2023 Yamaha MT-03 and YZF-R3 review, first ride

Christopher Chaves Updated: December 14, 2023, 05:35 PM IST

Big news from Yamaha earlier this year as they told us that they will be bringing the Yamaha YZF-R3 the fully faired sub-500cc performance motorcycle back into the country after what feels like an eternity. Because the older motorcycle was taken the menu in India back in 2019. Not up and until that point if you were riding something like an R15 and wanted to transition to a higher displacement performance motorcycle, while staying in the Yamaha Family, you had the option of the R3. That option was taken away in 2019. But now you do have that option once again. And the Yamaha R3 was a performance motorcycle that we loved back in the day. It had the power, the agility a proper performance motorcycle package. And the best part is that Yamaha is also going to introduce the MT-03 into the country, which marks the first time Yamaha will have a twin cylinder naked motorcycle on offer in the country. Now of course both motorcycles share the same underpinnings, from the engine and chassis to the suspension and wheels. We're here in the lovely Thailand to check out what both these motorcycles bring to the table, so let's get right to it.

2023 Yamaha MT-03 and YZF-R3: Design

Starting with design, both the R3 and the MT-03 are styled as you would expect, on the aggressive side of things, just like their bigger displacement capacity counterparts sold around the world. Each of their designs are quite familiar to us because we've already laid our eyes on the latest YZF R15 and the MT-15 out here in India. Now these two are obviously bigger in dimension, but not a lot to visually set the higher displacement models apart. Maybe some new colour schemes would have help identify them better. Anyway, moving on, the R3 gets a split LED headlamp unit while the MT-03 gets a single projector lamp. Both motorcycles share the same DOHC liquid-cooled engine, diamond frame chassis and suspension, and have pretty much identical spec sheets, apart from the overall width due to different handlebars and weight due to the fairing up front and the lack of it.

2023 Yamaha MT-03 and YZF-R3: Specifications

In terms of hardware, both motorcycles are suspended on a bigger non-adjustable 37mm upside down fork up front, and the preload adjustable monoshock at the rear. Both 300cc Yamaha models get the same rather simplistic LCD screen, so no lively TFT screen, and no Bluetooth connectivity option which is a bit of a downer. And the odd bit is that it misses out on traction control as well, and this is a feature that's available with the smaller displacement R-15 and MT-15. These two do feature dual channel ABS though. There's no slipper clutch on both bikes but the lever is light on the go but things won't be very stable while downshifting aggressively. I would have fancied having quickshifter on there as well, given the dynamic character of these motorcycles.

2023 Yamaha MT-03 and YZF-R3: Performance, ride, and handling

So the best part about the R3 has to be the 321cc liquid-cooled, parallel-twin motor. It packs a good wallop, throwing down 42Ps of max power and 29.5Nm of max torque. All the fun lies at the top end of the powerband, not so much so at the bottom end, and once you get this motor in its sweet spot, man, this thing really goes!

You could easily be cruising at 80kmph with the engine in limbo in sixth. If you fancy jumping ahead of traffic in a hurry at this point, you'll have to downshift, otherwise you'll have to be a bit calculative of your overtaking manoeuvers. Even at about 100kmph which comes up at about 6,200rpm, it feels like the engine is just getting started and waiting for you to give it a nod. 120 at 7,000rpm, 130kmph at 8,000 rpm and there's way more to go beyond that point because the bike loves to grind all the way to its redline around 11,000rpm. And it doesn't feel at all out of place once you get there.

It's just relentless thrills high up the powerband. The brakes bleed speed brilliantly and along with the chassis, which takes speed in its stride, gives you great feedback at all times. Just that the R3 felt a lot better while riding aggressively, because you're a lot more dynamically compact and tucked in than on the MT-03. It's not that the MT-03 won't keep up with the R3, just that you'll have to dial in a little more effort to do so.

It's a highly tractable engine this, as well, allowing you to pull away from about 40kmph in sixth without you having to use the clutch lever and without the engine knocking.

The MT-03 does weigh about 2kgs lighter than the R3, but you don't really feel it out on the road. But it still has the agility, the power and that lovely engine that brings it all together as a really nice package for the road. It is as you would expect. A lively and agile machine!

When it comes to the R3, in terms ride posture, well first of all, swinging a leg over the motorcycle not a real task, and of course, this being a performance motorcycle, it will have some of your upper body weight on your palms, but it's not too aggressive. It won't have you in that overly committed posture. And your feet are nicely tucked back here which won't feel out of place out on track out on long distance rides. The difference between the MT-03 is this tank section, because on that motorcycle you get these big tank shrouds so you do get a better grip of the tank with your legs.

As you can see, getting astride the MT-03, no real task there because the seat height, the wheel base, the ground clearance, everything is identical to the R3. The big differences here are the handlebar which is completely different to what's on the R3, and the big tank shroud, the tank reservoir is of the same capacity as that on the R3, but it has a broader more muscular aesthetic. It will have your legs further apart while riding, and the taller you are the more you're going to feel the brunt of it. But the good thing about this model is that it will have you seated a lot more upright in comparison to the R3 with no weight on your palms. But the only downside to this is that with the stiff suspension sharp bumps will be felt a lot more on your back.

Now to sum things up out here, let's begin with the R3. Well it's finally back after being taken off the charts four years ago. It's still a highly impressive and capable machine because it packs a real wallop in terms of performance. And the ride dynamics and handling just top drawer in my books because for a motorcycle in this displacement category, it really works it comes together supremely well. Yes it lacking in terms of certain amount of features. I would have loved for a quickshifter to have been on there, but hopefully Yamaha will slap one on there in the future.

Coming to the Mt-03, just like the R3 in terms of performance, because it pretty much has the same underpinnings as the R3, of course, different handlebar, slightly different tank, so it will riding posture and you'll have to figure that one for yourself. Because once you ride the R3, that motorcycle all comes together in terms of a performance motorcycle and when you come to the MT-03 which is a naked motorcycle, it feels like a bit of a mismatch, but it doesn't feel really out of place.

Because you have that lovely engine, all the power lies at the top end of the band just like the R3, mid-range is so-so, and the bottom end is quite dead if I'm being honest. But then again a lot more comfortable and upright and if you're not as aggressive in your riding style, you'll fancy this one over the R3.

So the R3 is coming back in India after a 4 year hiatus and its bringing the MT-03 along. And if you go to see what all has changed with the machine in its time of absence, it's pretty much nothing besides the display, the headlights and the USD fork. In a way, it still is an old motorcycle, which hasn't evolved tremendously. But the strange part is that the engine, the chassis, the suspension, it still holds up really well in the company of today, just that I wish it came with more features, and hopefully Yamaha will start manufacturing them out here soon which will bring down the cost of buying one of them.

2023 Yamaha MT-03 and YZF-R3: Verdict

Now both these motorcycles are going to come to India via the CBU route through Indonesia directly, which means that they aren't going to come cheap. Don't expect them to cost below Rs 4 lakh. Given that price and cost conscious India, you're going to be thinking, these bikes have to comprise a certain amount of features, which these bikes appear to be lacking. So why would you buy either of them? Well for starters, both these motorcycles stay true to the Yamaha ethos of performance. And at that, both deliver in spades. Purists are really going to fancy either of these bikes.