Yamaha Niken: A Look At Its Top Speed & What Made This Bike So Special
The Yamaha Niken is one of the most unconventional Yamaha motorcycles ever made, a three-wheeled sport tourer designed to corner like nothing else. It's powered by the same CP3 inline three-cylinder engine found in the MT-09. In its latest form, this 890cc motor delivers 113 hp and 66.9 lb-ft of torque, which gives the Niken a top speed of around 136 mph. The Niken isn't the lightest sport tourer, though, tipping the scales at 595 lbs wet.
The extra front-end grip from its twin 15-inch tires allows riders to push hard into corners without second-guessing traction. That added stability lets you use more throttle, more often, even in poor conditions. It also has an electric quickshifter that helps keep speeds up, although it only kicks in upwards of 4,000 rpm.
On paper, it's not the fastest bike in its class. Sport tourers like the Kawasaki Ninja 1000SX or Yamaha's own Tracer 9 GT will edge it out in top-end power and torque. But the Niken's pace isn't about raw numbers. The confidence it gives in the turns, especially in the rain or on sketchy roads, lets you ride faster in real-world conditions than you might on a lighter, twitchier machine. It's a different kind of speed: less peak, more usable. And that's where the Niken earns its edge.
What made the Niken so unique?
The Yamaha Niken's defining feature was its front end: a dual-fork, dual-wheel setup that allowed for 45 degrees of lean while delivering a lot of front-end grip. The design was based on Yamaha's Leaning Multi-Wheel (LMW) system, with each wheel supported by two forks and connected through a parallelogram-style linkage. It wasn't just a gimmick. The geometry kept both tires planted in turns, and the independent suspension meant one wheel could hit a bump without affecting the other.
This setup made the Niken extremely stable, especially in wet or rough conditions, areas where traditional motorcycles struggle. You could brake mid-corner, lean hard through slick roundabouts, or tackle uneven backroads with confidence.
But there was more to the Niken than the unique front end. The GT model added heated grips, cruise control, touring panniers, and a large 7-inch TFT display with Garmin navigation. It became a full-featured sport-tourer with serious capability. But all that innovation came at a price, both literally and in public opinion. Riders on online forums like Reddit either loved or absolutely hated the look, and the $20,000-plus price tag meant it competed with faster, lighter, and more traditional rivals. Still, there was nothing else quite like it.
Why it was discontinued (and what comes next)
In April 2024, Yamaha officially discontinued the Niken GT in Japan. While no formal announcement has been made for Europe, its future is uncertain due to tightening emissions standards. The Niken's engine is based on the previous-generation MT-09, and while Euro 5+ compliant engines are now available (like in the 2024 MT-09), Yamaha hasn't confirmed if a next-gen Niken will receive the upgrade. Sales never took off in large numbers, either: Japan cut back production from 200 units in 2020 to just 100 in 2024.
Despite its engineering achievement, the Niken was a hard sell. Its complexity made it heavier, pricier, and harder to categorize. Riders who needed a tourer had cheaper, simpler options. Riders who wanted thrills leaned toward naked or adventure motorcycles. And even though the front-end grip was genuinely game-changing, most riders weren't convinced it was worth the trade-offs.
If Yamaha does continue the Niken in Europe, expect a reworked version with a Euro 5+ compliant engine and possibly some weight savings. But unless there's a big shift in market demand, the Niken might go down as one of Yamaha's boldest, strangest, and most misunderstood creations.