On September 26, 2018, the YAMAHA NIKEN (NIKEN) test ride was held at the Japan Cycle Sports Center 5km course in Izu City, Shizuoka Prefecture. From this magazine, Mr. Hiroshi Maruyama participated, and to deliver almost the same contents as it is written as it is in the first run. You can also watch the footage recorded on the day.
It’s more like a ride than two wheels than feeling bend into two wheels.
The YAMAHA NIKEN came out. Two wheels at the front, one wheel to the rear, as a new vehicle YAMAHA is pushing the machine. It is the reason why it came out as a flagship model of three-wheeled LMW. I was looking forward to the ride as well. What kind of driving do you do? A one-hour ride in the morning. Many other riders were doing a test drive with an image of a winding traveling in touring wear, but of course, I am a using a racing suit. The aim of this is to try to find a marginal performance first. What happens when you attack the front two wheels? First of all, I was allowed to attack it because it was not possible to explain afterward if we don’t understand.
First of all, I want to talk from the place where it causes. There are 263kg, but it is very light to wake up. And, it runs from there and it goes. If you ride across the front two wheels are invisible from the rider. The body can be offset and seen on the side but it cannot be seen from the riding posture. So, if you go out normally, it is like a tourer of two wheels. The handlebar is also spread. And, there is a slalom in the first cut. It is smooth without the habit especially like two wheels of the ordinary when leaning and it lay down. There is nothing heavy there. On the contrary, I feel that it is light, and go smoothly. At that time, I concentrated on the characteristics of the two front wheels so hard, but it does not make me think that there are two wheels at the front. It is good in the feeling that it is in STD two-wheel. And there are several places of wet place on the winding up to go shooting point. If its STD the speed will slow down even when riding in a wet place at a good pace, is it? To be honest, there is a sense of unease. As expected, I think it is the best thing about NIKEN. It is said that the place where it is wet can run normally where the road surface is rough.
From there to some extent on the point of shooting ahead……No, I tried pretty much. For the time being second speed, it goes lying while flowing at the high speed. I’m already rubbing the footpeg right away. But that angle is a pretty good angle for STD bike. However, it switches to the angle easily, and the shine is rubbed. While rubbing the footpeg, going to bend but nothing happens. Nothing really happened, the footpeg is lifted and it goes lying much further and the front is very stable even it’s roughness. It hardly bends. To be honest, it turns more than like STD motorcycle, is it?
If you ask why normally self-steer will work when motorcycle of two wheels banks. It feels like the tire is cut more than the steering position. As I lay down I feel like the handlebar is broken, it has STD two-wheel, but I can save the bank angle and cut too much lay down, in the case of NIKEN, steering is coming in to some extent and it goes further, and the only feeling is that the tire just faces towards the inside and gets bend. Feeling like “Oh! Amazing bends well!”.
And I can get a little more speed out of the bend. It feels like it is an ordinary cornering image of a motorcycle, and feels like I can do banking with this kind of speed, I’m thinking if I can still do banking at a higher speed, no way no……. The concept is for veteran riders, it is meant to allow more people to go to the tooling once or twice a month to be able to ride with confidence, but this is also a sports fellow rider.
By the way, the slide of the rear is the same as two wheels. The rear rises with a slip a little as you open the accelerator from a full bank with 1st gear. It slips and it does not go to the high side. You can see that the rear tire will slide properly if you cut off the tractor as I’m watching for some black marks to remain. Nevertheless, nothing happens to the front. That’s great.
I do not want to misunderstand, it is not a bike that never fell. You will fall down if you do recklessly. In this incident, I think that I will stand still as usual. It falls when going to lay down to some degree. I guess it can be said that I am making a structure that closely resembles a motorcycle that will not fall as far as the end. Its first impression at this time. It was fun.
Tester: Hiroshi Maruyama
Photography: Makoto Tobisawa
Coverage Cooperation: YAMAHA Motor
Click here for the article of [NIKEN = Japan Specification Order Starts from 09/13 for 1,780,000 Yen]
Original Source[ YOUNG MACHINE ] (*Japanese)