SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019 MOTORCYCLE MOJO 21large, round analog tachometer and
smaller LCD screen is a large, rectangu-
lar LCD screen. The new screen offers
all of the same information as its prede-
cessor instrument panel, so the change
is mostly aesthetic. The new dash is
functional and easy to read when you
are tucked in and the throttle is pinned,
although I prefer the previous setup
with its large, round tachometer.
The biggest change beneath the
bodywork is the use of a 37 mm
inverted fork, a change from the 41 mm
conventional fork on the previous
model. While the diameter of the R3’s
fork tubes is smaller than those on its
predecessor, inverted forks are inher-
ently stiffer by design. The R3 comes
equipped with Dunlop Sportmax GPR-
300 tires, although Yamaha installed
Dunlop Sportmax Q3 race-compound
tires on one of the stock bikes for our
test rides.
Unchanged is the 321 cc parallel
twin engine, as well as its fuel-injection
mapping. Yamaha Canada doesn’t
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Europe, Yamaha claims engine output
to be 41 horsepower. Rob Egan, who
operates the CSBK dyno, says a stock
R3 makes about 40 hp at the rear wheel,
and a race-prepped one makes about
- A Ninja 400 on the same dyno makes
about 45 hp, while a Honda CBR300R
makes about 32.
While ABS and non-ABS versions
were available until last year, only an
ABS-equipped R3 is available for 2019.
The changes have driven up the price
by $400 to $6,299 compared with last
year’s ABS bike. Last year, the price of
the non-ABS R3 started at $5,399.
On The Road
We began the day with a cold ride
through the picturesque countryside
of Bay of Quinte. On the road, there’s
nothing really outstanding to report
about the R3. It is a pleasant street bike
to ride, and the lowered handlebars
don’t really encroach on ride comfort,
although the former taller bars were
certainly better for long-distance trips.
There’s enough legroom that even a
six-foot-tall rider like me doesn’t feel
cramped.
The engine isn’t a powerhouse at
lower revs, although the bike will chug
along smoothly in top gear at speeds
as low as 60 km/h. Still, you’ll have to
drop several gears if you expect any
kind of acceleration from that speed. If
you let the engine spin past 9,000 rpm,
though, the R3 triggers an instant grin.
Yamaha Canada offered a race-prepped R3 for test rides at Shannonville, andWKDWELNHKDGVRPHVLJQL¿FDQWXSJUDGHVYHUVXVWKHVWUHHWOHJDOYHUVLRQ)LUVWDOORIWKHVWUHHWJHDUZDVWDNHQRII²PLUURUVVLGHVWDQGWXUQVLJQDOVDQGRWKHUVWXIIWKDW¶VQRWHVVHQWLDOIRUWUDFNXVH7KLVUHGXFHVZHLJKWDQGPDNHVWKHELNHPRUHFUDVKZRUWK\6XVSHQVLRQXSJUDGHVLQFOXGHIXOO\DGMXVWDEOHgKOLQVFDUWULGJHVWRUHSODFHWKHVWRFNIRUNLQWHUQDOVXSIURQWDQGWKH2(0VKRFNDEVRUEHULVVZDSSHGRXWIRUDIXOO\DGMXVWDEOH.7HFKXQLW7KHVWRFNVXVSHQVLRQLVDGMXVWDEOHRQO\IRUUHDUVSULQJSUHORDGV$+LQGOHH[KDXVWGURSVZHLJKWDQGDGGVVRPHVRXQGZKLOHWKHHQJLQHPDSSLQJLVWZHDNHGWKURXJKWKHDGGLWLRQRID'\QRMHW3RZHU&RPPDQGHU$GMXVWDEOHIRRWSHJVDQGORZHUFOLSRQVDUHDGGHGDQGWKHVWRFNSODVWLFLVUHSODFHGE\¿EUHJODVVERG\ZRUNPDGHE\+RW%RGLHV UDFHUXOHVVWLSXODWHWKDWERG\ZRUNPXVWLQFOXGHDÀXLGFDWFKLQJEHOO\SDQ7KHFRVWRI<DPDKD&DQDGD¶VFRQYHUVLRQZDVQ¶WLPPHGLDWHO\DYDLODEOHEXW3UR&\FOHRIIHUVDVLPLODUUDFHNLWIRUWKH5WKDWLQFOXGHVgKOLQVVXVSHQVLRQDQG)OH[L*ODVVERG\ZRUNIRU$'\QRMHW3RZHU&RPPDQGHUFRVWVDQGDFRPSOHWH+LQGOHUDFHH[KDXVWLV7KHUDFHSUHSSHG5LVDOVRHTXLSSHGZLWKD'\QRMHWTXLFNVKLIWHU DOORZLQJRSHQWKURWWOHFOXWFKOHVVXSVKLIWV,I\RX¶UHVHULRXVDERXWUDFLQJ\RX¶OODOVRQHHGWKHUDFHFRPSRXQG'XQORSV±DQGORWVRIWKHPIRUDVHDVRQOn the track, the race-prepped R3 feels like a different machine altogetherFRPSDUHGZLWKDVWRFNPDFKLQH±DVVRRQDVLWOHDYHVWKHSLWV7KHULGLQJSRVLWLRQLVPRUHH[WUHPH WKHELNHLVORXGHU LWIHHOVPDUNHGO\OLJKWHU DQGWKHHQJLQHVHHPVVLJQL¿FDQWO\VWURQJHU0RVWRIWKHVHQVDWLRQRIH[WUDSHUIRUPDQFHFDQEHWUDFHGWRWKHUDFHELNH¶VORZHUZHLJKWZKLFKLVURXJKO\NJOHVVWKDQWKHVWRFNELNH¶VNJ7KH¿UPHUVXVSHQVLRQRQWKHUDFHSUHSSHGELNHDOVRJLYHVLWVKDUSHUKDQGOLQJZLWKPRUHSUHFLVHVWHHULQJDQGTXLFNHUWXUQLQ7KHIURQWEUDNHZKLFKLVRQO\VRVRRQWKHVWRFNELNHLVPXFK¿UPHUDQGPRUHSUHFLVHWKHUHVXOWRIDFKDQJHWREUDLGHGVWDLQOHVVVWHHOEUDNHOLQHVIURPUXEEHUPrepped To Win Races
At that rpm, the engine becomes a little
screamer and the bike becomes decep-
tively quick. You can feel a slight jump
in the power band when the tachometer
needle sweeps past that 9,000 rpm
threshold, urging you to use the shifter
vigorously to keep the revs up there.