Yamaha MT-15

The Yamaha MT-15 borrows the latest design philosophy of naked roadsters from Yamaha, by being in line with the bigger MTs, like the MT-09 and MT-07. The aggression and sharpness of the Yamaha MT-15 are bound to turn many heads, and many might mistake it as a much more powerful and bigger motorcycle than what it actually is.

The front face of the Yamaha MT-15 looks menacing in a welcoming way, with a robotic headlamp cluster comprising of a bi-beam LED projector bulb with a V-shaped black plastic cowl above it housing twin LED positioning lamps. Just at the upper corners of this black plastic cowl, the basic clear lens turn indicators are mounted, which could have looked a bit cooler if they were LED units like the main headlamp. What adds furthermore beauty to the front of the motorcycle is the golden theme executed for the front upside-down forks.

The side profile of the Yamaha MT-15 makes it looks very athletic. Despite having a slightly upright set handlebar, the Yamaha MT-15 manages to look sporty, thanks to the sharp-looking fuel tank with long and angular knee recesses, which accommodate faux air vents in them and have radiator shrouds at their bottom ends. The exposed aluminium frame, entire engine and cycle parts surrounding it and the big engine cowl are all finished in black, and so is the single-piece exhaust pipe shared with the YZF-R15.

The Yamaha MT-15 has got a very slim and upright tailpiece, which has a long single-piece seat and ends up in a compact tail lamp unit, which is a clear lens LED unit here. The tailpiece lacks a proper pillion grab rail, which along with the compact perch for the pillion makes things not so comfortable for the pillion rider. The rear profile of the Yamaha MT-15 has got a very long and extended rear fender, which have got turn indicators mounted on them.

The small rectangular instrument console of the Yamaha MT-15 is a full TFT LCD unit with a blue backlit theme. This completely digital unit has readouts for speedometer, tachometer, fuel gauge, odometer, trip meters, gear indicator and clock, however, the small fonts are quite hard to read on the go and the unit itself could have had more information on board.

Apart from the engine, even the basic mechanical architecture under the skin of the Yamaha MT-15 is from the YZF-R15, which includes a diamond type frame and a suspension combination of upside down hydraulic telescopic forks at the front and fully adjustable mono-shock with rectangular swing-arm at the back. The bike has been fitted with the same brakes, tires and wheels as that in the YZF-R15, with 17-inch wheels shod with tubeless tires and single disc brake setup on both the wheels.

The Yamaha MT-15 retains its four-stroke, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected, 155cc motor with variable valve actuation system from its faired sibling, the YZF-R15. Here too, the engine is paired to a 6-speed gearbox and is in the same state of tune as that in the YZF-R15, with the maximum power and torque outputs rated at 19.3 PS and 14.5 Nm respectively.

The Yamaha MT-15, being an entry-level performance-oriented motorcycle, gets the basics done right by having an assist and slipper clutch and engine kill switch on the place. However, the presence of a proper ABS unit would have been appreciated.

Based on the very capable Yamaha YZF-R15, the Yamaha MT-15 is the naked version of the same, and retains all the positive attributes of the former, by having a top-notch quality feel, punchy and refined engine and agile riding dynamics with a fantastic chassis underneath.