LAUNCHED in 2014, the Yamaha MT-09 has long been a firm favourite with punters and bike journos alike. So the news that the bike is about to undergo an overhaul is probably not surprising news.
The current variation of the bike was introduced in 2018, although it features a powerplant that is closely linked to the unit that was featured in the original 2014 model. With that in mind, the engine is clearly coming to the end of its useable life and would only have been designed with a certain number of Euro regulation updates within the strategy.
Yamaha MT-09 SP video review
New type approval documents found on the German Federal Transport Authority (KBA) now show that Yamaha is planning a new MT-09 CP3 engine. The model has shown up in emission tests results published by the KBA, and the vehicle noted is codenamed the MTN890D. The current MT-09 has the nomenclature MTN850D – and is 847cc in size. Following this logic, we can safely assume that the 2021 MT-09 will be swelling in size to somewhere nearer a true 900cc.
That’s not the only news, the KBA also shows that the bike will be gaining some extra ponies, rising from 114hp to nearer 120hp. Confirming that the new model will indeed be Euro5 compliant, the document also confirms the engine will produce 366 mg/km of carbon monoxide (CO), 34 mg/km of unburnt hydrocarbons (HC), and 9 mg/km of oxides of nitrogen (NOx).
While the new engine is only shown in the filing to be in a new MT-09, it’s obviously going to also slot into the other CP3 powered models in the Yamaha. With that in mind, we’d expect the MT-09 SP, Tracer 900 and Tracer 900 GT, and XSR900 also.
