WE’RE still waiting for Yamaha to launch the MT-07 Tracer spied last year and already another variation on the theme has been spotted – this MT-07-powered adventure bike.
Spotted being tested in Italy, and expected to be launched as a middleweight Ténéré, it shares the MT-07’s 75hp, 689cc parallel-twin engine in what looks like a new steel frame.
It's almost certainly expected to replace the XT660Z Ténéré, perhaps as the XT700Z Ténéré.
The swing-arm and upside-down forks are also new. The wheels are wire-spoked and the front looks like a 21-inch.
It looks to have all the elements you’d expect of a middleweight adventure bike, with long suspension travel, big ground clearance and a tall screen. The engine bash plate hints that it might even have some genuine off-road ambition.
The twin-front brake discs look smaller than the MT-07’s and have lost the wavey shape.
The test mule appears to have some way to go before it’s production-ready – note the complete absence of rear bodywork – so we wouldn’t expect a launch until 2017 at the earliest.
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