Rennie Scaysbrook | March 24, 2017
Yamaha has given their venerable YZF-R6 a new lease on life
Apex hunting: this is the R6’s natural habitat.
The supersport 600 class. It’s the red-headed step child for the world’s motorcycle manufacturers. Full of Peter Pan bikes that didn’t grow up when everyone else did, the supersport class is—if we are to believe the doom coming from almost every motorcycle scribe on the interwebs—on its death bed.
It’s not hard to see why. International sales have tanked, especially since the GFC pulled everyone’s wallets firmly shut. European sales are a fraction of what they were 10 years ago, and even here in the U.S., Yamaha has sold half as many R6s between August 2008 to December 2016 as they did between when the bike was introduced in January 1999 to July 2008.
But it’s not just the GFC that’s hurt the supersport category. The advent of tough new Euro 4 emissions targets (and the soon coming and even tougher Euro 5), changing rider tastes, a far greater variety of vastly different new bikes to choose from (not least from Yamaha themselves) and a constant stream of bad ass technology and good ol’ horsepower for 1000cc superbikes has resulted in little to no innovation being passed to the 600cc class for eons.
Whatchulookinat?! The new face looks mean, just like big bro R1.
Put it this way: the last time the R6 got properly updated in 2006, I was a mechanic in Australia with a full head of hair. Really, I was.
In racing terms, there was very little wrong with the old Yamaha YZF-R6. It’s still the current MotoAmerica Supersport, Superstock and Australian Supersport Champion, and it won the World Supersport Championship with Sam Lowes (2013), Chaz Davies (2011) and Cal Crutchlow (2009). In the last 58 MotoAmerica Supersport and Superstock 600 races, the R6 has won 56 of them.
So why has Yamaha decided to invest more money, time and energy into their little mini superbike? It’s a hard question to answer. There’s no denying the 2016 R6 was and still is an excellent machine, but it’s old, and old bikes need a refresher if they are to stay in the public’s eye when they go hunting for some new wheels. As such, the next sentence may shock you.
The 2017 Yamaha YZF-R6 is not an all new bike
Three different color flavors for your 2017 R6.
Yamaha has not started with a fresh sheet of paper in the same way they did the R1 a few years back. Developing a brand new motor costs money, lots of it, so while the R6 can pass the Euro 4 emissions targets, the company has seen no real reason to change it. Hey, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, as they say.
That means riders of the 2017 ilk will have the same 67 x 42.5mm, 599cc, liquid-cooled inline four as the 2016 bike. But that also means you get the Yamaha Chip Controlled Throttle (YCC-T) and Yamaha Chip Controlled Intake (YCC-I) system, as well as primary and secondary fuel injectors, titanium valves, magnesium engine covers, a slipper clutch, close ratio six-speed ’box and a titanium muffler. There is a subtle difference in Yamaha has fitted their D-Mode system that gives you three different options of throttle (Standard, A and B mode), but that’s it as far as the engine changes go.
The same is said for the Deltabox twin spar aluminum chassis and swingarm. They too have come straight from the 2016 R6, although the swingarm now comes with a new axle bracket section with block type chain adjusters, and the shock’s preload adjustment is done via an old school ring collar rather than the step system of the 2016 bike.
So what have they changed on the Yamaha YZF-R6?
Right. Let’s get to the good stuff. Yamaha isn’t going to charge you an extra $1200 for the ’17 R6 and give you nothing for it!
The biggest mechanical change to the R6 is the new front-end. Yamaha’s fitted 43mm inverted KYB forks, up 2mm over 2016 and weighing 2.2lb less, with the adjusters all mounted on top of the fork caps, like the base model YZF-R1. The KYB fork’s damping rod is up a solid 10mm to 32mm with wheel travel increased to 4.7 inches. That, combined with the now 25mm axle (up 3mm) makes the 2017 R6 far more rigid up front, and allows for more stability under hard braking and tipping into the corner.
Yamaha actually encountered the issue of the front being too rigid during initial testing, so they changed the bottom triple clamp and made a thinner cross-section from 36 to 29mm to give a bit more compliant handling.
All front suspension adjustment is now done from the top of the fork.
