5 highlights of the new Yamaha MT 15

Yamaha India has launched the all-new naked streetbike, the MT-15 in India. The motorcycle has been priced at 1.36 lakhs (ex-showroom, Delhi). The MT-15 is the company’s second offering in its MT series, the first being the middle-weight MT-09. The motorcycle is offered in two colour schemes - metallic black and dark matte blue. Here are the top five highlights of the new offering from the Japanese brand. 

Design

The MT-15 is a naked streetbike sporting a minimalistic design. It features a Bi-functional LED headlamp flanked by a pair of LED DRLs giving it a predator-type look. It gets a sculpted tank with prominent tank extensions, wide handlebar and LED taillamp unit. The bike features a petite tail section that ends with the edge of the seat. 

155cc motor with Variable Valve Actuation

The MT-15 is powered by the same 155cc liquid-cooled single-cylinder 4-valve motor that does duty in the YZF-R15 V3.0. The motor features Variable Valve Actuation (VVA) technology which changes the cam profile at 6000rpm to achieve a linear acceleration with strong performance characteristics. The motor is capable of producing 19bhp of max power and 14.7Nm of peak torque.

Negative LCD display with gear position indicator

The MT-15 features an all-digital instrument console like the R15 V3 but with an inverted display. The console displays a plethora of information comprising of a tacho, speedo, trip meters, fuel gauge, time and a gear shift indicator. It also packs an instantaneous fuel consumption indicator, average fuel consumption and a shift-light positioned above the display.

Like the R15 V3.0, the MT-15 comes equipped with an assist and slipper clutch. This mechanism not only reduces the negative engine torque under hard downshifting to prevent the rear wheel lock-up, but it also increases the clamping force of the clutch during acceleration. 

Deltabox frame

Derived from litre-class R1, the MT-15 is built around Yamaha’s Deltabox frame that offers excellent rigidity along with strong handling characteristics. The construction of the frame is done in such a manner that the locations with extreme stress are reinforced with thick joints while areas with low stress have been given thin joints. This has allowed Yamaha to develop a lighter chassis, thus achieving a better power-to-weight ratio.