Yamaha Is Developing The YZF-R7

Just when we thought Yamaha was busy working on its electric scooters, the manufacturer has filed two registrations with the California Air Resources Board (CARB), with the titles ‘YZFR7NCB’ and ‘YZFR7NCL’. The nomenclature is in sync with Yamaha’s superbike lineup like the YZF-R1 and the YZF-R6.

Since the Yamaha R6 is absent from the bikemaker’s 2021 lineup, the YZF-R7 could very well be a replacement for the famous supersport offering. However, the CARB document reveals the displacement of the R7 to be 689cc, hinting that it might use the parallel-twin engine from the MT-07 instead of a bumped up inline-four from the R6.

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One can expect the R7 to have similar performance figures as the 2021 MT-07. For reference, the MT-07’s 689cc parallel-twin motor churns out 73.4PS and 67Nm.

These figures are nowhere near the 1999 R7’s 107.5PS and 72Nm, so the 2022 Yamaha R7 might target a more easy-going audience rather than track-heads. This would slot the R7 in the sports tourer segment with the Honda CBR650R, the Kawasaki Ninja 650, and the Aprilia RS660, which recently set foot in India with an exorbitant price tag.

Apart from all this, the new R7 is expected to use the same underpinnings as the MT-07, including a telescopic fork and a monoshock, unlike the 1999 R7’s swanky USD Ohlin fork. Clip-on handlebars, slightly rear-set pegs, full-LED lighting and a fully-digital instrument cluster are all expected as well. It’ll be interesting to see whether Yamaha takes a YZF-R1-like design approach or a more conservative one with the R7. 

Lastly, the bike is expected to be launched in 2022 but since the bikemaker has already applied for emissions and with the hype that is being created, Yamaha could easily prepone the launch to late 2021.