Team-BHP - Yamaha YZF-R3 : Ownership Review
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After a long delay on purchasing a new bike, Yamaha YZF-R3 in blue finally comes home.

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Likes
- Smooth Twin Cylinder Engine
- Stock Exhaust Note
- Build Quality
- Balanced ride, neither too stiff nor too soft
- Bright headlights
- Analog and Digital instrumentation combo
- Non Intrusive ABS
- Decent Heat Management

Dislikes
- Small Fuel Tank
- Lack of Slipper Clutch
- Spongy Front Brakes
- Pillion seat more for show
- No Grab handles what so ever!

Which Bike and Why?

Post quitting the job in February 2018, this thing was bugging me a bit. Had planned to purchase a bigger engine capacity bike in 2016 and invariably had to push it as some other priorities took the front seat. But with 2018, started to seriously reconsider picking up a new bike. In the meanwhile, started gathering as much data and the test rides had begun keeping in mind a budget of around 3 lakhs on road price.

Bikes considered initially were Dominar, KTM 390 (not the RC), Apache 310, Mojo, FZ25 and CBR 250.

New Launches most times grab the headlines. One such launch was the TVS Apache 310 RR.

TVS Apache 310 RR

Post launch, invariably got my hands on a red Apache 310 RR at the Bharath TVS. A few observations.

1. Definitely looks aggressive and smartly done with the red paint scheme
2. Size large enough to give a big bike feel.
3. Nimble handling and grip with the Michelin tyres
4. Decent brakes
5. Vibes around the 6k rpm and then again around 10k rpm
6. Chain Noise pretty high on the test ride bike.
7. Felt the riding position was committed
8. Too much noise dive on hard braking, which is not to my liking.

Things felt ok, kept this in the short list and test rides of the other followed.

Mojo

Got my hands on the Mojo which one of my friends in the locality had bought. A few observations

1. Firstly the bike felt a bit heavy when I swung leg over it.
2. Nice exhaust note more on the throaty side
3. Bike never felt nimble whenever I got a chance to ride it. Nor it felt easy to manoeuver at lower speeds in dense traffic.

Knocked this off the contention pretty soon.

KTM 390

Since the bike I wanted to buy needed to have sufficient punch, test rode the Duke 390

1. One mode of riding, which is rev the nuts off and it goes fast.
2. Low end torque is nothing to write home about and it does not suit my riding style.
3. Loud styling, again not to my taste.
4. Exhaust note too was nothing special.
5. Very good brakes
6. Grippy Tyres ensured there is enough feedback from the tyres
7. All gizmos LCD odometer, LED headlights etc present in the bike,

Finally gave up in this bike considering the compromise I had to make and suspect quality, a few niggles finally got itself knocked out the list.

Dominar and CBR 250 both given a miss, as the first one did not appeal to me and the Honda is way too old though it is competent in its own rights.

FZ25

Had a very short spin and two thing put me off was the lack of punch and the iffy plastics.

Knocked this off the list.

By the end of the first phase, the Apache 310RR had almost won the battle. Checked with Bharath TVS, if they can deliver one in red quickly if I payment in full cash. A resounding NO. A few days later inquired when they can deliver the bike, the sales experience was so bad, I started wondering if I really need to buy this. The sales experience has deteriorated big time with Bharath TVS at least for me.

However, with the new venture of mine took the front the seat and pushed the purchase by 6 to 8 months. By the end of 6 months, I reached out to SOLAR TVS if they can deliver one quickly, they mentioned they could manage one from the next lot that arrives.

Came back post this confirmation to arrange the funds. However, got to test ride the bike again and the bike had about 10,000 odd kms on the clock. The initial refinement wasn't there, brakes squeaking and a few rattles to ensure I rethink the whole purchase.

Decided up the budget and consider twin cylinder ones and shot off all the single cylinder ones.

