Yamaha Motor YZF-R15 v2.0

Everyday commuter – Had this bike for the past 2 years. Ride to and from work everyday, approximately a 45 minute ride. Does well in 80km/hr zones, however struggles a bit on freeways. Can tell from the increased vibrations when having to maintain 7000 rev/min. Would recommend especially due to the fuel economy. Get up to 400km per tank  Show details

Great bike for a nervous rider – I had a chance to ride this bike for over 6 months because my sister was getting into riding but lost interest very quickly and moved onto liking cars... So on occasion, I would ride this to do short trips, HOWEVER it maybe because I have been riding a more powerful bike but the 150cc bike lacks power very drastically. So much so that it made… Read more

me feel very unsafe?

It does reach speeds over 100km quiet easily but the sound and minor rattling is very uneasy.

The seating position is proper sports bike but the lack of power really gets frustrating when starting off from the lights.

it is however very light and nimble on corners and easy to manage but definitely will not recommend for beginner riders.

The Pros:

1. very light and nimble

2. Very good fuel consumption

3. feels sporty when riding

4. looks good

5. Very affordable

The Cons:

1. Lacks power

2. alot of rattle and vibration on high rpm

3. majority of delivery riders own one

4. doesn't give you confidence

Yamaha YZF-R15 – I bought this bike on last year with great discount from motobiz blacktown. Service is bit expensive but more cheaper on fuel. I used everyday for travel from home to work and work to home. It is great saving machine. Can't expect more than this from this motorcycle. No need for bigger engine.  Show details

awesome choice – what can i say , best choice i made in the last 2 years , if you live near the city lets say under 10km then this is your ride ,easy to ride ,excellent performance ,cheap to run , parking is free, looks are sporty and learners approved ,just one awesome  Show details

My first bike – When researching which bike to get I was eyeing up the R15 and the KTM RC200, reviews of the RC200 said it had a more aggressive riding position and the reliable came into question a number of times. I ended up going with the Yamaha because of the reliable associated with the brand. In reviews of the R15 I read that the tires that come standard… Read more

on them aren't great nor is the front disc brake, both of which had already been replaced by the first owner during it's first service. Once I decided to go from the R15 a number of my friends that are riders tried to talk my out of it, their reasoning was that I would want to upgrade to something bigger too soon after getting it due to most lawnmowers having bigger capacity engines. But I figured being a learner as long as I don't hold up traffic that is all I need. 6 months on I haven't changed my view point as this bike has enough power to easily pass the speed limits. Yes in a couple of years time I may wish to upgrade to something bigger but I am in no rush to do so.

I have done an over 300Km road-trip on my R15, being my first road-trip I took my time and had lots of stops and breaks. The weather at the time was very warm and my route was very hilly that I was a bit worried about the bike overheating like my cellphone had been doing, but the temperature of the bike was fine. Due to the slightly aggressive riding position I did have very sore wrists and neck after my road-trip.

There have been two things on the bike that didn't really live up to Yamaha's great name. On my first re-fuel the fuel gauge stopped working, which was the ballcock float had detached itself inside the fuel tank and more alarming was the amount of rust appearing on welds and joins of the bike. First I noticed a patch of rust on the join between the tail section and main frame on the uphill side of the bike when it is on the stand, I figured that it was a prime position for rust to appear as it was easy for water to pool there, so there wouldn't be any more rust. So I cleaned up that spot of rust and then noticed another patch of rust, this time the joint just behind the handle bars and top of the front forks, to clean up that section of rust easily I had to remove the fairings and on doing so I was tempted to strip the whole bike and get the frame acid dipped and re-painted as under the fairings almost every second weld and join had rust on it. I am not sure if this amount of rust was due to the first owner not storing the bike well or if it had a bad original paint job (too thin or missed spots) or it is due to the bike growing up next to the seaside. I am putting it down as a combination of all three and still highly recommend this bike but keep an eye out for that old lemon with too much rust as the years creep on to this bike.

