Page 18 - LHR Motorcycle Magazine August 2024

“The exhaust still stands out as a bit fugly, with odd

concealed outlets on its lower side.”

That combination of friendly but responsive throttle
and easy torque makes for one of the finest wheelie
machines you can buy – even more so than the
regular MT-09 (whose hooligan streak is barely
concealed), as the firmer shock and reduced
propensity for wobbles means it’s easier to hoik a fat
one and not come down into the mother and father of
all tank slappers…

Tomfoolery aside, it’s a solid mix of usable and
enjoyable – there’s enough on tap for stress-free
overtakes without a gearbox tap-dance, while it builds
speed in a way that doesn’t feel too out of hand on the
road, whereas an open-class supernaked (Yamaha’s
own MT-10 for example) require that bit more self
restraint – or things will get rapid, rapidly… sakes on the back of a mid-section doing all the
silencing/emission-scrubbing duties, as many stock
end-cans are now.

Historically the CP3 is tough, and there’s no drastic
changes or hike in power to stress it, so the latest
generation shouldn’t prove any different. There’s a
new dash and switchgear that are as yet unproven,
but again Yamaha doesn’t have any notable issues
with shoddy electrical components. The new switch
blocks and display both look and feel high quality. LHR

Euro 5+ hasn’t had any notable negative impact – no
bad manners, no obvious power penalty, and the new
‘acoustic grilles’ in the top of the airbox shroud
channel intake noise from the revised airbox straight
up towards you, so you get to hear the three-pot’s
heavy breathing, but the Eurocrat’s dB-meter isn’t
sent into a frenzy, either.

Reliability & build quality
The R1M-alike paint (with matching brushed-alloy
swingarm and blue-anodised ‘spin-forged’ wheels)
lends the MT-09 SP a higher-class feel than the
everyman’s model, as do the premium suspension
and brake parts. The rest of the components are digiads Magazines
shared, barring a few finishes, but the latest
generation is put together and detailed a little more * Graphic Design
nicely than previous generations: cleaner design, * Web Design Ian van der Merwe
fewer plasticky shrouds with ugly-but-necessary * Catalogues Editor / Publisher
parts better hidden away than before. * Brochures
* Swing Tags
The exhaust still stands out as a bit fugly, with odd * Magazines +27 65 209 0475
concealed outlets on its lower side. A short side-exit * News Letters info@lhrmotorcyclemagazine.co.za
silencer wouldn’t harm – even if only for appearances

Yamaha MT-09 SP Review