Yamaha YZF 600 R

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Yamaha YZF 600 R

Two way Cat

Sometimes a cuddly cat, sometimes a wild tiger. The Yamaha YZF 600 R Thundercat should be both: touring athlete and racing machine.

Ah, wonderful, the big lament of the lightweight freaks is about to rise. You will squirm, will turn away, shaking your head. There will be heated discussions. And they will explain with wild gesticulations how to do it better, singing the hymn of carbon fibers, light metals and hollow-drilled white nothing: the YZF 600 R is just on the scales.

The Thundercat faces its heavy weight with all the essential fluids on board, the 19-liter tank full to the brim: the pointer slowly swivels into the 200-kilogram region. Keep pushing, persevering. 210. Okay. 215. All right, Yamaha confessed that the Thunder Cat (dry) weighs two kilograms more than the disused FZR. 218. Now it’s getting critical. 220, 21, 22 – two hundred twenty-three kilos. Unheard of. That’s a whopping nine kilos over FZR weight.

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Yamaha YZF 600 R

Yamaha YZF 600 R
Two way Cat

Yamaha is very useful in everyday use. The world has not seen such a relaxed seating position on a sports motorcycle for a long time: Everything has space, everything can move freely. There is no forced crouching posture that forces the upper body into the knees and the knees into the armpits. Here you are human, here you can be.

Little people who naturally stick close to the tank, unfortunately, don’t have it all that well, as the seat bench is slightly less padded in the front area and leaves a tiny, sometimes oppressive gap open to the unyielding metal. They also have to conquer the new seat height, which has increased by xx centimeters compared to the FZR. Apart from that, toddlers find just as much hospitality at the YZF as giant ones. Only the sports cannons are lacquered because they don’t know what to do with the tourist attitude.

Even the chassis tuning does not grant them eternal peace: Despite increased reserves, the telescopic fork sometimes goes to deep diving during hard stopping maneuvers, and when the load comes out of the spring towards the rear, the nice braking stability is spoiled. But firstly it sounds worse than it is and secondly it only comes into play on chopped up surfaces.

Off the racetrack, the bumpers like. They dampen pretty much everything that road construction has to offer in terms of garbage, without losing stability. However, if the worst mogul slopes that require long lifting movements are taken in flight, the YZF’s convincing idea collapses: not that the spring elements would break through. On the contrary: the rear shock absorber gathers mercilessly during compression and becomes rock-hard.

Of course, under such conditions that the YZF works flawlessly in two-person operation. And the best thing about it: A passenger will find a first-class freight forwarder in it.

You can tell from its nose that the Yamaha has a big heart for tourist activities: The new fairing is bursting with aerodynamically favorable values ​​and is by no means stingy with the wind protection. That helps enormously when eating kilometers. It’s also nice that there is no rude awakening after a full tank of top speed: the YZF burns a maximum of 7.9 liters of normal over 100 kilometers.

In a straight line, the storm cat runs flawlessly up to 220 km / h, over it it begins to commute slightly, which can be attributed to the series tires Metzeler ME Z1, of which there are otherwise only positive things to report: high steering precision, good grip, a lot of comfort.

Incidentally, top speed at the Thundercat means 234 km / h. But that doesn’t say a word about the qualities of the revised 600 engine. This engine cannot be understood on the basis of disdainful figures: the forced-ventilation sixteen-valve engine is one of the boy prodigies. Where other four-cylinder cylinders of the same displacement are still struggling desperately for pulling power, here it is already pushing like a small steam locomotive. Nevertheless, the Donnerofen has a fiery, easy-turning temperament.

The refined, quiet tones of the modified exhaust system go perfectly with the powerful, smooth running of the engine. The tough crackers harmonize less well when shifting, which is sometimes very stubborn.

Despite this inadequacy, the YZF drive unit shines as a highlight in the 600’s firmament. Likewise the front delay unit. Words like “one-piece four-piston caliper, fine controllability, clear pressure point, bite, power and stability” didn’t sound so awkward – you would have to write an ode to this braking system to do justice to its perfect nature. Professional athletes like street sweepers should be happy with it.

The latter can confidently try their luck with the complete YZF package. There is nothing to lose. Laurel pickers, on the other hand, will hardly be able to avoid doing a thing or two for their thunder cat. But the cat kits are ready and don’t forget: cats would buy whiskas.

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