Yamaha Mt-09 Review

Used Buyer Review

The MT-09 is one of those bikes that'll either make you grin like an idiot or terrify you into selling it within a month. That 847cc triple is genuinely brilliant — torquey, responsive, and sounds properly angry when you crack it open. Early models (2014-2016) have the notoriously aggressive stock map that'll buck you around town, so budget for a Woolich or ECU Flash tune immediately. It's not optional, it's maintenance. Check the front forks hard. Older examples get sloppy and the stock suspension was always the weakest link. Same goes for the bar-end mirrors — they vibrate loose constantly. Any used example worth buying should already have an aftermarket screen, mirrors, and ideally an Akrapovic or Arrow can. Naked bikes take abuse, so look for crash damage on the frame sliders and subframe. These things get dropped in car parks more than you'd think. Get a dealer to pull fault codes before handing over cash. Throttle position sensor issues crop up on higher-mileage units. That said, find a clean one under 20k miles and you've got one of the most entertaining middleweight nakeds ever built.