2021 Yamaha MT-09 review - firm’s uber-popular naked gets a full makeover and more of everything

Yamaha’s MT-09 gets its first major update since it hit showrooms at the end of 2013. The fast, light, punchy and affordable naked roadster motorbike helped reverse the Japanese firm’s then ailing fortunes.

But now the R&D department in Iwata have reforged their howling three cylinder and like a fresh piece of tasty sushi, it’s been sliced, diced and rolled into a brand-new lighter, more powerful machine. The naked arrives in dealers in April with a bigger three-cylinder engine, new frame, styling, colour dash and electronic rider aids.

Its distinctive aesthetics remain but the MT-09 gets new plastics including a face-lift with LED projector headlights and position lights. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that, but its understated front end is at odds with the rest of the Yamaha’s beefy styling. It’s available in three colours: Icon Blue and Tech Black, which won’t get any pulses racing, but the slightly retro Storm Fluo of our test bike is the most fetching of the trio.

Yamaha have achieved their goal by elevating the thrill and credibility of the MT-09. It’s now taken a step closer to the image and appeal of the Triumph Street Triple RS and KTM 890 Duke R and comes alive on windy roads.

Gripes like the uncomfortable seat and uninspiring dash are relatively minor compared to the confidence, enjoyment and value the new bike brings. Its outright performance will leave you wanting more from time to time, but it’s as happy to be as much a sturdy every-dayer as a bike to excite and constantly reassure.

The standard bike was followed up by the even more capable Yamaha MT-09 SP that uses higher spec suspension components to take things to the next level.

In 2024 this bike was replaced by a new MT-09.

Watch our Yamaha MT-09 SP video review here:

Words by Adam Wheeler

A new cast ali frame and swingarm is designed for more precise cornering. The more compact chassis is 2.3kg lighter with 50% more lateral rigidity and its forged wheels shave almost another kilogram for less gyro inertia.

Forks are shorter to place more weight over the front wheel, which used to be a problem and handlebars are higher to maintain its upright riding position.

Weighing just 189kg fully fuelled (4kg less than before), it’s now easier to throw around and combined with its impressive Bridgestone S22 tyres, has a front end that sticks and holds, even on damp and dirty roads. Four pot radial calipers and twin 298mm discs remain, but the master cylinder is now radial.

There were never any complaints from the previous engine but now the MT-09’s throaty Euro5 triple grows from 847cc to 889cc thanks to a longer stroke.

It has new pistons, conrods, cams, engine cases, clutch and gearbox with taller first and second ratios. Yamaha MT-09 bhp is up from 113bhp to 117bhp (still at 10,000rpm) and torque boosted from 64lb-ft@8500rpm to 67lb-ft@7000rpm.

It will struggle to match a KTM twin, but it’s suitably grunty and only begins to gasp when tapped out on a motorway. The new exhaust's MotoGP-like shriek can be unsettling at first but adds to the MT’s character.

In-depth: The Yamaha MT-09's exhaust tech

First published 8 January 2021 by Ben Purvis

Yamaha’s engineers have spent countless hours on the dyno and the road trying to perfect the sound of the 2021 Yamaha MT-09, with its heavily revamped 889cc triple. But how, and why? Read on to find out...

With strict limits to meet, the first job was to minimise noises elsewhere on the bike. As well as giving more leeway within the legal limit by reducing things like gear whine, this meant engineers could make the exhaust and intake notes more noticeable.

Yamaha have also kept within the noise limits by using Sound-absorbing perforated steel sections on selected parts of the silencer walls help cut noise, while the shape and internal pipe length tunes the exhaust note.

Where the old bike had three long header pipes, merging into one shortly before the main silencer, the new MT-09’s pipes are joined into a single, large exhaust much earlier.

That’s because Euro5 emissions laws require catalytic converters to get up to operating temperature more quickly than Euro4, and moving the cat closer to the exhaust outlet is the solution. Other than that, the belly-mounted silencer looks superficially similar to before, but inside it’s very different.

Internally, the old model’s silencer had three chambers. The exhaust gasses were piped into the central one, where they’d bounce about before accessing a connector pipe into the rearmost chamber. From there, a longer connector pipe ran all the way to the front chamber where the gasses had to make another U-turn.