Great looking bike with enough power for the road, just don't bank on the Yamaha name on this one.

What can you do to a R15 – I have 2 Yamaha R15 V2 1 IS TOTALLY standard and 1 has been heavily modified THE standard R15 is a ok bike but for the price you don't complain it's a weak bike but has good looks. But really it's a scooter with a gearbox Now the modified version is a different story yes it's a baby race bike but you will have to be prepared to… Read more

spend money on it around 2 k so then you in the the R3 Ninja 300 and Rc 290 Terrirtory? On Price the thing is when you buy those bikes you will want to spend money on them to get them to go better too ??

My R15 modified is fantastic I love it

handles great good pick up brakes work well and over all it a nice bike

My mod R15 is 20 kmh faster then the standard and hasn't had any internal work done to it

He is a list of mods done

Race tires not ome

race coil

multi spark plug 1 plug colder

Fork brace

320 mm front disc

race exhaust full system

Race throttle

steering damper

programmable ecu

S/S air filter

Shimmed front fork springs

rear shock adjusable

when you spend the dollars on it it just wants to go and be raced

1 MORE THING MOTOR OIL ??

DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME WITH SYNTHETIC OIL IS A GIMMICK and you R15 won't like it

stick to semi synthetic as you gear box will love you for it

I have tried 12 different oils in it

and my pick is the Putatine 15w 50 great oil will smooth out that slight vibration they have as standard

hope this helps anyone wanting to mod there R15

Happy riding ☺☺

Perfect bike for learners! – I got this bike as new from local yamaha Sydney dealer. Stylish, Powerful(though it's just 150cc but has 12kw). Owning this bike for only one month and love it. Only thing is neutral is sometimes hard to kick but I think because it's new?? And the price is acceptable with lower cost on CTP and insurance (Again because of it's 150cc) Recommend for learners and daily commuters.  Show details

Awesome riding experience – Please don't fall for the rumours about the seaing position of the split seat. In v2. The riding experence is great for a person who has a desire to race. And the top speed of 130 is a fake it can do better, after several service. And only problem i see is that the bike cannot actually defeat its most compitators like the rc200,rs200, but it can over the sf150&apache190 or bike lower than 200cc and 20bhp.  Show details

Riding a YZF-R15 in NZ to get back into biking after over 20 years away from riding in UK – Here's my bike history: Honda CG125, Honda CBX250RS, Suzuki GS450E, Suzuki GSX600F in UK. Yamaha YZF-R15 in NZ after my license expired to go through learner licensing again. Yamaha YZF-R15 isn't really a good learners bike. Took my learners test on a Suzuki GN125, which was easier to do maneuvering on than my YZF-R15 due to turning circle with… Read more ·  5

clip ons. If I hadn't ridden a sport bike before with the GSX600F then I wouldn't have bought a YZF-R15.

If you haven't ridden a sport bike you'll initially feel like a jockey on a horse with your legs folded and your arms stretched with your head over the bars. Good position when going fast, but uncomfortable if you're commuting in town. Sports bikes are not for the fatties on cruisers. To ride them fast you need to be able to shift your body around and move around in the seat.

Mirrors on the fairing on a sport bike only show your elbows, so I fitted bar end mirrors to see behind me. Fairing mirror extenders would do the same. Riding position of the YZF-R15 is more forward than my GSX600F. Handling of the YZF-R15 is excellent. Power is enough for a learner. Holds open road speeds as well as my CBX250RS did, and much better than CG125.

Good bike if your thinking of upgrading to a YZF-R6, as it'll get you used to the riding position. Same instruments. No gear indicator just a rev counter. All you need for gear selection really. I sat on a YZF-R3 in the bike shop and I found it had a more upright position than the YZF-R15.

If I bought again now I'd spend more and get a YZF-R3 for a less forward riding position, more power earlier for a more relaxed ride, and more weight for less movement in cross-winds. I think a lot of how you enjoy your ride depends on how well you fit your bike. The YZF-R15 is a great small sport bike for light riders, but seat height is quite high, so it won't suit short riders.

