Yamaha have just announced the new R3 small displacement sport bike that has been expected for a while now. The R3 raises the bar a tad on the small displacement war, opting for a 321 cc liquid-cooled, DOHC, inline twin motor, which is 25 cc more than the Ninja 300 and 37 cc more than Honda’s CBR 300.
The motor uses four valves per cylinder, has fuel injection and a 6 speed box. the crank is set 180 degrees apart (pistons go up and down alternatively) and comes with a balancer shaft to smooth out vibrations.
Power output is a claimed 42 hp at 10,750 rpm and torque maxing out at 29.3 Nm at 9,000 rpm. That’s 3 hp more than the Ninja 300 and 12 more than Honda’s CBR300.
Frame is a steel diamond type  with standard 41 mm forks (likely non-adjustable), 10 spoke wheels and a single 298 mm disc up front with a two-piston caliper but sadly no ABS (corrected). Wheels are 17 inchers with 10/70-17 front tire and a 140/70-17 rear (same as the Kawi and Honda). Fuel capacity is 14 litres and the claimed wet weight is 167 Kg (two up on the CBR but seven less than the Ninja).
The styling follows the rest of Yamaha’s R series bikes and features twin headlights. Seat height is 780 mm (30.7 inches).
The bike is coming to Canada priced at just $4,999 which is $800 less than the Ninja 300 and $200 less than Honda’s CBR300, but unlike these, the R3 does not have ABS. It will be available in Blue, Red and Metallic Black.
More info as soon as we get it!
Oh and here’s a bit of an odd video of the bike with Colin Edwards:
Or if you want a shorter and more to the point video, check this out:
GALLERY
Check out all the pics that go with this story! Click on the main sized pic to transition to the next or just press play to show in a slideshow.
[…] sure about the ABS? These guys suggest otherwise (unless the spec has since changed…) […]
The red and white R3 looks like an updated 1986 – 1988 RZ350 I loved so much. Roughly the same weight, same horsepower, similar displacement, both parallel twins… The only differences are you don’t need to drain the carbs, add two-stroke oil, replace fouled plugs, kick it to start it or back track down the street to pick up the pieces that rattled off. Placing my pre-order in 3… 2… 1…
Well, my 1990 Rz350N shall wait for you at your fave Sunday morning
coffee shop. Let’s have a wee romp in the country when you get that R3.
BTB, that is Castrol two-stroke injector oil you shall be smelling in my wake.
Lightweight Sport bike road racing anyone ?
Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki and KTM on STREET tires with minimal modifications ?
Come on racing organizations, grow a pair….
Lolz,
“Plus, it looks like an R-Class bike…” That is great, but when do we get one that IS an R-Class bike?
I admit that this is a welcomed improvement over the CBR and Ninja, and I hope it sparks a sub 400cc manufacturer war (NC-45 anyone?) But, I do think it is funny how they forgot to add the RC390 to the list of “other bikes”
I can’t wait for next spring to see all these bikes go head to head! (Too bad triumph pulled the plug on their 250)
CMG, let me know if you need an extra test rider 😉 😉
Do two fun things at once, like reading CMG while sitting on the crapper.
Hahahhahahahaha