Now the ones shortlisted was the Benelli 302, Ninja 300 and R3

Benelli 302

This was shot off the list with all the uncertainties that was going around with the brand. Though, just love the exhaust note of the twin cylinder one.

Kawasaki Ninja 300

First, called up the lone showroom on Langford road and I was asked to come down in person to collect the price list - Bloody good start (sarcasm intended) :Frustrati

During one of the visits to Madhus, I dropped in to the Kawasaki Showroom to see what they have to offer. Bike not available for display, no test ride vehicle. Price list was handed over. I inquired about if they can just hand over the vehicle to me with the ex-showroom price and so that I can take care of the rest of the formalities. They mentioned no chance. The bloated prices with the handling charges was turn off and their attitude was take it or leave it.

It was outright horrible dealing with these guys. Dropped the idea of picking this bike at all. A friend reinforced my decision of not buying the Kawasaki.

Knocked this off the list

Yamaha R3

Post the Kawasaki showroom visit and the work at Madhus, headed straight to Perfect Riders on Lalbagh road. Met the manager Bharath there who showed the bike in both the colours, luckily this was available with them at that point of time. Checked with him regarding the test ride and I mentioned that I want a longish test ride. Requested him to schedule the test ride the subsequent week and left post collecting the pricing details.

Bang on the day the request for the test ride was made, I get a call from Bharath asking for the convenient time. Scheduled it in the 2nd half of the day and got my hands on the bike. Satisfied with the power delivery and the other stuff I was looking for, I finalized the R3. In between, the fortnight of Paksh set in, so had to push the purchase by a couple of weeks. In the meanwhile requested for a test ride again, the vehicle was sent promptly as per the time requested.

HDFC bank where I have my accounts had a nice deal going on with the two wheeler loans. Opted for it, took a day to process the loan. In the meanwhile, I reached out to Bharath in parallel to check if they have a blue R3 in stock and the response was affirmative. Asked him not to allot any vehicle, as I wanted to select and do the PDI. No objections in any process with the dealer here. I purchased the insurance from my regular agent and finished the loan procedures and bought the insurance.

I wanted to pick the KP series from the Jayanagar RTO with a specific number, so requested the dealer to get a temporary registration number which was done promptly. Post 20 days, the dealer themselves helped me get the number from the KP series I wanted for a small sum.

Took the Delivery of Yamaha R3 on the 12th of October 2018. All was well, except for the delivery was made with about 1 liter of petrol. I was not happy about this, I would have paid them to have filled at least a reasonable amount of fuel. I would not have bothered to pay the amount for a full tank fuel too. YAMAHA are you listening.

On 10th of October 2018, post conversation with my relationship manager at HDFC, called Bharath that I would want to close the deal and will do PDI the same day. He confirmed that it was ok to go ahead, I went to the dealership around 2 pm to do the PDI. There were two Blue R3 in stock and I zeroed in on the one which had the least amount of damages (read as swirl marks all over the place).

First look before heading for the PDI.

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Set up for the PDI

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Post PDI Bike is taken back to the dealership and parked safely for Delivery.

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On Road Price Break up:

Ex showroom Price: - 349,000/-
Road Tax & Registration: 72,820/- (includes temp registration charges and number from the next series)
Insurance: 33,348/- (5 Years Zero Depreciation for own damage and 5 year third party liability coverage)

Total: 455,168/-

Post completing the paperwork, returned back home. 12th October at 12.30 pm was the time set for Delivery. Delivery taken bang on time and I was off towards to the nearest petrol bunk. Filled fuel for 500 bucks and rode back home. The mid day hot sun coupled with the traffic, the bike ended up being a bit hot as it had just 1 KM on the odo when the delivery was taken.

Parked it at home

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I let the bike cool down for a couple of hours and gave it the first wash.

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Foam wash done before seeking the blessings from the almighty.

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Yamaha launched the face-lift version with the ABS and the Metzeler tyres in Feb 2018.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Engine Type: Liquid Cooled 4 Stroke DOHC Inline twin Cylinder.