The YZF-R3 is a LAMS bike for learners in AU/NZ with over twice the power of the YZF-R15. This makes for a more relaxed touring and commuting ride, as you're not revving it as much.

I found my GS450E and GSX600F more relaxed rides than my CG125 and CBX250RS with more power available sooner. YZF-R15 is a light bike and is quite affected by cross-winds.

Riding smaller bikes quickly can be harder than riding bigger bikes as quickly. Extra weight on bigger bikes makes them less prone to cross-winds. I'm hoping the extra 30kg of the YZF-R3 will make it a more stable bike in cross-winds with adequate power for touring when I upgrade.

I've been more scared on small bikes in cross-winds on highways than on big bikes going fast. Getting into a wobble at speed is properly scary, especially when you're a still only a learner.

I've had small and big accidents on bikes, and can say without doubt a speed wobble is really up there. Big accidents you don't know much about when someone knocks you off, skids or slides you can put the bike down with, but a properly scary speed wobble is something else. You have time to think about it, and need to know what to do to correct it (adjust your speed).

I don't regret buying a Yamaha YZF-R15. At the time it was the best small single cylinder bike available when compared to a Honda CB125 or a Suzuki GN125. A Honda CBR250 would probably have been a better bike for me at the time, but was twice the cost of the YZF-R15.

I'd suggest getting a bike about 50% more than your body weight to feel really 'planted' on it.

I never felt that 'planted' on my CG125 or CBX250RS, but I did on my GS450E. My GSX600F was 'planted' on highways, but was a bit of a pig to maneuver in traffic in town at over 230kg.

Awesome value for money, especially $4k – I'm going to keep this brief but straightforward. awesome looking bike Yamaha R15 V2 , gets many complliments and often surprises people when told it is a 150 I have had someone ask me if it was an old R1 and another person ask if it was a 600, alot of reviews criticise this bike for being slow, not true at all, at the lights I can zip past all… Read more

the cars to about 60kms in about 4 seconds or so, getting to 100 will take a little longer. highway riding, being a light bike you do feel the wind a little so its best to hold your handle bars firm and pay attention, also try to avoid being surrounded by trucks on both sides, they create a wind tunnel which can throw you around quite unpleasently, the top speed really varies in the wind direction, if the wind is going against you in 6th gear, accelerating over 100kms can be quite slow, downshifting is another option for overtaking, however if the wind is in your favour, the bike will comftorbly pull reasonably over 100, max I have gone is 120 kms its still felt like it had more but living in nsw I didnt want to get a speeding ticket, the sharpness on the rear of the bike can be surprisingly convenient, I put my backpack on the back of my bike with the handle over the back of the bike and the buckles clipped around the bikes tail, makes for a very convenient commuter. if you are a learner or just looking for a cheap commuter I highly reccomend this bike, investing in the yrd exhaust may be worth while aswell, looks good, sounds good and if im not mistaken, adds a pinch of power to the bike due to it being a full exhaust system, also complies with the db rating so no defects! . awesome bike with plenty of zip, best for around town but mine is used for about 60% highway riding and I have no issues at all, just abit of extra attention, great bike! at 6500kms

2014 V2 -Was excited from the little information on the web, 1500kms later pretty much blown away – 1 year later, I still have the bike and still happy with it. Do not discount this bike based on its capacity. I have had several bikes over the years for daily commuting including a klx250sf, SV650, then most recently a Yamaha BWS125 scooter. I took a chance on this bike hoping to get the best looking best performance and ofcourse bang for my… Read more

buck. That is exactly what I got, plus more.

