Yamaha MT-07 Review and Rating
Updated: Sep 2
The Yamaha MT-07 is a 689cc naked middleweight built for riders stepping up from a small bike, returning riders who want something light, and commuters who want one machine for city and backroad work. Yamaha USA lists the 2026 bike at $8,599 before destination. The 2025 model year brought the fourth generation, and it matters more than a styling refresh usually does: ride by wire throttle, a stiffer frame, an inverted fork, radially mounted front calipers and a five inch colour TFT all arrived at once.
It is the wrong bike for long interstate work. There is no fairing, no cruise control at any price, and the tank holds 3.7 gallons. It is also the wrong bike if you want a complete modern electronics package, because there is no IMU, no cornering ABS, and the quickshifter is a paid accessory rather than standard kit. Riders who already ride quickly will find the ceiling low. Yamaha USA publishes no horsepower figure at all, and MCN quotes the claimed output at 72 bhp.
What You Are Actually Buying
Yamaha's 2026 US specification sheet gives the MT-07 a 689cc liquid-cooled DOHC inline twin with four valves per cylinder, an 80.0mm by 68.6mm bore and stroke, 11.5:1 compression, fuel injection with YCC-T ride by wire, a six speed gearbox with an assist and slipper clutch, and chain final drive. There is one trim in the United States and the factory warranty runs one year.
The chassis is a 41mm KYB inverted fork with 5.1 inches of travel, a KYB single shock adjustable for preload and rebound damping with the same 5.1 inches, dual 298mm front discs on radially mounted four piston calipers with ABS, and a 245mm rear disc. Tires are Dunlop Sportmax Q5A in 120/70ZR17 and 180/55ZR17. Yamaha also fits its lightweight SpinForged wheels.
MCN's report on the fourth generation explains why so much changed at once. Every chassis part except the headstock is new, the frame is 13 percent stiffer, and the inverted fork, the ADVICS radial calipers and the slipper clutch are firsts for the model. When shopping used, that is the line to shop across.
Wet weight 403 lb, Yamaha USA figure including a full tank and all fluids.
Seat height 31.7 inches, wheelbase 54.9 inches, ground clearance 5.9 inches.
Fuel capacity 3.7 gallons, with Yamaha estimating 57 mpg.
ABS and switchable traction control are standard. There is no IMU and no cornering ABS.
The Engine, and the Power Figure Yamaha Will Not Print
Yamaha USA publishes displacement, weight, seat height and an estimated fuel economy number for the MT-07, and no power or torque figure whatsoever. Anyone quoting a US horsepower number is quoting somebody else. MCN gives the claimed output as 72 bhp and 50.15 lb-ft, which is the European figure for the same engine, so treat it as a claim rather than a measurement. In Europe Yamaha also sells a 35 kW restricted version for A2 licence holders, which is not a US concern but tells you how much headroom the engine has.
What the number does not capture is the delivery. The CP2 uses a 270 degree crank, and MCN's launch test describes the ride by wire calibration as deliberately linear with the effort concentrated between 3,000 and 7,000 rpm. The practical result is a bike that feels quick out of corners and ordinary at 80 mph.
On fuel, Yamaha's estimate is 57 mpg. MCN averaged 55 mpg on the 2025 bike, but that is an imperial gallon, so roughly 46 US mpg, and MCN quotes a 150 mile tank range. Plan stops around 130 miles.
Ergonomics and Seat Height
The seat sits at 31.7 inches, or 805mm, unchanged through the redesign. What changed is the shape around it. MCN reports the bike is 25mm narrower at the waist, which makes the same measured height easier to straddle, and the footpegs dropped 10mm to give taller riders more room. Both are real improvements and both are the sort of thing a spec sheet hides.
There is a cost to the narrower midsection, and MCN names it: there is less bike to grip with your knees under hard braking and acceleration. The one MCN owner review posted so far on the 2025 model also calls the seat too hard. Yamaha's own accessory catalogue includes an MT-07 Rider Comfort Seat, which suggests the complaint is not unique.
What Owners Report, and the Complaint That Is Not About the Engine
This is where the MT-07's reputation and its owner data diverge, and it is worth being precise. MCN's owner section for the 2021 to 2024 MT-07 shows a collective 3.6 out of 5 for reliability and build quality. That is a mediocre score for a Yamaha, and MCN says plainly that the bulk of the low ratings target finish quality and a lack of corrosion resistance rather than anything mechanical.
The specific cases MCN cites are a swingarm replaced under warranty because of rust and front indicators that worked loose. Neither will strand you. Both cost money at resale, and both are visible standing next to a used bike. The engine is the opposite story: the CP2 has been in production since 2014 across the MT-07, XSR700, Tenere 700, Tracer 7 and YZF-R7, with no widely documented pattern failure.