The front brakes also came under the microscope. Nissin has been roped into the master-cylinder duties with Brembo put on the bench, and there’s 10mm larger, 320mm discs bit by the same ADVICS four-piston, radially-mounted calipers as last year, and the two piston rear caliper has shrunk a touch but is essentially the same thing as in 2016. But the bigger brake news is the advent of ABS. This is a different system to that used on the R1 and you cannot turn it off, even for track use, which I find a little strange. The system adds around 14lb to the Yamaha YZF-R6, which negates much of the weight saving going elsewhere in the bike. This is not Yamaha’s fault, however, because as of this year every new bike sold in Europe must come with ABS. So that means ABS for all of us.
New TC (TCS button) is a nice addition, especially as it’s the same excellent system used on the 2012 R1.
On the subject of electronics, the 2017 Yamaha YZF-R6 also comes with six-stage (plus off) traction control. Run off the front and rear wheel speed sensors, the TC controls the amount of slip—depending which level you’re in—by adjusting ignition timing, fuel injection volume and throttle opening via the YCC-T unit. It’s the same system that was first employed back in 2012 on the R1, and has always been one of the better systems on the market, even up to IMU-dominated 2017.
Yamaha chose not to grace the R6 with an IMU for two reasons. The first being the cost. The second being, your cost. Adding an IMU and all the development time/dollars to go with it for this little 600 (you can’t just slap an IMU on and off you go), would have meant a substantially larger price hike to the end user than the $1200 already thrown at them.
This shot shows the massive aero difference between the old and new R6s.
Aesthetically, the 2017 R6 is brand spankers new with LED lights all round and styling that clearly mimics the R1 and Rossi’s M1. This is officially the most aerodynamic production motorcycle ever created by the Yamaha Motor Company. As well as being a massive visual departure from last year’s bike, the new fairing, 50mm taller screen, side panels and seat unit have given a claimed eight percent reduction in drag over the 2016 R6, with more comfortable dimensions that should help commuters and racers alike.
The seat unit is substantially flatter than the 2016 model so you won’t crush your bits against the tank, and it’s also 8mm narrower at the front. The seat height is unchanged at 33.5 inches but it has been raised 5mm at the very front and sits on a new, magnesium subframe that’s 20mm narrower.
Nice bum! You have to admit, the back-end looks pretty sweet!
There’s a touch over 2lb saved by switching from a steel gas tank to an alloy unit, and its capacity remains the same at 4.6 gallons. Yamaha USA wanted a smaller tank for the 2017 machine, but it would have meant the bike would struggle to finish an AMA Supersport race on a full tank, and changing to a larger aftermarket tank is forbidden in the rules.
A little help to the racers is that the 2017 R6 comes pre-wired for their quickshifter, the only Japanese four to do so currently competing in MotoAmerica.
The new front-end on the 2017 bike is a clear step above the 2016 R6.
Screaming with a screamer
Riding a 600 supersport is all about that red mark in front of your face that demands you squeeze it harder, faster, harder! As the needle on the still (thankfully) analogue rev counter swings into the red zone, pulling that throttle to the stop and holding it there is one of the most intoxicating feelings in motorcycling. That motor. Damn. It’s still awesome, even after all this time. It still screams with the same teenage angst that explodes every spring break south of the border. It’s naughty. And. So. Bloody. Fun!
The reason I love 600s is the same reason anyone who gets down with sportbike riding should: you can get the most out of these motors. They don’t intimidate like a modern 180hp superbike. I’ve long thought 100-120hp is the bang-on range for pure sportbike heaven, provided you have a light and nimble chassis to play with, and the R6 delivers in spades. There’s nothing happening below 7500rpm, but once you clear the R6’s head and venture north past 9000rpm, the YCC-I funnels eventually moving to their shortest setting and the deep intake and screaming exhaust note filling your ears, the experience is almost as good as great sex. It’s certainly better than mediocre sex. Throw the optional quickshifter into the mix, and the ride gets even better.
Yamaha even let us try the old bike back to back to see the difference, something manufacturer’s never do at press launches.
That engine and chassis combine to give such a tractable machine that after nine laps on level one traction control (lowest intervention), I forgot it was even on. I figured after riding a few considerably hard laps with MotoAmerica demi-god Josh Hayes the system had to have worked, right? So I headed back to the pits and checked the data with Akinori Hirano—Project Leader for the R6—via the Yamaha CCU (Communication Control Unit) app on the iPad.
Quite honestly, the TC didn’t cut in once on its lowest setting. So I was either riding like a pussy or the chassis balance was absolutely spot on that that the electronics were surplus to my needs. I prefer to think it was the latter.
