VOL. 51 ISSUE 29 JULY 22, 2014 P57
you don't want to overdo it and
make the bike difficult to control.
You'd also want it to be as light
as possible. With that in mind,
Yamaha opted to design a new
fuel-injected, 698cc parallel-twin
motor with a DOHC, four-valve-
per-cylinder head design for the
FZ-07. When it comes to reduc-
ing weight, two cylinders equals
fewer parts and with a single axis
balancer (plus the water and oil
pump sharing the same shaft)
even more weight is saved.
With a bore and stroke of 88.0
x 68.6mm and a new 270-degree
cross-plane crank, Yamaha's
new FZ-07 achieves a maximum
torque output of 50.2 foot-
pounds and 75 horsepower at
the crank, according to Yamaha.
Not bad.
And even better is the eco-
nomical nature of the FZ-07. At a
claimed 58 mpg compared to the
FZ6R, which "only" gets 43 mph,
the FZ-07 is even more appeal-
ing to the everyday commuter
and weekend fun seeker. Even
with a smaller, 3.7-gallon fuel
tank (compared to the FZ6R's
4.6-gallon fuel cell), the FZ-07
will cover 214.6 miles compared
to the FZ6R's 197.8 miles. Again,
not too shabby.
Another interesting fact is that
the FZ-07 shares the same off-
set cylinder layout as the YZR-M1
MotoGP bike and the FZ-09. By
positioning the cylinder 7mm to-
ward the front of the motor from
the center of the crankshaft, cyl-
inder-to-piston friction has been
reduced, which in turn reduces
horsepower loss and increases
fuel efficiency. The cross-plane/
offset cylinder design contributes
to giving the engine more torque
with enhanced low to midrange
power and a smoother throttle
response.
A new wide-ratio, six-speed
transmission allows the rider to
forgo frequent gear changes with
the intention of enjoying a broad-
er powerband and focusing more
on throttle input. All these little
design features really help out
with the overall goal of develop-
ing a bike of this nature.
As we made our way onto Bain-
bridge Island our route involved
some in-town riding with plenty
of stoplights and traffic. I'm pretty
much of average height at around
5' 10" and on certain bikes put-
ting your foot down at every in-
tersection can be a pain. With
