Visit Yamaha's Official site for the YZF600R
Manufacturer: Yamaha Model: 1997 YZF600R Price: $ 7,399 Engine: 599cc liquid-cooled inline DOHC Bore and Stroke: 62 by 49.6mm Displacement: 599cc Carburetion: Four 36mm Keihin Transmission: 6 speed Wheelbase: 55.7" Seat Height: 31.7" Fuel Capacity: [5.0 gallons, with 0.8 gallon reserve] Claimed Dry Weight: 411 lbs Measured Wet Weight: 482 lbs Peak Horsepower: 88.5 bhp at 12,000 rpm Peak Torque: 45.7 ft-lbs at 9,500 rpm Quarter Mile: 11.21 at 123.02 mph
Then we went to the Streets of Willow, the only racetrack I've found that closely mimics conditions on the street -- one 130 mph fourth-gear sweeper with a tricky dip in the middle joins a bunch of first- and second-gear turns. Entering that day, I was really leaning towards the Honda and it's overall superior performance. But once there, I spent 20 or so laps on the YZF running ahead of Gord on the GSXR, which was really odd because Gord was generally faster than me that day. As we swooped around expert-class racers and a Honda RS125 two-stroke or two, I found that the YZF really shines exiting turns -- I felt best on the Yamaha power-sliding it out onto the front straight, trying to accelerate far enough away from the Suzuki on corner exits so Gord couldn't pull a sissy drafting move around me. In general, it worked. Then, using the excellent brakes, I could dive deep enough into turns to stay far enough ahead of the quick-turning Suzuki on corner entries to hold Gord up mid-corner and squirt away on the exit. And then the cycle began anew. Big fun, for me at least, and I did my fastest lap of the day on the YZF while playing tag with Gord.
So we all headed off to dinner and tallied up the votes. The Yamaha -- which finished a unanimous first in the street riding arena, had the best brakes and is the cheapest -- won a landslide victory: three of the six voting riders placed it first. Was I ever shocked! I was sure I'd be the only one to name it king of the hill. After all, it lost in the numbers game, and everyone buys bikes based on numbers and hype, right? I certainly hope not. Don't let dyno numbers or lap times sway you, if you're a good street rider, the YZF is the best bike for you. And it's the cheapest.
If, like me, you don't want to go racing, then the YZF makes perfect sense. It's the cheapest of the bunch, most comfortable by far, and its torquey motor delivers its punch right where I want it -- in the mid-rpm range while driving off a corner. There's plenty of suspension adjustability, and talk about killer brakes... they don't come any better than the Yamaha's. In my book, the YZF600R just might be the best all-around middleweight sportbike ever.