Scaling up the TC levels got the system cutting in quite quickly, but it proves how well Yamaha designed this chassis way back in 2006 that their TC really didn’t need to be there, at least for my time in the dry at Thunderhill.
For me, the engine and gearbox were known quantities. I’ve ridden plenty of R6s in the past so I knew what I was getting myself in for, but I was pleasantly surprised by the feel that came from the revised front-end—especially after comparing the 2017 and 2016 R6s back to back (just so you know, manufacturers never let you do that as press launches, so bravo, Yamaha).
A sight for sore eyes: R6’s with fresh tires and warmers, ready to ride.
I really enjoyed the 2016 bike. It still brakes and turns exceptionally well, but the 2017 is just improved a little bit everywhere. It’s better when the brakes are first pulled in, gives more feel when you tip into the corner and tracks over bumps smoother and with less fuss than the 2016 version.
It’s not a night and day difference between 2016 and 2017. Just imagine looking at yourself in the mirror, then going to the gym for six months. It’s still the same you, just improved.
The brakes are better, although not by a massive margin. The Nissin master-cylinder is exceptional but I never really had an issue with the old Brembo one anyway.
One thing that is night and day difference is riding position. The flatter seat and more sculptured tank allows you to grip much harder with your knees, making high speed corner entry much nicer. The seat also has a far greater range of movement thanks to the skinnier dimensions: move a bit to any side on the 2017 bike and you’ll immediately feel the results.
I was disappointed not to see adjustable rearsets on the R6. This is a bike that now with its much more comfortable riding position is slightly let down by the fact the pegs are still too high for my lanky legs (I’m 6’1”), so you need to be at least shorter than that to be comfortable on the ’17 R6. Aftermarket rearsets will fix this problem, but I think it’s something Yamaha could have done for the rider instead.
If for one reason or another this is the last Yamaha YZF-R6, Yamaha’s done it in style.
Is this the end of the Yamaha YZF-R6 road?
Maybe. This very well could be the last new Yamaha YZF-R6 we ever see. It wouldn’t surprise me if it were so, and if that does happen, a small, wonderful part of motorcycling will die.
We have a few years left yet before the axe falls (if it does at all) on the R6, and I’m happy to report that the 2017 version is indeed a fine machine, even if it’s not totally new.
Evolution rather than revolution is the name of the R6 game. For reasons outlined earlier in this article, it’s hard to be angry with Yamaha for that. Hey, they are the only ones bringing and new supersport to dealer floor, with a little added technology and some fancy new clothes to keep us interested.
As a bike that makes you a better rider, the R6 has few rivals.
The riding experience, at least on track as we didn’t see any street on this test, is sublime. The R6 is a rider’s bike, always has been. It’s about late braking, high corner speed and early wide open throttles. It’s no wonder so, so many top riders around the world homed their skills on these little weapons. If you can ride an R6 fast, you’ll go well on a superbike. I love 600s.
Here’s to a few more years with Yamaha’s teenage tear away.
Photography Brian J Nelson
Specifications
2017 Yamaha YZF-R6
Engine: Liquid-cooled DOHC inline four-cylinder, 16 titanium valves, liquid cooled
Displacement: 599cc
Bore x stroke: 67.0mm x 42.5mm
Compression ratio: 13.1:1
Fuel system: Fuel injection with YCC-T and YCC-I with full Ride-by-Wire. 3 throttle modes.
Exhaust: Four into One
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox. Quickshifter-optional.
Chassis: Deltabox twin spar aluminum
Front suspension 43mm KYB inverted fork, adjustable compression, rebound and preload; 4.7-in travel
Rear suspension: KYB piggyback shock, fully adjustable; 4.7-in travel
Front brake: Twin 320 mm semi-floating discs, radially mounted ADVICS calipers, four-piston, Nissin master-cylinder with ABS as standard
Rear brake: Single 220 mm disc, two-piston caliper, ABS as standard
Front tire: 120/70 ZR17
Rear tire: 180/55 ZR17
Rake: 24°
Trail: 3.8 in
Wheelbase: 54.1 in
Seat height: 33.5 in
Fuel capacity: 4.6 gal
Weight: 419 (wet, claimed).
Color: Matte Black, Team Yamaha Blue, Intensity White/Matte Silver
MSRP: MSRP $12,199
