2009 Yamaha R1 launch – Rrrevolutionary good from Yamaha
Does Yamaha know how to deliver the goods or not these days? They sure do, MotoGP championships galore and now this 2009 R1 that’s nothing less than a revolution for the in-line four engine! This really is as close to Rossi’s M1 we’ve ever been!
Words: Tor Sagen/Photo: Dentsu Live
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the R1 and also Yamaha’s R series Yamaha showed us the 2009 R1 to an audience that couldn’t have expected the Cross Plane crankshaft nor understand exactly what that means. Now I do and it has blown me away. Yamaha have initiated a new era in motor technology and it was a brave move as the R1 now really places itself more towards the Ducati 1198 separating itself from the other big three. It’s starting to look a little like the men are separating themselves from the boys here I’m tempted to say (just did didn’t I…)
Watching and listening to the 2009 Yamaha R1 from the pit lane at Eastern Creek raceway passing me at 250km/h is a very uplifting experience! Gone are the days where pure top end horsepower was the name of the game. With a few exceptions such as MV’s F4 1078 R I have wondered to myself where the blander and blander in-line four Engine were to go next? Riding a horsepower beast with 180hp+, but with oh so little character compared to let’s say the boys from Bologna have left me feeling indifferent at times towards the Japanese litres. Yamaha have just done it people and by applying the Cross Plane crankshaft technology (I’ll explain later) from the M1 MotoGP bike they have also restored all my faith in the in-line four! Yamaha may even have some tricks in their basket to be applied to their R6 at the next cross point too! This is all very good news in desperate times, and I guarantee you that Yamaha will be the one with the best chances of stealing sales from everyone else in 2009! Yes, the 2009 Yamaha R1 is that good!
It was finally my turn and I fired up the all new R1 with great expectations. Those expectations were just improved upon after my first laps and that’s not often. The 2009 Yamaha R1 sounds like a proper motorbike and it snarls and growl like an angry dog matching what my brain thinks 182 horsepower should sound like! When firing up the R1 the setting on the D-mode selector is, well you guessed it, standard. The other two settings are A and B. Yamaha’s D-mode selector differs from other manufacturers power mode selectors in the fact that it all happens at the fly-by-wire throttle rather than in the ECU or at the spark plug. We are still talking child’s play compared to Ducati’s true traction control, so Yamaha follow in the footsteps of Suzuki really. A mode is the most aggressive throttle setting and the fly-by-wire takes no prisoners here. In A mode you could pretty much spin the rear tyre all around the blistering hot Eastern Creek circuit whether you wanted to or not. So I kept it real in standard mode most of the time as B mode just disappointed me around the circuit. The fly-by-wire throttle basically reads your throttle input and unleashes hell accordingly. Full on in A, optimum in standard and restricted in B mode for a rainy day basically.
The standard tyres on the 2009 Yamaha R1 are the latest Michelin Pilot Powers. New is the 190/55-ZR17 rear tyre. Usually Yamaha have chosen a lower profiled 50 at the rear. The 55 helps the 2009 Yamaha R1 to turn in as quick as you like and adds a new nimbleness. The front Michelin Power is in the usual 120/70-ZR17 dimension. I am afraid that these tyres were outperformed by the burning hot surface on the Aussie track. With more than 40 degrees Celsius registered in the shade I am pretty sure that only a really hard compound could solve our little heat problem. Later in the day we were all treated to test the new Michelin Power One race tyres which also slid exiting first and second gear corners, but much later in the power band than the standard tyres. Giving even me a better lap time I presume. Any motorcycle tyre that can handle 182 horsepower and a scorching hot track surface gets the thumbs up from me! On any European circuit in the summer these tyres would glue themselves onto every inch of track surface they touch.
I guarantee you that after five-six laps in this heat it was hell inside my leathers, but never has hell felt that good I dare say. The linear response from the new Crossplane engine gave me a similar sense of security on extreme lean as Ducati’s traditional superbikes do. It’s hard to tell exactly what I had expected despite reading all the hype, but the R1 blew me away so for once you can actually believe the hype.
There’s more chassis news in the new flexible swing arm that adds even more controllability through the corners. Attached to the swing arm at the most ideal position for mass centralisation we find the new bottom-link rear shock assembly that’s also taken from The Doctor’s bike. The new position has also allowed Yamaha to lower the fuel tank further down the frame which is where we find the answer to the improved mass centralisation. The Deltabox aluminium frame is all new and hardly anything is the same as the 2008 version. The latest in frame technology is to use several different components made with different types of aluminium to maximise feel, stability and flexibility.