Displacement 321 CC with 68 mm bore and 44.1 stroke

Power - 42 PS at 10,750 rpm

Torque - 29.6 NM at 9,000 rpm

Throttle Body: 32 mm

Compression Ratio: 11.2:1

Transmission: 6 Speed gearbox with Chain Drive.

Dimensions (L X W X H) in mm: 2090 mm X 720 mm X 1135 mm

Seat Height: 780 mm

Wheel Base: 1380 mm

Ground Clearance: 160 mm

Turning Radius: 2700 mm

Brakes: Front 298 mm floating disc with twin piston caliper. Rear 220 mm with single piston caliper (slide type caliber)

Wheels and Tyres:

Front - 17 inch (2.75 width) comes with Metzeler Sportec M5 Interact 110/70 profile tubeless tyres

Rear - 17 inch (4 inch width) comes with Metzeler Sportec M5 Interact 140/70 profile tubeless tyres

Fuel Tank: 14 Litres, Reserve is 3 litres with a trigger for the low fuel light. Usable volume is 11 litres.

Suspension:

Front: 41 mm KYB conventional forks with 130 mm travel.

Rear: KYB Mono-shocks with adjustable preload with 125 mm travel.

Engine oil Spec and Capacity

Engine Oil Grade and Spec: 10W-40 (recommended) with API SG or higher, JASO standard MA. However, the manual provides a wide range depending on the region (temperature ranges)

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Oil Change quantity: Without filter 1.8 litres, with filter 2.1 litres and Engine overhaul 2.4 litres

The R3 does some of the key elements carried over from its bigger siblings like the Diasil Cylinder, Light weight forged aluminium pistons, Idle speed controller to maintain steady idle regardless of engine temperature, Intake Valve: 26 mm, Exhaust Valve: 22.5 mm and Cylinder offset by 7 mm relative to the crankshaft towards the exhaust side.

Yamaha has carried over the Legacy of the R Series for this bike too. It starts right from the twin headlight set up

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Notice parking light above the headlight assembly, tastefully done. Gives a distinct character to the front looks. The stock halogen W5W bulbs was replaced with a bright LED.

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Little closer look at the light triangular shaped parking lights.

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Front Three Quarters

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Side View

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Rear View

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Tail Lamp and Tail section

Notice the small Yamaha logo

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Tail Light - turn the key on, tail light, parking light and number plate lights are on.

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With the Brakes applied

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View for the rider

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Fuel Tank Lid with Brushed Aluminium Finish

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Side view of the fairing. Notice the indicators popping out.

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Indicators do not the LEDs, they are bright enough to ensure you do not miss it even during the day.

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Logo on the tank - one on either side

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Gear Shifter and foot pegs

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Rear Brake Lever and Foot pegs

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Pillion Foot Pegs - Nice crafted Aluminium stuff

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Front Brakes - Notice the Rubber Hose, ABS Sensor and ABS Sticker on the front mud guard

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Rear Brakes - Notice the Rubber hose and ABS Sensor

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Speedo Console or Multi-function Meter Unit as Yamaha calls it

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The console is a two part design with the Analog Tachometer and a Digital back-lit console with the below information at disposal

1. Digital speedometer
2. Gear indicator
3. Clock
4. Fuel Level Indicator
5. Coolant Temperature Gauge
6. Multi function display (more on this later)
7. Shift timing indicator light
8. Self Diagnosis Device