Be careful with owner data on the fourth generation bike. MCN currently shows one owner review for the 2025 model. One review is an anecdote. The honest position for 2026 is that the new bike carries a proven engine into a chassis that has no service history yet.
Running Costs, Service and Recall History
MCN puts the service interval at 6,000 miles or annually, with valve clearances checked every 24,000 miles, and lists annual servicing at 220 pounds for the previous generation bike. That valve interval is generous for a middleweight twin and is a genuine ownership advantage. Everything else is cheap: 17 inch tires in common sizes, a chain and sprockets, and no shaft or belt.
The recall picture is short. NHTSA campaign 14V-657 covered 2015 FZ-07 machines, the US name for the MT-07 at the time, built between 1 May and 30 September 2014. The positive battery cable could be pinched between the seat base and the seat bracket, where it could chafe and short circuit, with a fire risk. Dealers replaced the cable and the seat bracket free of charge and the recall began on 31 October 2014.
Beyond that, NHTSA's year by year list of Yamaha models with open recall campaigns does not include the MT-07 for model years 2021 through 2026. A separate 2025 Yamaha campaign covering a throttle position sensor applies to the CP3 triples such as the MT-09 and MT-10, not to this bike.
MT-07 Versus the Suzuki GSX-8S and the Family
The Suzuki GSX-8S is the sharpest direct rival in the United States. Suzuki lists the 2026 bike at $9,249 plus $700 destination, with a 776cc parallel twin, 445 pounds curb weight, a 31.9 inch seat and the same 3.7 gallon tank. So the Suzuki costs roughly $1,000 more once destination is counted, carries 42 more pounds, and gives you more displacement in exchange. MCN also names the Triumph Trident 660, Honda CB650R and Kawasaki Z650 as class rivals.
The more useful comparison for many buyers is inside Yamaha's own showroom, because the CP2 engine is sold four ways. The YZF-R7 at $9,399 is the faired sibling with clip-ons and a sportier riding position, the XSR700 at $8,599 is the retro with the same money and the same motor, and the MT-09 at $10,899 steps up to the 890cc triple for riders who find 72 bhp thin. Test the R7 before assuming you want the naked, because the engine is identical and the ergonomics are not.
Common Questions
Is the Yamaha MT-07 a good beginner bike?
It is one of the best full size first motorcycles on sale, with two honest caveats. The 31.7 inch seat, 403 pound wet weight, light slipper clutch, switchable traction control and three throttle modes make it forgiving, and Yamaha narrowed the waist in 2025 specifically to help shorter riders reach the ground. The caveats are that a claimed 72 bhp in a 403 pound bike is real performance, and that the safety net stops at ABS and traction control with no IMU behind either.
Does the MT-07 come with cruise control or a quickshifter?
There is no cruise control at any price, and the quickshifter is a paid accessory rather than standard equipment. Yamaha's US accessory catalogue lists an MT-07 Quick Shifter under part number BLW-E81A0-V0-00, so a US buyer can add one, but it is not fitted at the factory. The Y-AMT automated manual Yamaha sells on the MT-07 in Europe is absent from the 2026 US model, which is listed with a conventional six speed only.
What should a used MT-07 buyer check first?
Corrosion, because that is what owners actually complain about. MCN's 3.6 out of 5 owner score for reliability and build quality on the 2021 to 2024 bike is driven by finish rather than mechanical failure, and includes a swingarm replaced under warranty for rust. Look hard at the swingarm, fasteners and exposed brackets, then ask for proof the 24,000 mile valve clearance check was done if the bike is near that mileage.
Should You Buy One
Buy a 2025 or newer MT-07 if you want a light, cheap, genuinely entertaining naked bike and you accept that highway comfort and rider aids are not part of the deal. The fourth generation earns the extra money over a used third generation bike because the frame, fork, brakes, clutch and dash all changed together, and because it is the first MT-07 that stops properly.
Skip it if you commute long distances on interstate, if you want cruise control, or if you are buying purely on Yamaha's reliability reputation without looking at the paint and the fasteners. On owner-reported build quality this bike is good rather than exceptional. Ride the Suzuki GSX-8S back to back before deciding.
One note on gear, because this is a fast, unfaired bike. Look for CE rated armour at the shoulders, elbows, back, hips and knees, and treat unarmoured leather or textile as weather protection rather than crash protection. Nothing about a naked middleweight makes an armoured jacket optional.
Rating: 4 out of 5. This is the best version of a bike that was already the sensible answer in its class. It loses a point for owner-reported corrosion, the absent cruise control and an electronics package that is now adequate rather than competitive.
