Yamaha YZF R15 V3 review
The R15 v3 BS6 now gets side-stand engine cut-off switch, dual horns, blue rims on the Racing Blue trim and a radial rear tyre.
Design
Yamaha hasn’t tinkered around with the styling of the new R15, and it remains the same sharp looking motorcycle that it was since 2018. While the graphics on the grey and Dark Knight colours look similar to the BS4 bike, the Racing Blue gets refreshed graphics with a silver strip bearing the R15 logo plastered across the fairing.
Performance
Powering the R15 v3 is the same 155cc single-cylinder liquid-cooled 4-valve motor with Variable Valve Actuation (VVA). Power output of 18.6PS and 14.1Nm are 0.7PS and 0.6Nm less than its BS4 counterpart. But it continues to remain the most powerful 150cc motorcycle in India. You find the trademark Deltabox frame on the R15 v3 which had to be tweaked slightly for its third generation. The India-spec motorcycle employs 41mm conventional telescopic fork and an aluminium swingarm with a monoshock unit. Braking duties are taken care of by a 282mm disc with a twin piston caliper on the front wheel while the rear wheel gets a single-piston caliper acting on a 220mm rear disc. While tyre sizes haven’t changed, Yamaha is now offering a radial tyre on the rear wheel. While it is still a weird combination of a cross-ply front and radial rear tyre, we are sure that grip levels are bound to be better with the new offered rubber.
Features
The Yamaha R15 features sleek twin LED headlights and LED tail-light. It gets a full digital dash with a plethora of information on offer like two trip meters, average fuel efficiency indicator, gear position indicator and a bar-type tachometer. Dual-channel ABS comes as standard. The R15 v3 also gets Variable Valve Actuation, which is Yamaha lingo for variable valve timing. Thanks to the presence of this tech, the R15 is able to eke out maximum top end performance without sacrificing on low-end grunt. This tech is usually found on big capacity motorcycles, so kudos to Yamaha for kitting the small R15 with this feature.
