Yamaha YZF-R1 goes on sale nationally

This could be the timing of the century.

American Ben Spies will compete in the opening round of the Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island this Sunday on Yamaha's all-new crossplane crankshaft YZF-R1, and a first-up victory would be the perfect impetus at the same time as the machine goes on sale nationally.

That would be the ideal scenario for Yamaha, although the machine, from initial press reports, has got enough depth of character to stand on its own two feet.

The engine and chassis have been completely redesigned on the YZF-R1. Instead of trying to add yet more sophistication to the electronics package, Yamaha has adopted the crossplane crankshaft as used on its YZF-M1 MotoGP-winning machine. In other words, it's a mechanical solution.

The crossplane crankshaft alters the firing interval of the YZF-R1, which is claimed to deliver more linear torque and a higher level of traction. The uneven firing interval is 270°-180°-90°-180° compared to 180-190-180-180 for a conventional in-line four-cylinder engine. And the exhaust note is completely different too.

Bore and stroke is 78.0 x 52.2mm, with a compression ratio of 12.7:1. Claimed power is a whopping 182hp at 12,500rpm, and 115.5Nm of torque at 10,000rpm.

To withstand the increased internal pressures associated with the crossplane design, Yamaha has upped the crack journal sized from 32 to 36mm.

There is also Yamaha Chip Controlled Intake (YCC-I) system, which features electronically-controlled intake funnels. At low to mid engine speeds the long and short funnels operate as a single connected unit, but when the engine speed exceeds 9400rpm the YCC-I automatically separates the lower funnel and upper funnel by means of an electronically controlled servomotor.

There are also three different riding modes to toggle between.

Meanwhile, the aluminium Deltabox frame is another seismic shift for Yamaha, with a big part of that focussing on rigidity and high-speed balance.

The YZF-R1 will retail for $19,999, with the 2009 model Honda CBR1000RR and Kawasaki ZX-10R $19,990 and $19,499 respectively.

Suzuki hasn't yet announced pricing on its updated GSX-R1000, which is still to go on sale. It's superseded K8 machine retails for $18,490.

For the location of your nearest Yamaha dealer, click here.