The Yamaha MT-03 confirmation comes as no surprise, it is the naked sibling of the Yamaha R3. The images we have here are of the motorcycle that will be sold in Europe where the R3 is already on sale. With looks that are identical to the recently unveiled Yamaha MT-25 the Yamaha MT-03 will be similar in every aspect except for the engine and what clearly is an ABS unit. The ABS unit is confirmation that the motorcycle is in fact for Europe as it is mandatory on motorcycles from 2016. This very same Yamaha MT-03 is expected in India early next year with its introduction at the Auto Expo 2016. The Yamaha MT-03 will have the exact same specifications as that of the R3. What that means is that it will have an engine that produces 42 Ps of power at 10,750 RPM and 29.6 Nm of torque at 9000 RPM, a rather ideal power range for our country and our roads.
Being the naked sibling there is an slight reduction in weight and the Yamaha MT-03 is expected to weigh 165 kgs wet. The engine is a twin cylinder 321cc one with four valves per cylinder and a double overhead camshaft. Like the Yamaha R3 for India that is just around the corner the Yamaha MT-03 will also be a CKD unit. Which means that the motorcycle will be imported as parts and assembled here in India with minimal amount of localization. This fact has two sides to it. On one side, import means we will get the same great quality of motorcycle that goes to the EU region since those are also made in Indonesia. But on the flip side being imports expect the pricing to be at least 20% higher than what it could have been if it was totally made in India. The R3 is expected to have an on-road price of close to 3.3 lakhs so expect Yamaha MT-03 price at about 3 lakh on-road in India.
