Yamaha FZR

Benchmark in the Pure Sports arena

Like Suzuki, Yamaha was slow to embrace the four-stroke revolution, toe-dipping with street-specific models like the (Hosk designed) XS650 and 8v XS500. Three years after introducing the shaft drive XS750 triple Yamaha swung for the bleachers with the XS11 super bike. Square-jawed strong but not sporty, the big Eleven didn't stay on the throne long. The steel framed FZ750 came next, and while it earned favorable press with its screaming 20v four and capable handing, it lacked the GSX-R's cutting edge panache'. A global force in USGP, Yamaha opened the tap in 1987, allowing the latest technology to flow downward. The result was the FZR, a direct descendant of Yamaha's OW GP Works machines.

Hotly contested, the super bike class was trending in the late 80s. Realizing the popularity of the World Superbike stage, Honda was a force with the radical RC30 and inline Hurricane series, while the spar-frame Kawasaki ZX-7 tried to gain ground on Suzuki's legendary GSX-R. Making matters more interesting was Italy's Ducati; waking from a long slumber with its Pantah-based 900SS first, then the 851 Superbike. Clearly aimed at WSB dominance, Ducati veered away from the alloy beam trend with a spaced tube structure wrapped around its powerful Desmoquattro. And while Yamaha never claimed to invent the twin-beam aluminum frame, its Deltabox design was the first on a production motorcycle.

Designed to increase mixture volume and breathing without radical cam timing, the multi valve system was already common practice when Yamaha developed the Genesis. Even so, 5v per cylinder was unique to the FZR; the 2-inlet/3-exhaust layout viewed by Yamaha as the optimum arrangement given combustion chamber size. Released in (homologated for WSB) 750 and 1000cc versions, the engine used titanium rods and a lighter crankshaft for safe operation to 13,000 rpm. Most versions used two fairing ports which directed air into four flat-slide Mikuni carburetors. In 1989 the FZR received EXUP. Comprised of electronically controlled butterfly 'power valves', EXUP analyzes exhaust gas pressure to control exhaust valve timing on the fly. With engines growing increasingly peaky, the system smoothed power delivery and increased torque across the range. The last, 1000cc FZR was rated at 145-hp.

Remembered by notables such as Fogarty, Noriyuki Haga and Colin Edwards for its fast, forgivable handling, Yamaha's work to protect the steering tube from braking forces is just one reason why the general layout of the Deltabox is still used on the majority of production Japanese sport bikes today. Period FZR specs include a fully adjustable 43mm fork with twin 320mm rotors and 4p calipers. On the OW01, the aluminum monoshock uses an adjustable Ohlins with wheelbase spacing options thanks to a choice of rear wheel anchor points. The wheels are a uniform 17” using 120/170 width tires front and rear.

Collectable when released (especially in OW01 tune) what the FZR didn't achieve in racing successes pales in comparison to its impact on the sport bike industry. A true measure of the FZR's greatness is its ability to compare mechanically and compete with modern machinery in a sporting environment. Well made, handsome, fast and capable, the Yamaha FZR is a solid choice for the collector and rider alike. Nolan Woodbury