Yamaha R1

The latest to introduce traction control is Yamaha with its 2012 R1 arriving here in December.

The traction control system was developed from the MotoGP YZR-M1 bike ridden to a world championship last year by Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo. It works in conjunction with the new ECU to adjust the throttle, fuel injection and ignition timing to reduce power when the system senses rear wheelspin.

The only other updates are cosmetic changes to the front cowl, handlebar crown and footpegs.

Unlike most model updates which feature lighjtweight materials for a lower overall weight, the bike measures 206kg with 18 litres of fuel on board, which is 1kg more. It remains the heaviest of the litre sports bikes.

While Yamaha doesn't supply power and torque figures for Australia, the European specs seem to remain the same as the current model at 133.9kW at 12,500 rpm (without air-induction) and 115.5Nm of peak torque at 10,000rpm.

Yamaha Australia's road bike sales have increased 1.5 per cent to 28,469 so far this year, but the R1 has dropped 24.9 per cent to 283. It is still the fourth best-selling sports bike after the Honda Fireblade, Kawasaki ZX10-R and Hyosung GT650R.