Warning lights and Indicators

1. Turn Indicators
2. Gear Neutral indicator
3. ABS Indicator -
This turns off post crossing the 10 kmph mark. If the light stays on, then the ABS is throwing up an issue which needs to be attended to.
4. Engine Oil Pressure Indicator - Turns on when the ignition is turned on and turns off once the engine is started. However, if this light does not turn on when the ignition is switched on, engine oil pressure is low and needs to be attended to.
5. Engine Malfunction Indicator - This indicator throws up an error when the electrical circuit monitoring the engine malfunctions. This indicator turn on when the ignition is turned on but goes away after a couple of seconds. If the indicator remains on or does not turn on, this has be diagnosed. R3 also has a self diagnostic device for the electrical circuits. In case a problem is detected, the warning light turns on AND the respective error code will appear to the left of the Odometer reading.
6. High Beam Indicator

Multi Function Display

Multi-function display is equipped with an odometer, 2 trip meters, Fuel Reserve Trip Meter, Instantaneous fuel consumption, average fuel consumption, Oil change trip-meter and Oil change indicator.

Odometer

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Two Trip Meters - Trip 1 and Trip 2

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Fuel Reserve Trip-meter

This gets activated only when the fuel goes to reserve and the fuel indicator (the last fuel bar in the fuel gauge) starts flashing. The display automatically changes to Trip F and the distance traveled post the activation of Fuel Trip Meter is noted.

Instantaneous Fuel Consumption Display

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Instantaneous Fuel Consumption Display can be set to show the units in KM/L or L/100 km. The display goes blank with "- - . -" signs when the speed is below 20 kmph.

Average Fuel Consumption Display

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Similar to the Instantaneous Fuel Consumption Display, the Average Fuel Consumption display too can be set to show the units in KM/L or L/100 km. For the average fuel consumption display to work, a minimum distance of 1 km has to be traveled. The average consumption refreshes every half a km post the initial 1 km.

Oil Trip Meter

R3 has a trip meter to clock the distance covered post an oil change. This starts flashing at 1000 kms (first service), 5000 kms (second service) and post that every 6000 kms which is the regular oil change interval.

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Shift timing indicator Light

Shift timing indicator has 4 settings namely Activation, Deactivation, Brightness and Pattern

Activation

Shift timing indicator light can be activated between 7000 rpm to 13500 rpm. From 7000 to 12000 rpm it can be set with an interval/increment of 500 rpm. Post 12000 rpm it can be set with an interval/increment of 200 rpm

Deactivation

Similar to the activation, the deactivation too follow the same pattern of 7000 to 13500 rpm. 500 rpm interval/increment between 7000 to 12000 rpm and 200 room interval/increment post 12000 rpm

Pattern

Flashing pattern setting allows you to choose whether to have the shift timing light on or not. If the setting is kept to on, you can chose to make it flash or stay on until deactivated.

Brightness

Shift timing light can sometimes distract more so at night. It is nifty that Yamaha included an option to set the brightness to make it lighter or brighter depending on the rider's comfort.

Handle Bar and Switch Gear

Right Side

Handle Bar is split type mounted on the fork tube. Right side houses the reservoir for the Front Brake Fluid. Switch gear on the right side houses a Starter button and an Engine Kill Switch.

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Left Side

Left side handle bar houses the switch gear and the mirror mounts. Switch Gear on the left houses the indicator switch, high/low beam switch, Horn and Pass light switch.

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Engine

R3 comes with a liquid cooled twin cylinder 4 valve engine displacing 321 cc. Makes 42 PS at 10,750 rpm and 29.6 NM torque at 9,000 rpm. The power delivery is linear with no sudden bursts of power at the lower rpms. However, post 7000 rpm the punch increases all the way up to 11000 rpm. Though the punch is not too significant, you can figure it out with the urgency post 7000 rpm. Torque peaks around the 9000 rpm, however, once can feel that engine feels quite torquey post 3500 rpm. You can potter around the town in 5th and 6th gears doing 45 to 50 kmph without any knocking from the engine. Any lesser speeds it knocks mildly and stalls. 1st Gear is quite short and demands an up-shift quite quickly. 2nd is more suitable when you have dense traffic but not the crawling traffic. Gearbox seems to have been designed to have the first two gears to tackle the traffic when its dense and the 3rd on wards the stretching the legs on the engine. The engine is refined at most rpms except for the rpms around 12000, that too a very mild buzz around the handle bars. Otherwise this is a very refined machine with the plastics put together decently. I will be observing how this remains over the course of the ownership. The engine revs to speed for the gears are as below.

