Micea Terens
10-06-2009, 06:38 AM
There was plenty of finger pointing and crooked noses when the R15 was launched, not because it isn't a good mororcycle, but because it had 'skinny tyres' and looked somewhat toy-like wirh a large guy on the saddle. The FZ 16, though, had looks going for it, but there must've been a few who suggesred a fairing would look nice. So, here is rhe Fazer. It looks srunning in pictures, and even bener in the metal. The fairing just blends perfecdy with the rest of the bike and adds so much more to what would've been an FZ. Thar, by itself, is an achievement.
Astride the Fazer, it feels prerty much like the FZ, apart from rhe mirrors placed on rhe fairing rarher than rhe handlebar irself. The upright riding stance is comfortable and the pegs are perfecdy placed. In the city rhe Fazer is just as effortless wirh loads of borrom-end grunt, just like the original FZ, and decent acceletarion to reach cruising speeds. However, rhe Fazer wheezes irs way to triple digit speeds. Not something you not want of a long-haul tourer. The fairing surely makes the bike sleeker, helping it carve the air more effecrively.
5439
Running gear has also been carried on from rhe FZ 16, which means rhe mega-wide rear tyre makes irs way onto rhe Fazer as well, wirh rhe same firm mono-suspension. Ride and handling remains confident and rhe disci drum combinarion ar the front and rear provide enough sropping power. Vibrarions are well-damped although rhere was a fair bir of rransmission whine in lower gears:
Bur uphill hairpin climbs aren'r a problem ar all as the rorque jusr . pushes it through corners.
As magnificent a design effort as rhe Fazer is, it somehow seems to have overlooked a few add-ons that you'd wanr on a tourer. There aren't any real provisions to rack on your luggage for rhe weekend ride and rhe superbly sculpred rank won't hold a regular rank bag eirher. While the short gearing works wonderfully well in the city and on the FZ16, it isn't quire as well-suired for long highway runs that the Fazer wants you to undertake. Taller gears or a larger moror with more horsepower is somerhing you want for thar rouring spirit. Maybe this is just Yamaha's way of resring the warers, before finally giving us a full blown, big motor tourer. They've done ir once.
Astride the Fazer, it feels prerty much like the FZ, apart from rhe mirrors placed on rhe fairing rarher than rhe handlebar irself. The upright riding stance is comfortable and the pegs are perfecdy placed. In the city rhe Fazer is just as effortless wirh loads of borrom-end grunt, just like the original FZ, and decent acceletarion to reach cruising speeds. However, rhe Fazer wheezes irs way to triple digit speeds. Not something you not want of a long-haul tourer. The fairing surely makes the bike sleeker, helping it carve the air more effecrively.
5439
Running gear has also been carried on from rhe FZ 16, which means rhe mega-wide rear tyre makes irs way onto rhe Fazer as well, wirh rhe same firm mono-suspension. Ride and handling remains confident and rhe disci drum combinarion ar the front and rear provide enough sropping power. Vibrarions are well-damped although rhere was a fair bir of rransmission whine in lower gears:
Bur uphill hairpin climbs aren'r a problem ar all as the rorque jusr . pushes it through corners.
As magnificent a design effort as rhe Fazer is, it somehow seems to have overlooked a few add-ons that you'd wanr on a tourer. There aren't any real provisions to rack on your luggage for rhe weekend ride and rhe superbly sculpred rank won't hold a regular rank bag eirher. While the short gearing works wonderfully well in the city and on the FZ16, it isn't quire as well-suired for long highway runs that the Fazer wants you to undertake. Taller gears or a larger moror with more horsepower is somerhing you want for thar rouring spirit. Maybe this is just Yamaha's way of resring the warers, before finally giving us a full blown, big motor tourer. They've done ir once.