Yamaha working on a twin-cylinder turbo engine!

Bruno Gomes

April 10, 2019

With new stricter homologation rules being imposed to manufacturers, Yamaha is trying to keep the power of their bikes by using turbocharged engines.

We all know Kawasaki open the door to a new generation of high-performance engines when the Akashi manufacturer decided to sell the Ninja H2 bikes. Featuring a supercharger and not a turbocharger, the H2 bikes produce big power with the same displacement of a normal superbike 1000 cc engine.

Following Kawasaki, Suzuki also thought about using forced induction to obtain better performance, and the Recursion concept they’ve been working on for years, as well as the upcoming Hayabusa, both using a turbocharger, mean that Suzuki will soon join Kawasaki in this type of engines.

Now, a third manufacturer wants to join the party!

Yamaha has presented a new patent for a turbocharged twin-cylinder engine. The patent drawings show a Yamaha MT series fitted with this new turbo engine.

By filing these patent files, Yamaha is trying to find a way to comply with new emission rules that will mandatory with the Euro5 homologation rules coming soon. By adding a turbo to the engine, even to low displacement engines, manufacturers get a power boost without an increase in emissions. For example, car manufacturers are doing this for years, with great success.

Does this new patent for a twin-cylinder turbocharged engine mean that Yamaha will produce it?

Not quite. As we also know, the fact that a motorcycle manufacturer like Yamaha presents a patent for something new isn’t necessarily proof that the patent will ever become a reality. Of course, we would love to see the MT-09, or even the MT-07, get a power boost with the use of a turbo, but this is something that will take some years to be a reality.

Though we love the idea and the fact that Yamaha is thinking about it!