For example, at 1000 rpm, the speedometer readings are

1st Gear - 5 kmph

2nd Gear - 7 kmph

3rd Gear - 10 kmph

4th Gear - 12 kmph

5th Gear - 14 kmph

6th Gear - 16 kmph
.

A chart to illustrate the speed in each gear at various rpms. Calculated using the link

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On the highways, you can cruise all day around the 7000 to 8000 rpm mark riding the torque and do speeds between 112 kmph to 128 kmph. Reasonable enough on our highways. However, it continues to accelerate in 6th gear when you wring the throttle wide open and the speedo climbs quickly north of 150 kmph. Post the 175 kmph mark, the progress becomes slow. The wind factors do affect the rate of this climb. The buffeting too is much higher with the stock visor. I would have preferred a slightly bigger (say about 3 inches) to ensure the wind blast is lesser. A few videos on YouTube show that the machine is capable of cracking the 190 kmph barrier. Though there is nothing Yamaha mentions officially. A full exhaust system with an remap, a little taller 6th gear can help the R3 crack the 200 kmph barrier. That is quite fast for a 300 cc street legal machine.

Heat Management

Heat Management on the bike is pretty good. For the first few hundred kms it was getting pretty hot and the 4th bar on the temperature gauge used to come up once in a while with the fan at full blast. However, as the kms have piled up this has settled and the 4th bar barely turns up unless you are stuck in a very bad traffic situation. This does not mean the fan does not come on, it comes on but it does not feel as hot as it used feel during the initial days. To put in a simpler way, this is very much liveable and can be used as a daily ride bike too, it is not going bake the calf muscles with the heat it generates.

Ride and Handling

R3 is equipped with 41 mm KYB conventional forks with 130 mm travel at the front and KYB Mono-shocks with adjustable preload with 125 mm travel at the rear. The set up is such that it is soft enough to soak the bumps at the lower speed by not being too stiff and the at the same time not wallow at higher speeds or under heavy braking. However, the set up is more towards a comfortable tourer kind of setting than a track focused setting. Coupled with the a comfortable seating position and a comfortable suspension makes it less taxing to ride this bike for longer periods of time. Given our road conditions the suspension set up makes it more liveable with the day to day riding too.

Brakes

Post February 2018 onwards, Yamaha introduced the R3 with ABS as standard. Stopping power at the front comes from 298 mm floating disc with a twin piston calliper. Rear is equipped with 220 mm disc with a single piston callipers. R3 does not come with the steel braided hoses. Make no mistake, R3 has good enough braking power, however the feedback is a bit numb or spongy especially the front brakes. Rear brakes have enough bite and brakes with good enough braking power. For the asking price, Yamaha should make the braided lines as standard. The lines are swapped with the braided ones on my R3 and the little complaint I had regarding the brakes is gone. I will be looking at performance brake pads to enhance the current brakes a few months down the line.

Engine and Exhaust note

R3 engine sounds sweet with the snarly growl across the rev range. It's quite silent at the low rpms and gets louder at higher rpms. It has a raspy exhaust note especially when using the engine braking. Does not warrant an aftermarket exhaust to make it sound better. Stock exhaust is good enough. Not sure how much gains will be there with an exhaust swap apart from the weight savings. I will give it try sometime down the line.

Fuel Efficiency

Mileage is hovering around 22 kmpl mark in city with the regular traffic. With mixed conditions (highway 70 and city 30) its returning around 25-26 kmpl mark for the last few refills. On the highways it has been around 28 kmpl mark cruising around the 120 kmph mark. However, it drops significantly when ridden over 120 kmph or under hard acceleration in lower gears. The tank with usable fuel of 11 litres makes the range quite less. A 17 liter tank would have been way better to give it a more comfortable range, especially for touring.

