Yamaha M-Slaz launched at Thailand Motor Show

Yamaha has finally showcased their new naked motorcycle – the M-Slaz at the ongoing Thailand Motor Show. The Japanese manufacturer has priced the new M-Slaz at THB 89,500 (Rs 1.66 lakh).

In terms of design and style, Yamaha has made sure that the new M-Slaz looks sharp like most of its line-up. The fascia looks brilliant, thanks to that aggressive headlamp design, which gets a full LED headlight. Yamaha has equipped the tail light with LEDs as well, making it the first bike in the segment to do so. The sharp tank extensions remind us of the KTM Duke family. Yamaha has equipped the bike with upside-down forks at the front, which is a major addition to the 150cc platform. The M-Slaz gets the Deltabox frame that we see on the YZF-R16.

This new Yamaha is powered by the same 150cc single-cylinder liquid cooled engine that is seen on the YZF-R15. The company hasn’t revealed the power figures yet, but said that this mill has a compression ratio of 10.4:1 and a bore and stroke length of 57.7x58.7. We aren’t expecting too much change in the power output, but the way this power is delivered will be changed. This engine is mated to a six-speed gearbox, with the gear ratios being changed to deliver more torque at the low-end to accommodate the naked street motorcycle nature.

Yamaha plans to sell around 48,000 units of the M-Slaz in Thailand in the next 12 months. For the Indian market, Yamaha isn’t focusing much on the MT series. And this makes us believe that the M-Slaz might not be launched in the Indian market anytime soon. But we are getting a feeling that the Japanese manufacturer will showcase its entire MT line-up at the 2016 Auto Expo. And depending on the audience response, Yamaha might take a call then.