Yamaha XSR300/XSR250 Leak | Photo Credit: The Bike Zone
Back in Early 2019, there were rumours about two sport heritage XSR models which are on the development stage. Later that year the Yamaha released the XSR155 based on the YZF-R15 in Thailand. The other one, XSR300 using YZF-R3 as the base, the launch date is expected in this October.
Yamaha XSR155
The reports of the Yahama XSR300 first came in 2016. Back then, Young Machine, a Japanese motorcycle magazine published a rendering of the XSR300/ XSR250. However, current sources suggest that Yamaha is working specifically on the XSR300.
Looking at the rendering, the 300 follows the same design quirks of its bigger and smaller brothers: round headlamps, circular taillamps and instrumental cluster. Not to forget the teardrop shape fuel tank which is also unique to the XSR series.
Rendering of the XSR300 from the Magazine
As for the powertrain, the XSR300 would be powered by YZF-R3’s 321cc parallel-twin motor with the 6-speed gearbox. This motor produces 40.8bhp and 29.6Nm of torque. However, the powertrain gets a special treatment from Yamaha to give it a more low and mid-range torque.
In the case of the suspension, the bike would feature the R3’s KYB 37mm upside-down telescopic fork at the front and mono-shock with an adjustable preload at the back to give it a modern touch. As for the brakes, the bike would feature disc brakes at both ends while offering dual-channel ABS as standard. Additionally, the single-piece diamond-shape seat and the swingarm would also be the same unit from the R3.
Looking at the R15 based MT-15 and the XSR155 released in 2019, we hope for this year Yamaha launches the R3 based naked MT-03 and XSR300 heritage models. We have to wait and see what Yamaha has to offer for the year 2020!
In the case of Asia, motorbike manufacturers have started to launch premium models in small displacement variants because of the demand for small bikes in the Asian market.