Engine Run-In Instructions

Yamaha recommends two stages/levels of run-in for the R3 engine. A total of 1600 kms is recommended by Yamaha. For the first 1000 kms, no prolonged usage above 7000 rpm and for the next 600 kms no prolonged usage above 8400 rpm. However, quick bursts above these rpm should not cause much worry.

Accessories

R3 got a few accessories to make it more easier for me handle the stuff on a daily basis, especially cleaning the chain and lubricating it.

Paddock Stand

Purchased a Paddock stand from Orion Motors Bangalore. I do want to maintain the bike myself, more with the basic servicing, brake cleaning and kind of stuff. So paddock stand was a must. Picked this up a day before taking the delivery of the bike.

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Spools

Purchased a local make spools with M6 thread to make it easier to put the R3 on the paddock stand. I will source the Puig ones a little later.

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Mobile Holder - Ram Mount

Picked up the Ram mount mobile holder, in case I need to have a navigation assist during the rides. Though this will be sparingly used, wanted to have it in the kitty.

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Paint Protection

If you ask what I would like Yamaha to do better during the purchasing process is to deliver the bike with minimal or no swirls on the bike. This will make the customer friendly approach even better.

Swirls on a brand new bike

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Got to work the very next day of delivery to ensure the bike looked the way it should. Paint correction followed was followed by Ceramic coating to protect the paint gloss.

Post the paint protection

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Firstly, the blue colour attracts a lot of scratches, so PPF and Paint protection was a must at least on the tank. Got the 3M PPF stuff done for the tank and side panels. Installation was nothing to write home about and the quality of film is not good either. I will have these replaced with better ones soon. Cost of the 3M PPF was 3200 bucks for the protection on the tank and side panels.

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Protectors on the R3

Radiator Guard

Procured the Evotech Radiator Guard from the Evotech online store.

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Fork Protectors

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Frame Sliders

Purchased a local make frame slider as a stop gap arrangement until I procure the Puig brand ones. This one costed me 5000 bucks

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Modifications

As documented earlier, the brakes lacked the feel and felt spongy at times during hard braking. To get rid of this, got the Spiegler Steel Braided lines and got it installed at the Gear Gear Motorcycles at Wilson Garden. During installation changed the brake fluid to Tutela Top 4 too.

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Front lines post the swap

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Rear Lines post the swap

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Since the Fairing were removed during the installation of the steel braided lines, got the coolant changed to Motul Motocool Expert. By the end of the 1st year, the coolant will be changed with Engine ICE.

Post completing about 300 kms, dropped in to Perfect Riders Service Center on Lalbagh road to change the Oil and Oil Filter. The overall cost including the labour was about 1900 bucks which includes 3 cans of oil, oil filter and the labour charge. One may wonder why 3 cans, R3 requires 2.1 litres of oil when the filter is changed. Carried the spare oil back home.

Got the bike back for the first service around 1400 kms mark. Oil Trip Meter started flashing until the bike was taken for service.

First service includes the below

1. Engine Oil change
2. Oil filter change
3. Air Filter Cleaning
4. Chain Cleaning and Lubrication
5. Diagnostic Check
6. Oil Trip meter Reset

Got these done quickly in a couple of hours. Bill amount was 1400 bucks which includes 2 can of engine oil, oil filter, labour charge for chain cleaning and lubrication. The service cost for the R3 is cheap.

Issues Faced

One may wonder, what can go wrong with the such a bike that too from the Famed Japanese manufacturer. However, things can go wrong with any machine. how it is addressed matters the most.

Fork Oil Seal went bust

Fork oil seal went bust within a month of ownership. This was least expected from the R3. However, the saving grace is that the parts are pretty cheap.

