Yamaha has filed patents for the next leaning three-wheeler, which is similar to the Yamaha Niken, which was launched earlier this year and based on the Yamaha MT-09, sharing the same 847 cc, DOHC, four valve per cylinder, in-line three cylinder engine. The Yamaha Niken is the first production leaning three-wheeled motorcycle, and looks like more leaning three-wheelers are being planned by Yamaha. The latest patent drawings show a two-wheeled front end which is near identical to that of the current Yamaha Niken, but the bike in the drawings will have its engine and chassis from the Yamaha MT-03, the naked version of the Yamaha YZF-R3.
The engine is a 321 cc, liquid-cooled, parallel-twin unit which makes around 40 bhp of power and 29 Nm of peak torque. As of now, there's no word on what the production plans for the new leaning three-wheeler are, but from the looks of it, we can soon see something, at least in concept form, of the next leaning three-wheeler from Yamaha.
(Yamaha MT-03-based leaning three-wheeler uses an identical front end as the Niken)
Also Read: Yamaha To Launch More Leaning Three-Wheelers
Yamaha sees a lot of potential in the leaning three-wheeler category. Earlier this year, Yamaha President and CEO Yoshihiro Hidaka confirmed that the Japanese two-wheeler manufacturer is involved in production and development of more products in the leaning three-wheeler segment. Yamaha already has a three-wheeled scooter, called the Yamaha Tricity, which was launched in 2014. The Yamaha Niken was launched earlier this year, and next year could well see the next leaning three-wheeler in the form of a R3-powered Niken. In fact, the Yamaha top boss gave a presentation with a blurred out image of a model between the Tricity and the Niken, which could well be the R3-powered leaning three-wheeler.
