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2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 AND YZF-R1M FIRST RIDE P56 and midcorner rebound is more controlled, and once you start to really wind the throttle on the Öhlins just soaks it up with such poise, such precision that it kinda feels like the bike is laugh- ing at you. Probably is. "Is that all you got?!" The R1M just urges you to get on the brakes harder, turn in later and faster and accel- erate earlier and harder. It tracks so sweetly; look where you want to go and the R1M takes you there. As mentioned with the standard R1, you can change corner tact easily but on the R1M you can do it almost by osmosis, even with the larger 200-sec- tion rear tire (the standard R1 comes with a 190). Think about the apex and boom, there it is. For a rider of my capability this is a complete boon—it gives you such supreme confidence that after a while you forget about what the bike's doing and just focus on riding smooth and fast, which, really, is what a good electronics package is designed to do. For cornering bliss, here's a good recipe: Start with some ripe electronic Öhlins, add a little Slide Control, a touch of Traction Control, a pinch of Lift Control, bake for one second gear cor- ner, short shift to third and you'll have a meal even Jamie Oliver would be proud of. Again, it's the feeling of all the electronic gizmos working together, making you go ever faster, your confidence on a distinct upward climb. The Öhlins comes with three automatic preset limits but you can disengage the auto-adjust- ing feature and have your usual manual Öhlins suspension, of which you can also preset three different maps. But don't worry; you can still preset your click- ers and preloads via the dash, so no need for C-spanners and screwdrivers. It's all so easy, and if you add the Communication Control Unit to the mix where you change everything from your tablet or smartphone, you really get a feel for how futuristic this thing is. Yamaha has firmly, decisively put its hat back in the Superbike ring. The new R1 and R1M are both awesome machines and will flatter many a rider's skill level, while at the same time challenging them to get the most out of their riding. In making the new R1, they have fulfilled their desire to create a stupidly fast track-focused machine that's ac- cessible to the weekend warrior while still giving the pros some- thing to cheer about. It's hard to say if this is a quantum leap or not because there are a couple of other bikes out there with similar (although not one with all the Yamaha's got) electronic systems, but this is surely a new benchmark in usability, technol- ogy and sheer gut-wrenching excitement. It looks mad and goes better. I must proffer a gentleman's golf clap to Yamaha for creating the 2015 YZF-R1. CN SPECIFICATIONS 2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1/R1M ENGINE TYPE: ..........Liquid-cooled, inline four-cylinder, four-valves per cylinder, four-stroke DISPLACEMENT: ............................. 998cc BORE X STROKE: ................70 x 50.9mm COMPRESSION RATIO: .....................13.0:1 CLAIMED HORSEPOWER: ................... N/A CLAIMED TORQUE: ............................. N/A FUELING: ...........Electronic fuel injection, 45mm throttle bodies TRANSMISSION: ...........................6-speed FINAL DRIVE: ................. Chain (41T/67T) CLUTCH: ....... Wet, multiplate-disc Assist and Slipper type FRAME: .................... Aluminum twin-spar diamond design RAKE/TRAIL: .........................24°/102mm FRONT SUSPENSION: ............ KYB 43mm inverted fork, fully adjustable (43mm Öhlins Electronic Racing Suspension on R1M) REAR SUSPENSION: ............... Single KYB shock absorber, fully adjustable (Öhlins Electronic Racing Suspension on R1M) FRONT WHEEL TRAVEL: ................120mm REAR WHEEL TRAVEL: ...................120mm FRONT WHEEL: .................. 10-spoke cast Magnesium, 3.5 x 17 REAR WHEEL: ..................... 10-spoke cast Magnesium, 6.0 X 17 FRONT TIRE: ........................120/70/ZR17 Bridgestone Battlax RS10FG REAR TIRE: ......................... 190/55/ZR17 Bridgestone Battlax RS10RG (200/55/ ZR17 Bridgestone Battlax RS10RG on R1M) FRONT BRAKE: ......... Dual 320mm discs, dual four-piston radial-mount calipers with ABS and UBS REAR BRAKE: ...................Single 220mm, single-piston caliper with ABS and UBS FUEL CAPACITY: ......................... 4.49 gal. CLAIMED WEIGHT: ....... 439 .lbs (441 .lbs R1M) WARRANTY: ................. 2 years unlimited MSRP: ................................................. TBC