If Ducati is the Ferrari of Sport Bikes, then the Yamaha R1 is the Porsche of sport bikes. Truly a well built machine. review of my 2006 R1:
*Looks:
*This is the first impression that the bike makes, just really impressive looks. Wheni first saw the bike at the dealership, all I could think of was "I want it". yamaha has really revised the look from the older R1 models. They have made the bike more sleek and mean looking and more aerodynamically sound design. The front has been totally remodeled from the old bulky look to a really slim design. The shield has been bent and moved back towards the handles a bit more, which has reduced the front height by a few inches. This design, coupled with the crazy headlights, gives the bike a "mean-machine" look from the front. Newer / better paint job(although you can always get it custom painted) is not so bad.
There’s always a bit of performance tune-up(factory fresh) in the newer models. even the mirrors have been specifically shaped and at a perfect height to keep with the newer look.
Performance:
One word. just "WOW".
This thing is not for the faint of the heart. Just that the power that it packs, it will gradually make you want to revv it up, even if you are a "within-the-speed-limit" kind of driver. And it can go scary fast, I mean like unless you’re an experienced biker, its easy to get carried away.
*Not recommended for teenagers or thrill seekers as you will probably kill yourself on this bike
Really good corner handling, although will have to lean more at higher speeds. smooth transition between gears, Average mileage but its expected. yamaha has used really light weight material, one of the reasons that its so fast for it engine class. The downside of that, at speeds that it can get to, if you wreck it, you wreck it. I mean like, its salvage. Need to care for it like you’d care your baby.
all in all, an awesome bike for its class, put a yoishimura pipe(the factory pipe sounds not bad either, but i’m a yoshi freak) and your all set. A real chick Magnet;)
Specs:
998 cc liquid cooled, fuel injected, 10 valve dohc engine.
Can revv up to 172 HP @ 12500 RPM. 0 to 60 in 3.5 secs(approx).