The new bike has what Yamaha call a ‘1.5 chamber’ muffler. There’s a single internal wall that separates the rear two-thirds from the front third. The main pipe takes the gasses through the front chamber and releases them into the large rear one, which is shaped to help reduce sound as they bounce around inside it before entering the front chamber via a large hole in the separating wall.

From there, the gases make a 180-degree turn before entering two pipes connected to exhaust exits on each side of the silencer. This means the four exhaust gas U-turns required for the old design have been cut to two, which results in a free-flowing pipe, gives designers more flexibility over length and shaves 1.4kg of weight.

The engine has evolved from the previous version but is still based on the same tried and tested architecture. We wouldn't expect any new reliability issues. The new dash feels a bit plasticky, which is disappointing.

Our 2021 Yamaha MT-09 owners' reviews indicate a few issues with the build quality of parts, but nothing structural or mechanical. It's mainly around the corrosion of bolts and the method of tapping holes during manufacture.

At launch, the Yamaha MT-09 cost £8999 in standard trim and £10,199 for the SP version. That means it undercuts both of its main rivals, the £10,500 Triumph Street Triple RS and £10,399 KTM 890 Duke R.

For £50 less than the Yamaha you can get the more powerful, four-cylinder Kawasaki Z900 but that doesn't have as much character as the Yamaha and its CP3 inline triple engine.

For 2021, the Ducati Monster was heavily updated and ditched its trellis frame for the first time. The resultant bike is a joy to ride on the road and with prices starting at £11,295, it's a pretty affordable way into Ducati ownership, too.

Group test verdict: Yamaha MT09 vs KTM 890 Duke vs Triumph Street Triple R vs Ducati Monster

First published in MCN 19 April 2023 by Jon Urry

In 2023 Jon Urry pit the MT-09 against three of its main rivals, the KTM 890 Duke, Triumph's Street Triple R and the Ducati Monster. Here's his verdict:

"When you look at the performance they deliver and the level of spec, you are left questioning if there is any need to step-up a rung and buy their bigger-capacity siblings. Or, indeed, a super-naked at all – especially if you take into account value and the sheer fun you get from working a bike whose power is more than enough to thrill but never intimidate. So which is the  best? As fun as the KTM and Yamaha are to ride, they still have a slight element of aggression that makes them more demanding than the Triumph or Ducati. While undeniably fun when in the mood, you can have just as much entertainment on the Triple or Monster and never suffer the downsides when wanting to take it easy, which is why the Ducati and Triumph emerged as our top picks.

"Out of the four riders, three of us reckoned the Triumph’s feeling of completeness made it the best bike on test, while Bruce championed the Monster, simply as he liked the fact the Ducati emblem on its tank gave it a bit more kerb-appeal over the Street Triple and would be prepared to pay the extra for it.

"You would be more than happy to have any one of these middleweights/premium middleweights/semi-super nakeds in your garage as they are all brilliant – whatever they are called, but the Triumph is our pick of the crop."

Just like an R1 superbike the MT-09 now has a six-axis IMU to provide traction, slide and wheelie control and cornering ABS, none of which encroaches on the bike’s general feel.

It also comes with a quickshifter and autoblipper as standard and although the downshifts need a good stab, the system is splendidly effective and robust feeling, as well as producing a satisfyingly addictive crackle and pop through the gears.

Yamaha claims the new 3.5in colour multi-function TFT dash is designed to produce ‘the least distraction possible’ but the small, unimaginative and plasticky unit feels like an afterthought.

There's a whopping 55-strong range of touring, cosmetic and performance accessories, including everything from a tail tidy, to rearsets, tank pad, panniers, heated grips, crash protection and a full Akrapovic exhaust system costing £1588.

The MT-09 also shapeshifts with the ‘Weekend’ and ‘Urban’ packs that include add-ons such as a screen and top box.

A comfort seat is also available for £217, which could be worthwhile as the stock saddle can feel a little slippery at times and actually comes standard on the higher spec MT-09SP. The SP version costs £10,199 and also has higher-grade KYB forks, an Öhlins shock, cruise control and a host of blacked out components.