2024 Yamaha MT-09 Review – Motorcycle Test

2024 Yamaha MT-09 Review

By Rennie Scaysbrook

Thank god bikes like the $17,399 Yamaha MT-09 exist. They do so purely for your enjoyment, for the very reason you strap a helmet on in the first place and don’t jump in your car, even though it’s almost always the easier option. They make not a great deal of sense other than to make you laugh like you’re on happy gas. Or whatever substance you may or may not consume.

The three-cylinder MT broke massive ground for Yamaha when it was released a decade ago (can’t believe it’s been around that long). Yamaha’s corporate image needed a serious overhaul at the time, and they sure got it with the original 09, a pretty rough-around-the-edges hooligan bike that looked and sounded nothing like the company had ever created before.

Over the proceeding years the MT slowly grew up, with a pretty thorough overhaul coming in 2021. Fast forward three years, and although the 2024 edition isn’t as big a change as what we saw back then, it’s still plenty different enough, especially in the parts you’ll notice the most.

There wasn’t a lot wrong with the 2023 MT-09 in terms of overall hardware, and thus, the 890cc inline three-cylinder motor remains unchanged, but it is mated to a heavily revised gearbox that runs six drive dogs instead of five, enabling smoother, faster gear-shifts via the up-down Yamaha quick-shifter. That’s all you’ll notice about the gearbox itself because the ratios themselves haven’t changed; it’s just that you get into the next one faster than before.

Matched to renamed riding modes of Street, Sport, Rain and two Custom modes, you can make the 117 hp/87 kW MT as violent or as docile as you like. The three-cylinder is one of Yamaha’s great engines, with stupid amounts of performance that make that sub-120hp number feel substantially higher thanks to the motor’s ability to rip up the rev range quickly.

As ever, the emissions fun police have sunk their teeth into the MT’s engine, but it’s not a drastic a drop in performance. Between 3-5000 rpm, performance from the 09’s triple does begin to taper off, but it comes roaring back by 6000 rpm—this is a sentence I’ve repeated over and over on modern bikes, but that’s just what we have to deal with if we want our performance cake while letting the world’s emissions police eat a bit too. Put the MT in Sport mode, and this drop in performance is somewhat negated, but run it in Rain mode and for those 2000 rpm or so, it gets pretty flat.

Peak torque comes in a 68 lb-ft/93 Nm at 7000 rpm, and the new fuel tank now features audio outlets from the new two-piece air intake that allows the rider the really hear the three-cylinder’s intake roar at full song and, trust me, it’s one of the best sounds in production motorcycling today. This idea was ripped straight from the MT-10’s tank cut-outs, the mesh inserts looking decidedly industrial and give the front of the MT a real mean edge to it.

The main chassis is largely unchanged, but there are thicker engine mounts and slightly thinner brackets for the headstock that mounts to the frame. The seat height remains unchanged at 825 mm, but the rider triangle of seat, peg and handlebar position have all come in for a major overhaul.

The fuel tank’s shape has changed substantially. It is 30 mm lower and 60 mm wider than in 2023. The new tank shape means the handlebars have been repositioned 34.4 mm lower and 1.5 mm closer to the rider—that last part is not noticeable, at least by me—but when combined with the reshaped tank, the ride position feels dramatically different.

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The tank’s trailing edges have been reduced by 15 mm, and the leading edges of the seat have been narrowed by 12 mm in total, so there’s a much smaller junction point where the seat meets the tank, and the overall feeling is one of a narrower fit. Given you have your weight now angled more towards the front of the bike, it feels lower than it actually is, and it gives you the counter benefit of more mass on the front tyre to help braking and mid-corner stability.

Looking at the new MT front-on, you’ll see one of the biggest changes. The face is all new, using a new two-function LED headlamp with a new cover, which creates a more symmetrical look than the funky stacked headlight of 2023.

At the rear, the new two-piece seat sits on a new sub-frame, and all you need to remove both front and rear pads is the key—no more random Allen keys to get the rider seat off. Unfortunately, Yamaha did not see fit to fit the disappearing/hinging rear passenger pegs off the XSR900 that will turn your MT into a single-seater with one of the various aftermarket single-seat cowls, but beggars can’t be choosers, apparently.

You feel decidedly more a part of the MT rather than just perched on it like before. The ride is a tad firmer up front thanks to the slightly stiffer front springs, and Yamaha has changed the rear linkage to one with a flatter curve for a smoother rear suspension action as you go through the shock’s stroke.

The suspension action doesn’t feel vastly removed from the 2023 MT, but it’s the ride position that makes all the difference. By putting the rider’s weight a little forward from centre, the MT is a less tiring proposition for a full day in the saddle and even begins to show its chops as a touring bike when you throw on the accessory bags.

One of the benefits of the revised front end/handlebar arrangement is the steering gets 3.3 degrees more sweep, so tighter turns are now a little easier, especially for those who will use the MT as a commuter. Low-speed manoeuvrability has never been an issue for what is essentially a massive supermoto with a three-cylinder motor bolted to it, but one will never argue with being given something they never knew they wanted until it was there.

Yamaha’s also fitted a new Brembo master-cylinder that has a much nicer and more direct feel at the lever to the old 2023 edition. This is an easy area for manufacturers to save money, and thankfully, Yamaha hasn’t skimped on giving you good braking performance.

Another factor here is Yamaha’s use of good OEM tyres! Again, so many manufacturers put low-rent tyres on their bikes because they know you’ll just replace them anyway. The 2024 MT-09 comes with Bridgestone’s excellent Hypersport S23 as standard, a set of hoops we tested in South Africa last year and came away raving about.

It would be silly of me not to mention the huge array of electronics on the latest MT-09, which deserves an entirely separate feature.

On top of the five modes of Rain, Street, Sport and two Custom modes, there’s a new five-inch dash that has various faces to choose from, including a funky rev counter modelled on a Yamaha piano. There’s the turn-by-turn navigation available through the Garmin StreetCross app, but you need to pair your headset to the bike via the separate Yamaha Y-Connect app to receive message notifications, calls and listen to music. You can also use the app to change the settings on your bike and send them to the ECU without having to touch the switch-block itself.

There’s the usual six-axis IMU, traction, wheelie, and slide control, but new for this year is the Back Slip Regulator, which reduces the amount of reverse torque that hits the rear wheel in low grip situations, kind of like an accessory to the slipper clutch. I can’t say I got the system working, as my days of deliberately testing out ABS performance in dodgy situations are thankfully behind me, but it’s nice to know it’s there.

The MT-09 is now very firmly knocking on the performance door of some of the larger capacity supernakeds, and, indeed, you almost have to question if you truly need more than the 09 can give.

No doubt, the ego says you need a 200 horsepower V4 monster naked-bike but in reality, almost everyone will be better off with 120 hp and a nimble, playful chassis like that adorned to the MT-09. While not a massive change in terms of hardware, the ’24 edition is a vast improvement over the ’23 in the areas it matters—comfort and handling—while leaving the parts that don’t need messing with well and truly alone.

We understand the first shipment that arrived in Australia pretty much sold out as soon as it landed, but plenty more are on the way. With the price of bikes seemingly going northward all the time, there remain few options around this 17k ride-away price point that can hold a candle to the MT-09 when it comes to barking mad, accessible fun. And unlike some of the big boys on the market, you don’t need to be doing 150+ get those giggles.

2024 Yamaha MT-09 Images