Yamaha FZ-S V2.0 Long Term Review Final Report

Highway Manners

It is pouring like never before and we are not complaining at all. The dust has all settled down, the highways washed out of all the muck and oil and the green is everywhere. And that means highway time for us motorcyclists. Now that we know how the Yamaha FZ S 2.0 fares in the city, let us see how it does on the highway.

The FZ is a mile muncher. The ride is slightly taut but it soaks up road bumps very well. When potholes surprise you even on the most clean stretches, all you need to do is keep the throttle steady and brace yourself if you cannot get out of the way. Getting out of the way is pretty easy too, thanks to the agile steering of the FZ.

Even around corners, the weight distribution, coupled with the taut suspension setup allows you to flow into the corners without any fuss. The wide handlebar lets you weigh in intuitively for counter steer. The footpegs are a tad rear set and allow you to lean quite a bit before you start scraping them. And that is easily doable as the FZ feels planted owing to the slight front bias of the weight and the chunky soft compound rubber. The brakes, as we have mentioned in our previous report, are probably best in the class. If you have carried a bit more speed around a bend, a deft touch of the brakes will allow you to correct.

The only chink in the FZ S’ armour, I think, is the engine. It is refined. The power delivery is linear. The gearbox is also quite good. But, the lack of power shows. The FZ S 2.0 makes almost a bhp lesser than its predecessor with the torque output also taking a similar hit. Also, the amount of grip the tyres offer works against it as it means more friction force for the engine to deal with. You have to rev the engine hard to keep it up at highway speeds and drop a cog down more often than not. The good part here is that even at high revs, none of the vibrations and harshness is felt.

The FZ S is about to go back and after riding it for a few months, I can say that it is a good package. It behaves well both in the city and on the highway, has excellent brakes and tyres and a refined engine and gearbox. It seats you comfortably even on long hauls. It has enough power to take you to office or for a weekend ride if speed isn’t your only thing. To top it all, it looks good too and if you want a comfortable no fuss motorcycle, the FZ will always fit in.