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Yamaha Motorcycles

About Yamaha

Yamaha Motor Company Limited is a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company. Yamaha Motor is part of Yamaha Corporation.

Yamaha CEO Genichi Kawakami took Yamaha into the field of motorized vehicles on July 1, 1955. The company's intensive research into metal alloys for use in acoustic pianos had given Yamaha wide knowledge of the making of lightweight, yet sturdy and reliable metal constructions. This knowledge was easily applied to the making of metal frames and motor parts for motorcycles. Yamaha Motor produces motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, boats, marine engines including outboards, automobile engines, personal watercraft and snowmobiles.

The Yamaha corporate logo is composed of three tuning forks placed on top of each other in a triangular pattern. These were piano maker instruments.

Yamaha's first motorcycle was the 1 YA-1, which had a 125 cc, single-cylinder two-stroke engine. It was launched in February 1955 and the bike won its first race, the Mount Fuji Ascent Race, in July 1955. Yamaha continued producing two-stroke engines until it launched the XS-1 in 1969, with a 650 cc two-cylinder four-stroke engine, using expertise that it gained doing engine development work for Toyota. In 1998 Yamaha marketed a revolutionary 1000cc four cylinder road bike called the YZF 'R1', this model introduced a new style of gearbox design which shortened the overall length of the motor/gearbox case, thereby allowing a more compact unit. This, in turn allowed the motor to be placed in the frame far enough forward to compliment good handling in a short wheel-based frame, a revolutionary step forward in motorcycle design In 1979, the XT500 won the first Paris-Dakar Rally.

In 1995, Yamaha announced the creation of Star Motorcycles, a new brand name for its cruiser series of motorcycles in the American market. In other markets, Star motorcycles are sold under the Yamaha brand.

Today, Yamaha produces scooters from 50 to 500 cc, and a range of motorcycles from 50 to 1,900 cc, including cruiser, sport touring, sport, dual-sport, and off-road.

In motorcycle racing Yamaha has won 36 world championships, including 3 in MotoGP and 9 in the preceding 500 cc two-stroke class, and 1 in World Superbike. Yamaha riders include Giacomo Agostini, Bob Hannah, Heikki Mikkola, Kenny Roberts, Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Jeremy McGrath, Stefan Merriman, Phil Read, Chad Reed, Ben Spies, James Stewart and currently Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi.

The Yamaha YZ450F won the AMA Supercross Championship two years in a row, in 2008 with Chad Reed, and 2009 James Stewart. Yamaha was the first to build a production monoshock motocross bike (1975 for 250 and 400, 1976 for 125) and one of the first to have a water-cooled motocross production bike (1977 in works bikes, 1981 in off-the-shelf bikes).

Since 1962, Yamaha made production road racing Grand Prix motorcycles that any licensed road racer could purchase. In 1970, non-factory privateer teams dominated the 250 cc World Championship with Great Britain's Rodney Gould winning the title on a Yamaha TD2.

Yamaha also sponsors several professional ATV riders in several areas of racing, such as cross country racing and motocross. Yamaha has had success in cross country with their YFZ450, ridden by Bill Ballance, winning 9 straight titles since 2000. Yamaha's other major rider, Traci Cecco, has ridden the YFZ450 to 7 titles, with the first in 2000. In ATV motocross, Yamaha has had success with Dustin Nelson and Pat Brown, both who race the YFZ450. Pat Brown's best season was a 3rd place title in 2007, while Nelson has had two 1st place titles in the Yamaha/ITP Quadcross, one in 2006 and the other in 2008.

Yamaha produced Formula One engines from 1989 to 1997, initially for the Zakspeed team, in 1991 for the Brabham BT60Y, in 1992 for the Jordan 192, from 1993 to 1996 for Tyrrell, and in 1997 for the Arrows A18. These never won a race, but drivers including Damon Hill, Ukyo Katayama, Mark Blundell and Andrea de Cesaris scored some acceptable results with them.

Moto blog

AMA Pro SuperBike Heads To Road America For Round 2 Of AMA Pro Road Racing

Fri, 30 May 2014

The 2014 AMA Pro Road Racing season resumes this weekend with the Subway SuperBike Doubleheader at Road America, in Elkhart Lake, Wis., and all eyes will be on 21-year-old AMA Pro SuperBike rookie Cameron Beaubier on the No. 2 Monster Energy Graves Yamaha YZF-R1. Beaubier may be the new kid on the block, but he entered the season opener at Daytona International Speedway with high expectations.

AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Riders Gearing Up For Road America

Thu, 29 May 2014

The AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike class makes its much-anticipated return to Road America this weekend. The four-mile Wisconsin circuit is a particularly exciting place to watch the middleweight bikes because its long straights and braking zones make passing and lead changes commonplace. More than just a test of man and machine, the races often develop into a strategic battle leading up to the all-important last lap and run up the hill to the checkered flag.

Yamaha Names Olivier Pain and Michael Metge to 2015 Dakar Team

Fri, 23 May 2014

Yamaha has retained Olivier Pain and Michael Metge to race for its official factory team in the 2015 Dakar Rally. Pain and Metge will ride a new WR450F Rally currently being developed for the 2015 rally. Both riders raced for the Yamaha team in this year’s rally; Pain finished third overall behind KTM Red Bull team’s Marc Coma and Jordi Viladoms while Metge rode as a support rider for fourth-place finisher Cyril Despres.

Red Bull Glen Helen National Media Day Thursday, May 22

Wed, 21 May 2014

With the Supercross season over, and Motocross season now beginning, Thursday, May 22, will be a media day leading up to the Red Bull Glen Helen National. This event is open to all journalists — no credential necessary.  The day kicks off at 1pm, with a press conference featuring former 450 Class Champions: Ryan Dungey, James Stewart and Chad Reed. The floor will be open for media Q&A.

2015 Yamaha FZ-07 Certified by California Air Resources Board

Tue, 20 May 2014

Although Yamaha has yet to announce the FZ-07 for American consumption, new documents from the California Air Resources Board lead us to believe it’s on its way to U.S. dealers. The FZ-07 was first revealed last fall at EICMA as the MT-07, which is the name it is being sold under in Europe, Japan and other markets.

New AMA Pro SuperBike Final Qualifying Procedure To Be Implemented At Road America

Tue, 20 May 2014

AMA Pro Racing is taking a page out of the playbook of the top racing series’ in the world and changing the qualifying format for AMA Pro SuperBike and breaking it up into three stages. This new format will debut later this month when AMA Pro Road Racing takes to the 4.05-mile track at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., for the Subway SuperBike Doubleheader on May 30 – June 1, 2014. All AMA Pro SuperBike competitors will participate in Qualifying 1 and 2.

HeliBars Installation Service Will Be Half Price At The Americade Rally

Tue, 20 May 2014

HeliBars, one of the leaders in replacement motorcycle handlebars and riser systems, is pleased to announce that installation labor of its innovative, patented products will be just $100–half price–during the Americade rally, in Lake George, New York from June 2nd to 6th. Americade attendees will have their new HeliBars installed and custom-tailored during the rally by factory certified HeliBars installer, Sportline Power Products, in nearby Queensbury. The shop will have on hand a wide selection of Heli comfort kits, headlined by the just-released Luxury Sport Touring Horizon handlebars for Honda Goldwings and F6Bs.

2015 Yamaha YZF-R25 Revealed for Indonesian Market

Tue, 20 May 2014

Yamaha revealed the production version of its 250 sportbike, the two-cylinder YZF-R25. Manufactured in Indonesia, the R25 will first be offered in that market before being exported to other markets including other Asian countries as well as developed markets in the west. The production model stays close to the prototype R25 revealed at the Tokyo Motor Show last fall.

Seeley On Form On First Night Of North West 200

Fri, 16 May 2014

Alastair Seeley took a double in the Ballymoney Borough council Supersport and Pirtek Superstock events at the start of racing at the Vauxhall International North West 200 this evening, what many “real” road racers refer to as the precursor to the Isle Of Man TT. In the Supersport race, the ‘Wee Wizard’ survived being caught up in a first lap crash at York hairpin that left him languishing in 16th to come through and win the opening race of the night on his Mar-Train Yamaha R6. Lee Johnston was the rider who went down in the first lap crash, causing Seeley to take evasive action to avoid going down himself.

This Is How You Ride A 125cc Two-Stroke + Video

Fri, 09 May 2014

It’s too bad two-stroke motorcycles are quickly declining. The lightweight and hard-hitting machines are a blast to ride. They’re all but gone from the street scene (thanks emission laws), but thankfully you can still find some on the dirt side.