The Yamaha YZF-R3 may have been pulled off the Indian market, but the model is very much on sale across other countries. With Indonesia being the global production hub for the motorcycle, spy shots have emerged of the 2018 Yamaha YZF-R25/R3 facelift from the South East Asian country. Devoid of any badges or branding, the all black test mule does not give out much detail, but we do know that all the changes, however big or small, will eventually extend to the R3 as well. Both models uses the same design and components, with the latter getting a slightly bigger engine. With the model temporarily discontinued, the 2018 edition just might be good news for its Indian fans.
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The 2018 Yamaha R25/R3 is expected to boast of subtle yet important upgrades over the current version. While the overall design will continue to be the same, expect to see revisions to the dual headlamp cluster as well as tweaks to the fairing as well. The tail lamp too could see changes as well. While there won't be any major changes on the mechanical front, speculations do suggest that Yamaha could introduce a Ram air intake on the facelifted version for improved performance.
In its current setup, the Yamaha R25 uses a 250 cc 8-valve parallel-twin cylinder engine tuned to produce 35 bhp at 12,000 rpm and 22.6 Nm of peak torque at 10,000 rpm. On the other hand, the Yamaha R3 uses a 321 cc twin-pot motor that churns out a healthier 41 bhp at 10,750 rpm and peak torque of 29.6 Nm at 9000 rpm. Both engines come paired to a 6-speed gearbox. Suspension duties are performed by 41 mm telescopic front forks and a monoshock setup at the rear, while braking performance comes from twin disc brakes at the front and rear.
(The Yamaha YZF-R3 wasn't upgraded to BS-IV norms by April 2017)
The Yamaha YZF-R25 was globally introduced in 2015 and the larger R3 was introduced later the same year and was the one to come to India. While the quarter-litre offering is an excellent bike in our market, it has a few drawbacks with the lack of ABS being a major one. Yamaha Motor India stopped sales of the R3 since April this year since he BS-IV version of the R3 did not make it to the country.
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The 2018 Yamaha R25 and R3 facelift could make its debut later this year in Indonesia. It is likely that the the bike maker will directly launch the facelifted version in the country, this time with a BS-IV compliant motor along with slipper clutch and ABS. That said, details on the India launch still remain sketchy. Meanwhile, Yamaha India is gearing up to introduce the Fazer 250 later this month and was spied recently as well.
Spy Image Source: Motoblast.org
