Taming a Beast: The New 2017 Yamaha FZ-09

By Ian Kelso

If you don’t find yourself pulling a little wheelie at least every once in a while on the 2017 FZ-09, you are either incredibly disciplined or you really should get a little more experience before riding such a powerful bike!

The FZ-09 has always been an ambitious, raw display of power. It has garnered more than a bit of a reputation as one of the ultimate hooligan machines. But since it’s introduction in 2014 there have been two major complaints lodged against it: that bike’s throttle was just too twitchy and untamed, and that the suspension...well...sucked.

Though in previous years Yamaha did make some refinements in the FZ's throttle mapping, it never quite found that happy place, you know, somewhere between overwhelmingly thrilling and way-outta-control-bat-shit crazy. 

So for 2017 we now have the first significant “refresh” of this super-basic sport-naked roadster from Yamaha, and with it perhaps an almost perfect value-for-money proposition in the middleweight naked category.

I LOVE TO GET NAKED

I am personally a huge fan of sport-nakeds: the combination of sinewy brute-muscle strength, upright seating position and bad-ass streetfighter aesthetic just works for me and my aging posture. Over the the past couple of years I’ve ridden most of the motorbikes in this category available in North America, but up until a few weeks ago the FZ-09 was the one really glaring omission from my portfolio.

I have some experience with siblings in the family though. In 2015 I fell in love with a slightly awkward looking FJ-09 which shares that same platform, and we spent three blissful weeks together. Early last year I took out the 4-cylinder FZ-10 and then later the third triple in the 850cc lineup, the XSR-900.  These were all bikes that though they didn’t at first completely hit the mark for me in the looks and personality departments, man did I have fun riding them!!

But from the time I began to review bikes, the FZ-09 -- first introduced in 2014 -- wasn’t available in the Yamaha press bike pool.  I never even managed to track one down at a dealer demo ride. So in assessing the refreshed 2017 FZ-09, I have no actual direct point of comparison to its predecessor except what has been widely reported it in the motorsports press.

And those reports were pretty consistent: great bike, great value, soft front end, watch it doesn’t bit your head off!

FIRST IMPRESSION

As a 6’4”, 200 lb. rider, so there are not a lot of bikes that fit me perfectly. Yeah I can flat foot a tall adventure bike, but supersport bikes tend to be designed to optimally fit smaller than average sized humans. Sport nakeds vary a bit, but are generally pretty accommodating. Aside from the fit for comfort though, it matters how you look on a bike. People often comment on how small my Ducati Hypermotard looks when I am riding it. The 1290 SuperDuke R on the other hand, looks nicely proportional. The FZ-09 looks and felt much smaller than I expected. By appearance it is one of the more “undressed” of the naked bikes, lacking all but the barest of plastic parts for protection. This leaves little to the imagination when it comes to getting a good view of that sexy cross-plane triple.  Certainly my first impression may have had something to do with the fact I came directly off the FJ-09, and though it has the same power plant, its look and feel is that of a larger touring bike.  So though the FZ-09 was not uncomfortably cramped, I felt a little self-conscious about how huge I must have looked in the saddle.

EVERYDAY RIDING 

Around town the FZ-09 was a perfectly happy commuter. I tend to ride most bikes in “sport” mode unless there are especially slippery road conditions, as I like the immediate delivery of power. And though you could certainly beckon loads and loads of thrust without any hesitation, its delivery was just smooth enough that it never felt twitchy of uncontrolled.  It just felt “very, very, very spirited”.  In fact the FZ-09 has torque everywhere. On the highway it took absolutely no effort whatsoever to blast past whatever I got bored of riding beside…in almost any gear. It was just "zing" and "buh bye!".  I personally just loved having access to this amount of torque, especially at highway speed, to manoeuvre out of whatever situation I don't want to be in. The FZ put a smile on my face each and every time I got to ride her.

NEW FOR 2017

The new 2017 FZ-09 also addresses the other significant complaint the original inspired: crappy suspension. Because of the overly soft front end and the lack of damping control in the 2014 to 2016 models, Revzilla called the original FZ “basically unrideable” without an aftermarket upgrade. The new FZ features a fully adjustable 41mm inverted fork with 137mm of travel making for a perfectly acceptable ride for what most road bike users will realistically throw at it.  I certainly gave it my best in the corners and curves and I had no complaints whatsoever!

Also new for this version 2.0 of the FZ-09, some electronic safety features that have become more standard-issue over the past few years. This includes 3-position traction control (one of those positions being “off”), ABS brakes and a slipper clutch. A note about the traction control system: it does cut the engine rather abruptly when the front wheel comes up to fast, and this can be a little disconcerting.

LOOKS

The FZ-09 has adopted a bit of the alien-robot-predator appearance of the newer FZ-10 which was introduced last year, the most notable manifestation of that is in the front-end design with its bright quad LED headlight. Otherwise the FZ-09 is a pretty straightforward standard naked design that feels more sporty-athletic-lean than streetfighter.

CHARACTER 

We fall in love with people according to their unique presentation of strengths and flaws. It’s what sets us apart and – in a way – makes us human. My biggest complaint overall with Japanese manufacturers has nothing to do with performance: it’s with personality. It’s not that the FZ-09 lacks a character, it’s just that it has been smoothed and refined to the point of anonymity. The Italians get it. Harley Davidson has trademarked theirs. Wben motorcycles seem to become too much pieces of technology, and not the hand-built machines they once were, we lose a bit of  the deep emotional connection. BMW has, in recent years, begun to design their bikes with some slightly more rough edges: some rumbles, vibrations and sputters.  In a value for money comparison, Japanese bikes are hard to beat. The FZ-09 is no exception. But maybe if Japanese should put a little more emphasis on design over engineering, it may actually give them an even bigger edge over their Euro competitors.

THE DETAILS

MSRP: CAD 9,749  / USD 8,999
Engine: 847cc liquid-cooled, DOHC, inline 3-cylinder
Power: N/A
Torque: 64.5 lb/ft @ 8500 rpm
Weight: 425 lbs (wet)

COMPETITORS

Kawasaki Z900 ABS
Triumph Street Triple
Ducati Monster 821