Given the overwhelming success of Yamaha’s Hyper Naked lineup of late you had to figure it was only a matter of time before Team Turning Fork stepped in to fill the gaping hole at the small-displacement end of that series. Well it’s been more than a matter of time—three years behind Europe to be exact—but here it is, the all-new, entry-level 2020 Yamaha MT-03, arriving on these shores in February 2020.
Of course Europe had it first. With the YZF-R3 returning to its slot in Yamaha's 2020 sportbike lineup, the MT-03 looks to fill the lightweight void in the more street-biased MT lineup for the US as well. The bike that Yamaha debuted at EICMA some time ago has gone through some changes since then, but at its heart it's still very much a naked YZF-R3 in slightly different clothes and a lower price tag, which will no doubt appeal to plenty of commuter types or just folks not looking for a trackday anytime soon.
But is it really just an R3 with higher bars and no fairing? Let’s go from the outside in. Obviously the MT’s wearing some fairly unique bodywork with major reshaping around the engine area to achieve what Yamaha calls a “tightly packed” look. That design carries up to the top with a wide-shouldered fuel tank cover and lightweight air scoops that serve to solidify the MT family resemblance. Bringing the aggressive stance home is a solo LED headlight stuck just under the front cowl, with dual position lights angled like eyebrows above to create a kind of menacing stare—if that’s possible on a 300cc bike. LED turn signals, a taller handlebar and bar-mounted mirrors are clearly meant to tie in to the larger MT models as well.
Moving down and inward though, you find a different story; the MT-03 is a near-mirror of the R3. This is an MT (Master of Torque) after all, so the littlest Hyper Naked should have some go along with all those aggro looks. Packed inside the lightweight diamond-type tubular steel frame is the super-smooth 321cc parallel twin-cylinder engine with integrated counterbalancer that’s mounted as a stressed member, to keep chassis weight down. High-tech internals include carburized (a form of heat treating) connecting rods and lightweight, heat-resistant forged pistons with low reciprocating weight to reduce vibration and enhance throttle response.
Up front you’ll find a 37mm KYB upside-down fork and a cast-aluminum triple clamp, paired with what Yamaha calls “Monocross suspension” on the spec sheet, which leverages a long asymmetrical swingarm to increase control during braking, cornering, and acceleration. A “Monocross” rear shock offers seven adjustments for preload to handle any outsize road deformities, which sounds like a pretty nice bonus for an entry-level machine. And although the braking system seems decent enough—you get only floating-mount single discs front and rear (298mm front, 220mm rear)—ABS comes standard.
The cockpit showcases the only other major differences between the R3 and the new MT, with taller and wider handlebars but the same low 30.7-inch seat height, as well as a virtually identical, easy-to-read LCD gauge featuring a big digital display with a speedo, tach, fuel gauge, gear indicator, and more. The slim front cowling is almost invisible from this viewpoint, with two LED turn signals coming out on either side.
If the MT-03 is the trickle-down beneficiary of all the improvements the R3 got last year, well, you’ll get no arguments here. It just means an already very good motorcycle will now be available in a different configuration and at a lower price point. As the entry-level machine in Yamaha’s standard streetbike lineup, the MT-03 has to balance the competing features of quality and price, and at $4,599 it looks to have hit the sweet spot.