I managed to swindle a brand new 2014 model Yamaha yzf-r15 for $3999 ride away 12 months rego and ofcourse plus a full YRD legally compliant racing/street exhaust. The exhaust has a crisp note- not to loud, but you can hear it nicely especially when you give it a good squirt on the throttle, which the bike just loves. The exhaust note just seems to get better with age. Downside of the exhaust- like any single cylinder it putts away at idle. I am not such a fan of this thumper sound but I guess some people might like it. Give it a twist and you have a tight sweet melody which is fun to rev to the limiter without feeling like you are hurting the bike. The SUPER upside to the exhaust- It is great quality and most importantly it comes with a ADR compliance sticker, much like the one you find on any bike stating the exhaust compliance and decibel rating. SO, if I ever get pulled over, I can't get non compliance fine as you would with aftermarket Acrapovic's and Two Brothers Racing exhausts. I will never have to supply the original exhaust on sale because the awesome YRD exhaust is totally legal and ADR compliant!

The bike doesn't really show its potential until after the run in period. After about 1200kms, the bike should be running nicely and revving high and the tyres should be really sticky. It loves to be revved hard and cornered hard. I am not yet comfortable getting my knee down, but the bike is telling me that I could push it further than I am. One fantastic thing about a small capacity of this thoroughbred is that you can use the entire rev range, all the time. (thrash)

I rode the scooter daily for about 2 years. After being on a Suzuki SV650 with street cred, riding the 125cc scoot really was like a joke. The bikers who used to nod to me stopped nodding. Scooters tend to have that effect.

Anyways The hilarious thing is, Now with 25cc's more, I get serious nods from R1 riders, and any other big sports bike on the road. This little bike really looks bloody good. It makes you feel respected by other bikers and of course the 4 wheeled vehicles.

I recently got a puncture. I plugged it and rode the bike to my local motorcycle repair/tyre replacement joint. As I parked the bike and turned it off the 2 mechanics asked "Is it a 250? 300 or 400cc?" The look on their face when I said 150cc was priceless.

OK so it looks good. But how about performance? Well apparently the head or sleeve is nikasil compound, the same as used in the R6 and R1 performance bikes.

I have had a vtwin 650 which would absolutely blow this bike away with warp speed. But, this bike is actually more fun and feels like it has more performance in a weird way.

Instead of just having a short blast on the throttle in 2nd gear on a big bike to get you to 100km/hr, On the R15 you get to go through at least 4 gears thrashing it through the range. I can sit comfortably in 5th gear at 120km/hr. Unlike the scooter, the R15 has plently of go well after 100km/hr. You can easily get to 130km/hr at all times if you were hypothetically in a 130km/hr zone.

The R15 is so light. So the power/weight ratio must be considered. I weigh 92kgs and the bike seems unphased by my subcutaneous giftedness.

Don't be surprised if at certain spot in the rev range it sounds like a 2 stroke or like it has a lumpy cam. I noticed this when the exhaust went on (at approx 3k rpm), but it was verified as normal as per the Yamaha technicians at the first 1000km service. It makes it a little unsmooth when tackling 1st and 2nd gears at low speed but you get the hang of it and it actually sounds pretty boss. I think in order to maximise performance for its capacity, the engineers decided low revs weren't so important. Turns out they were right :)

I wasn't such a fan of the shiny plastics so I have resprayed most of the bike Matt Black. On a $4k bike why the heck not. The bike was registered black so no dramas there. It looks really good now in my opinion. Love it -Loving riding it. Absolute bargain at 4k ride away with awesome legal YRD exhaust.

The secret I find to getting it cheap is buying the year model in the last few months of the year. No dealer wants to carry 2014 stock into 2015.

All in all I highly recommend this bike! Don't waste your time on Korean/Chinese bikes. Yes it was built in India, but up to Japanese standards. Don't discount this bike just because of the capacity. Its like a Piranha- Small package but its got some sharp teeth on it.

I am looking forward to many years before I need a change. Small capacity but gives me more than enough thrills and importantly- never struggles.

I give it 5 stars because I still can't really fault the bike and it's crazy value for money. And after all it is Excellent.