Needless to say all suspension on the 09 R1 are fully adjustable. New however is the fact that each fork stanction leg performs different tasks, rebound controlled from one and compression from the other. Very clever and out on the circuit again I am utilizing all these high tech features as best I can. As also the engine has been moved around in the new frame further forward the front tyre is simply planted whenever I need to use the front brakes. Due to the fact that the main straight at Eastern Creek is followed by a superfast 4th gear corner I never got the chance to really, really test that front end, but from what I did experience this is solid stuff indeed. Due to the blackie happy track conditions I didn’t feel that I could test the rear suspension fully either as the heat beat the tyre basically. The brake set-up is still a six pot monoblock affair, but with smaller discs to improve several things such as heat dissipation and lower unladen weight helping turn in again.
The 2009 R1 feels like something very new also in the handling department as I can flick it from left to right 600 fast! From hard braking to extreme lean scraping the foot pegs is done in no time at all and with minimal effort. This is definitely one of the R1’s Forte’s compared to the big red 1200 it will have to face everywhere but BSB in 2009. The new R1 is also much less wheelie prone than I can remember from older models despite the new and shorter wheelbase. It’s all in the new chassis and that bottom-link rear suspension that prevents that rear suspension squat that usually ends in a wheelie. Which leads me into the part of this article where I want to tell you about the heart of the new R1 and all the clever technology that has resulted in such an extremely capable supersport motorcycle.
I have saved the best for last and that’s the new 998cc in-line four featuring that Crossplane crankshaft everyone will talk about in 09. 182 horsepower @ 12.500rpm may not sound like that much of a revolution, but it is believe you me. The Crossplane crankshaft requires counterbalancing that actually takes some horsepower away from the package, still it features 2 more than the 08 but with a lot better handling around a circuit. It should murder the 08 and I’m sure someone will prove it later this year. There is also around 3Nm more torque resulting in 115Nm @ 10.000rpm. I am so glad to be able to say that these figures means nothing reading them on a spec sheet. You need to get out and try it to see and believe how that Crossplane crankshaft transforms all that torque into fully useable power even at the highest of revs. The amount of times I rode through corners using 10.000rpm (where you have max torque) and more from mid corner and then just emptying revs out of the corners was a revelation. This is what happens: Cylinder 1 fires at 270 degrees, cylinder 2 fires at 180 degrees, cylinder 3 fires at 90 degrees and cylinder 4 at 180 degrees. This is called uneven firing intervals and it overlaps and balances out the two measures of torque in a combustion engine giving that V-Twinish traction to the rear tyre. There’s no huge leap in torque or power to upset the rear tyre and a steady and progressive throttle position can be held throughout the corner and also be applied much earlier than on a traditional in-line four.
One of the great bi-products is that all new sound that can be described as a mixture between a V four and a performance V90. Yamaha hardly had any incidents at all on the circuit and that’s a tell tale sign that this bike really is something else. Due to that heat that made the rear tyre slide a lot I kicked in 2nd gear a lot instead of 1st but you don’t loose much as the R1 picks up revs so fast now from lower rpm and it’s a true joy being in the saddle on such an extreme motorcycle with that level of control. Control is the big clue here and Yamaha R1 anno 2009 has got it all. When accelerating from 2nd gear onto the main straight the 2009 Yamaha R1 doesn’t feel as brutal as the 2009 Ducati 1198S that I tested a short while ago, but it may be deceptive as the new linear power band plays tricks with you. I saw 260 and 270 on the speedometer fast enough in fifth gear before I urgently had to kick one gear down and brake for the fast 4th gear left hander following the straight. I choose to go wide in this corner rather than keeping it tight a few times taking me out to a bumpy part of the track. Looking at the onboard footage I can clearly see quite a bit of movement on the headstock, but inside my helmet whilst riding it felt like nothing at all. The 2009 R1 is Uber composed!
Conclusion
Wow as I said in my first impression still counts. I think there’s no doubt in my mind that this is the very best motorcycle Yamaha have ever built. And if its Yamaha’s best it’s very high up there overall too. In my humble mind there are only two motorcycles in this segment in 2009 and that’s the R1 and the Ducati 1198. All I am thinking of now is where else can Yamaha apply the Crossplane technology?
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Crossplane crankshaft and hence engine
Brilliant chassis and hence handling
A 2009 must have
Best overall package I have ever seen from Yamaha
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There isn’t any really apart from ergonomics, but this isn't a tourer!
2009 Yamaha R1 walk around and onboard from Eastern Creek!
This film is the first Raptors & Rockets R1 vid from the world launch in Sydney, Australia. Full walk around and some onboard action that allows you to listen to the awesome new R1. This is something very special from Yamaha! Stay tuned for more updates! Tor