Leakage on the Left Fork

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Fork Oil Seal costs 110 bucks and Fork Oil about 230 bucks. Picked up the fork seal and fork oil form PACER Yamaha near Hebbal. Spent about 300 bucks to replace it at Gear Gear motorcycles at Wilson Garden when I had some work near the same area. A total of 650 bucks got the bike back to shape. Point to note is that the fork oil can mentions 500 ml but contains only 487 ml. The fork oil required for the R3 is exactly 487 ml and this ensures no chance of over filling. Smart way, but the can should mention the correct quantity.

Mild Vibes around 8000 rpm, nothing above or nothing below

First service calls for checking and tightening the Engine bedding bolts. This wasn't done. When the steel braided lines were being installed, got this checked and tightened. Issue is resolved for now.

Will I Visit the service center going forward?

Yes, only to pick up the OE spares which Yamaha has no problem selling it over the counter. I will do the oil changes, brakes cleaning myself. For any major work I would prefer to visit Gear Gear Motorcycles where Jagadish who does the work is known to me over a decade now. On the engine oil changes, I would prefer to change them at every 4000 kms in case the bike is used majorly in dense traffic. Oil change at lesser interval is not going to pinch as the Yamaha synthetic engine oil is around 400 bucks. Yamaha does have a same grade oil with additives but costs a good 1300 bucks. Motul 300V 10W-40 can be used as an alternate oil too.

Start Up R3 Multi Function Console

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Elephant etched on the tyres

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Low Beams have the right side headlight on

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High Beams on

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Note: Both the beams are adjustable both horizontally and vertically. Helps you get the alignment right to your preference.

Reflector on the front fork/mud guard on both sides

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No Grab rails whatsoever. A strap on the rear seat is all you have to grab in case you need to drag it or control it from falling over.

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The rear seat is highly placed, the pillion comfort is next to nil. I ride without a pillion so doesn't matter. Will procure a plastic cover instead of the seat and save some weight :D

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Helmet Holder and Under Seat Storage

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Few pictures taken during the course of the ownership.

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Pictures taken during the Kolli Hills Ride

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Few pics shot by Pradeep Rotti

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Thanks for sharing!

Let me have the privilege of being the first one to congratulate you!
Brilliant review of a brilliant bike. Wish you 1,000's of happy miles. Rated 5*.

At this moment a blue Yamaha R3 or a green Ninja 300 will be my top contenders, if am looking for a bike in this segment.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nkrishnap (Post 4534422)

The rear seat is highly placed, the pillion comfort is next to nil. I ride without a pillion so doesn't matter. Will procure a plastic cover instead of the seat and save some weight :D

Hey Krishna. Congratulations for your R3. Hope you have safe miles on it. I am considering a used 2018 R3 and have few questions. Was hoping if you could answer them.

1. You have mentioned about the pillion comfort is next to nil. Wanted to know if its so bad. Was hoping if I could do long distance cruising on this bike with a pillion.? Presently i ride a 2010 Honda Unicorn.

2. Did you face any other issues with bike other than ones you have mentioned in your posts?

3. I am interested in bigger CC bikes (who does not want one!) and was considering used ones as all of them new would be out of my budget. I want a good upgrade and am not interested in a mere bump of 100 odd CC from the existing 150CC bike. Was looking for Kawasaki Ninja 650cc but good used ones are costing upward of 5 Lakhs. So next available bike seemed a yamaha R3. Well I simply love the looks of this bike. Do you suggest i look at other fully faired options before taking the plunge?

Wow! The blue and white paint scheme looks amazing on the R3. Except for the split seat, I don't think I can point any flaws (I'm nitpicking here). While not into biking myself, I do appreciate a good Japanese machine.

I would also like to know if there were other factors to select the R3 over the Honda CBR 250. Most of my friends who have this bike swear by it and find the service experience pleasant as well.

Keep riding and exploring new destinations on 2 wheels!


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