600f4i, which the CBR650f is the spiritual successor of (one may argue that the CBR600RR is the true successor of the f4i) weighed around 190kg wet. The CBR650f uses a lousier steel frame whereas the f4i had a proper twin spar aluminum frame.

Totally agree about the of the CP2 engine, these bikes have been the most popular and best-selling big bikes for Yamaha in recent times.

Since this is the middleweight and not the supersports 600 end of the category, cost is the single biggest factor and it's not just the frame that's making the 650F/R heavier than the old F4i. The bikes have so much extra stuff on them compared to a late 90s or early 2000s middleweight. Emissions & electronics are a necessary evil.

Coming to R7, it's an upgrade considering the usual 650cc suspects used to be 180 degree twins like the Ninja 650R. A 270 degree is an upgrade imo. It's also the versatility of the 270 degree layout that's pushing all manufacturers to it. You can make a naked, a sportsbike and an ADV with a single mill. It's one of the best things that happened to the affordable end of the motorcycling spectrum.

I guess we motorcyclists are being a bit too greedy when the cars have pretty much moved on to i4s, i3s and EV powertrains due to pressure from the Governments. We are currently flying under the radar and should be grateful that we still get to ride ICE motorcycles.

[doga]

Originally Posted by b16h22

Since this is the middleweight and not the supersports 600 end of the category, cost is the single biggest factor and it's not just the frame that's making the 650F/R heavier than the old F4i. The bikes have so much extra stuff on them compared to a late 90s or early 2000s middleweight. Emissions & electronics are a necessary evil.

Of course, the frame is not the only factor, you are right. The ABS module is quite heavy as is the cat system these days which have getting enormous with every passing year.

[Entsurgeon]

Originally Posted by hikozaru

Some of us don't care that it is only 72hp. It is blisteringly fast on our B roads and still really fast for the tracks down south. R7 is peak rider engagement in today's world.

Throughout its rev range it keeps up with a striple, ZX4RR and a 600RR, 650R. Revving to 12-14-16k rpm even with a stock exhaust is a sure fire way to get the police on your back in the city, dogs jumping out on you on B roads, scaring the pants out of wildlife in forest areas.

I don't want to lug around a heavy 200kg+ bike like the Z900, 650R in the parking lot. R7 has a better aftermarket than all of them.

I couldn't help but feel nostalgic remembering my teen age on reading your post.
Back then, I used to go gaga over any and every performance bike that I read about. Back then, with zero experience of a superbike, everything used to be held at equally high pedestal by a naive me.
Now most of us don't care if its a 72 bhp bike. True. But there are other things that people do.
Except for z900, everything else is within few kgs and sub-200 in weight on kerb. She herself is 188kgs. Not a night and day difference. Not undermining her but everything else about B roads, cops and dogs that you mention applies even to a R15 and ktm 190.
And no, being two Bike lengths behind a STriple and Zee within first 3 seconds of launch isn't what one would call keeping up but I agree, street riding is not a Race.
On tight tracks down south, she would sure be fun. I don't doubt that. But so would be every other bike we are talking about.
Performance-wise, she can marginally outdo N650, match CBR 650R and equal a ZX-4R. The last two are full blown inline fours that find favor with lots of riders for that addicting sound. Twin cylinder Ninja is at least 30% cheaper. Similarly priced STriple and Z900 definitely much faster and slightly quicker.
I couldn't understand the meaning of having better aftermarket though. Also, I think mentioning a 600rr here was a typo. At 7 Lakhs ex showroom, this twin cylinder would be the best thing to happen this year. Lets keep our fingers crossed.

[hikozaru]

Originally Posted by Entsurgeon

I couldn't help but feel nostalgic remembering my teen age on reading your post.
Back then, I used to go gaga over any and every performance bike that I read about. Back then, with zero experience of a superbike, everything used to be held at equally high pedestal by a naive me.
Now most of us don't care if its a 72 bhp bike. True. But there are other things that people do.
Except for z900, everything else is within few kgs and sub-200 in weight on kerb. She herself is 188kgs. Not a night and day difference. Not undermining her but everything else about B roads, cops and dogs that you mention applies even to a R15 and ktm 190.
And no, being two Bike lengths behind a STriple and Zee within first 3 seconds of launch isn't what one would call keeping up but I agree, street riding is not a Race.
On tight tracks down south, she would sure be fun. I don't doubt that. But so would be every other bike we are talking about.
Performance-wise, she can marginally outdo N650, match CBR 650R and equal a ZX-4R. The last two are full blown inline fours that find favor with lots of riders for that addicting sound. Twin cylinder Ninja is at least 30% cheaper. Similarly priced STriple and Z900 definitely much faster and slightly quicker.
I couldn't understand the meaning of having better aftermarket though. Also, I think mentioning a 600rr here was a typo. At 7 Lakhs ex showroom, this twin cylinder would be the best thing to happen this year. Lets keep our fingers crossed.

I agree the R7 is not a good deal but it is a phenomenal bike. Perhaps, it is down to where I am in life, I see people running circles around me at tracks. 10s faster on a R15 vs me on a Duke 390 is no joke. If anything, I regret that I did not save some monies and get a used R15, but I got the duke anyway for its overtaking power. I'd feel the same way if I got a striple now.

Ninja 650 is a joke of a bike, rubbish ground clearance, suspension, brakes, engine. Same with a CBR650R. If I wanted a 4 cylinder Honda with minimal vibes for touring, I'd get a Honda Amaze. I also used to like these two bikes until I rode it. Z900 is probably a decent bike but the striple has my mind and heart.

Aftermarket is huge for outlier people like me. Lighter or stiffer springs in suspension makes a world of difference. I hate japanese sportbike ergos with cramped clipons (which the R7 also has to be fair). Same with the rider triangle, levers, engine case covers, sliders.

600RR was not a typo, just comparing it with another bike I'd consider buying in gorgeous HRC colours. Striple, 600RR, 650R, ZX4RR, R7 are all around similar speeds for the first 3s.