Yamaha MT07

March 2014: I've always had a minimalist streak when it comes to bikes and was immediately drawn to the elegance of the MT07. Everything seems to have been designed for weight saving and simplicity and nice touches abound: From the frame using the engine as a stressed member, to the ingenious rear shock arrangement. Even the pillion footrests are a lightweight work of art.

The result is 179 Kg wet (this is a non-ABS model). That’s light. And when I first saw one, I thought it looked fantastic. Cost cutting is evident in the digital instruments, which are clearly cheaper than traditional clocks, and an abundance of self colour black plastic in place of the usual painted items - good, sensible measures which in no way detract from the overall appearance.

First impressions are of a light and compact bike with sufficient room for taller riders (I'm 6'1" with a 33" inside leg and it fits me fine). The engine is willing and smooth for a twin, giving off a muted but purposeful, throb. I imagine that it would sound very good with a more open pipe. Never mind all the talk of cross-plane concepts and V-Twin feel, it reminds me more than anything (in a good way) of a well sorted 1960s Brit bike: If, by some miracle, Meriden Triumph were still going this is what they'd be making. The first 5 gear ratios are fairly close with the sixth being a definite overdrive. Over the first few tanks the bike managed 62 mpg.

The handling is excellent on a smooth road although the budget suspension can be jiggly on the rougher, post winter, British roads. The MT07 has an almost trail bike feel which, coupled to the flexible engine, makes for a formidable back roads weapon.

Typical of modern naked bikes, ultimate speed is limited more by rider comfort than engine output: 80 mph is comfortable, 100 mph isn't - although the bike is surprisingly punchy well into three figure speeds. This was a deliberate choice on my part: The UK is chock full of speed cameras and I no longer want bikes that make speeding too easy. What more can I say? It's no super bike: It delivers fun at legal speeds, rewards it with decent economy and looks good doing it. Oh yeah, it's cheap too. What's not to like?

September 2014: 3000 miles on and I'm more than happy with the MT. In fact, I find myself riding it for fun more than any other bike that I’ve owned in recent years. It also continues to impress with it’s economy: Commuting in London traffic gives a low of 54mpg and wringing it's neck in the twisties gives over 60mpg. Indeed, I once got a puncture and plugged the tyre with an emergency kit. Riding the 70 miles home at the recommended 45mph gave 80mpg! So the economy is definitely there.

December 2014: Well, I rode my MT on salted roads for the first time the other day. I washed it when I got home and a few days later I found that the front caliper bolts and the brake pipe unions looked scabby as hell - which doesn't bode well for winter use. The same bits on my Bandit looked better after 7 years...

I subsequently gave the offending parts a good scrub with SDOC 100 and an old toothbrush. There's some improvement, although the caliper bolts still have some corrosion that won't come off, the discs are rusty where the pads don't touch and although the brake pipe unions look clean, the finish (whatever it was) has actually come off, leaving bare metal. Hmm...

To be honest, I'm not that bothered - I bought this bike to use and at least it's a non-ABS model so it won't be too hard to change the brake lines for ones with stainless fittings. It's just that I haven't owned a Yamaha for about 15 years and I'm shocked to find that the finish is still just as bad!

February 2015: My 1st ever motorcycle accident. After 28 years of surviving dodgy weather and homicidal Volvos I finally got taken out by a drunk pedestrian who thought it was a great idea to run across a dual carriageway at night. He actually ran into me from the side. I didn't fall off, but I ended up with a fractured right hand and a torn rotator cuff. The pedestrian didn't fare quite so well with some nasty compound fractures. Damage to the bike was fairly superficial, although I still put it through the insurance just in case the pedestrian tries to blame me for the accident (which of course he subsequently did).

March 2015: The first paid-for service fell due this month. Having heard a few horror stories, I thought I’d ask the dealer for a ball-park figure. How about £150 for what amounts to an oil change! In the end I bought 4 litres of Yamalube and a genuine filter off Ebay for £35 and changed it myself. It took about 15 minutes. I’m not generally one to moan about money, but I really can’t see how they can justify over £100 labour for that. And, to be honest, it’s not just the money: My local Yamaha dealers aren’t the most helpful at the best of times and I begrudge giving them my custom.

April 2015: I’ve soldiered on for a while with paddock stands, but if you need to do any sort of maintenance a centre stand makes life a whole lot easier. After a bit of research I decided to fit the SW-Motech offering. I was initially concerned about ground clearance but it's not an issue. The standard side stand acutally sticks out further, so overall this does seem to be a very well designed piece of kit.

July 2016: Two years in and 11,000 miles on and I still love my MT07. The engine is the star of the show. Yes, I've had faster bikes, but this engine puts it’s power & torque right where they're most effective: Wheelies on demand and fast enough to leave most traffic behind, but with performance that makes sense at legal speeds. It's Fun – with a capital F. Oh yeah, and 60 odd mpg average. Probably the best bang-for-your-buck motor on the road today. Oh yeah, and I changed the spark plugs. They looked in excellent condition which surprised me since the US change interval is 8,000 miles and some of their plugs look absolutely shot. Maybe it’s down to poor quality fuel but I'm sure that mine would have happily run to at least 20,000 miles.

The suspension seems to have eased off with miles but, truth be told, it's just poor quality. Bumps which I never noticed on my last bike kick my arse out of the saddle on this one. And there's one section of badly-surfaced road on my way to work that actually gives me double vision! This bike also suffers the well documented stalling issue: Sometimes the engine just stops for no apparent reason. I fitted an O2 eliminator which appeared to alleviate the issue.

September 2016: Although the brake unions went scruffy early on they haven’t actually got any worse over the last two years so I thought that maybe I was being unduly harsh on what is after all a budget bike. However, on removing the back wheel for a tyre replacement, I found this:

That’s the inside of my swing arm and as you can see, rust is attacking the welded seam. It’s like this on both sides. This bike is just two and a half years old and at this rate I reckon that the rust will be structural after 5 or 6 years. Not great. I would urge anyone with an MT07 to spray some rust preventative in there ASAP. I fixed mine with a used swing arm in better condition and coated the inside with Waxoyl before fitting it.

November 2016: I enjoyed the MT07 but I came to the conclusion that it's a great concept but a flawed execution. The stalling problem and suspension crudity were definite issues for me. I considered spending proper money sorting them but with the iffy build quality and rust prone chassis it just didn't seem worth the investment. So, with genuine sadness, it was goodbye MT07.