Julien Toniutti is four times road races french champion
He also raced two times the Manx GP, the little Tourist Trophy
But, his true passion is not motorcycle
It’s the little mermaid !
So Julien, you do like The Little Mermaid !
Yes, look, she swims well and she’s so pretty
Hey, I now where she lives
Nooo ?
Really
If you’re nice, i can bring you to her home
Ho yes Ok, come on !
To join Julien’s idol, we choosed the MT-09 Tracer.
We leave for a very long travel, and it was the perfect opportunity for us to test this new Yamaha
which is a bestseller since the beginning of the year
Here is a bike with a very good looking, build to be versatile and sold under € 10,000.
At first, we might believe that Yamaha has made another version of the bike wich is “good for everything”.
As was the TDM 900.
But this time, the starting point of the Tracer is the MT-09.
And when you know the wild character of the roadster, we can imagine how the Tracer could be exciting.
After few hours on the road, the first impressions about the Yamaha are very positive.
Alas, we can not say the same about our luggages
Did you talk to me ?
I think you lost something
Give it to me, it’s not mine
I hope you’ve got a clean one to meet the little mermaid
Ho, I hope I didn’t lose my little mermaid cap
Look at how you tie your bag ?!
Help me, pull hard !
I maybe know some guys who can help us
It’s a good idea. My bag is hurting my back !
Go on, I follow you
We had yet a long journey to make, so we had to find a solution for our luggages.
Or we will scatter Julien’s briefs everywhere in Europe.
So we have decided to slightly changed our itinerary to go through Raschensberg
A German small town near Frankfurt, where resides SW Motech.
And it also allowed us to cross wonderful places. Starting with the city of Colmar and its small Venice.
In a touristing use, the Tracer amazed us with its good traveling capacities.
A three-cylinder soft and comfortable, a perfect balance
and a good lightness allow us to take corners very easily
Furthermore, there is a comfortable riding position.
Even if some points can be perfectible as the saddle mellowness, a windscreen a little bit too short and the lack of progressivity of the shock absorber.
After a short night, we arrive at SW Motech’s at dawn
Ok guys, while we tinker your motorcycles, we are going to do a small tour of the factory together
Here is our scanner. All the new bikes come here to be scanned.
Then we have all the mounting points in 3 D on the computer
Ho, is it possible to scan a little mermaid ?
Well, the straps are ready
After the scanner, all the datas come here
And our designers and engineers make the most suitable product.
Here, we make all the prototypes.
Before the production, we make and test with all these machines our products.
And your big factory is in Czech Republic ?
Exactly, we have about 100 employees who work exclusively for us. So we can control the quality during all the production.
Here is a CNC milling machine. With it, we build this stand bracket.
Ho, and can you make me one with a little mermaid on it ?
Yes, I can…
While Louis is playing local guide for us, and Julien asks stupid questions, the mechanics fil out our Yamaha with SW Motech items.
Engine Protections, suitcases, tank bags… it’s christmas
Here is the suitcases production. The Trax Evo family and our new Trax Adventure
Here we are testing the suitcase sealing. Before leaving the factory, each suitcase will be tested
Hey Louis, do you thing I can put a fish and a crab in it ?
Ho, you can bring all the family if you want.
All the products will be packed here. And they will be send to our customers well protected.
Just to know, this year we sent 4.5 millions items on these tables.
I think your bikes are ready. Let’s go.
Full equiped, our two Tracer look like adventurers. We can peacefully leave to find our little mermaid.
Julien is a little bit strange. But they’re nice aynway.
No more bags that hurt our back, no more backpack badly tears on the passenger seat.
Now, we feel free, light... So, we can open the throttle !
Here on the winding road that borders the Edersee Lake, near the Waldeck castle,
we found a very nice playground.
In a sporting use, the Yamaha is sometimes good… and bad.
The good comes from the engine. Engage the A mode, disconnect the traction control and open the gaz.
CP3 block is a true adrenaline distributor. It push everywhere, all the time and free its 115 horses in the typical noise of a three cylinder.
The response of the throttle grip is more natural and less brutal than on the MT-09
and we enjoy a clear connection to the rear wheel.
On the bad side, we can mention the suspensions, that are too soft when you push.
And then there is the very poor feeling of Dunlop D222 tires
And as they say who wants to go far go easy with his bike.
So it’s better to keep cool and join Puttgarden’s port in one piece.
And ship quietly to Denmark.
What do you think about the MT-09 ?
It’s a very versatile bike. We had a lot of fun on it.
You can use it for everything. You can travel, alone or with a passager
but it’s better to have some suitcases.
You can go to your work with it. And I think you can also ride on a road race.
A good bike. And the engine is smoother than my MT-09, that’s a good surprise.
Yamaha works well on the electronic. It’s better if you want to ride everydays.
And, we don’t know what happens.
Is it the smell of the sea, the sea around us or little mermaid proximity but Julien engage the sentimental mode.
I’m the king of the world
Stop it Julien. We are going to land. And you lose your cap one more time !
Finally, our wheels touch the promised land. Denmark !
Country of Andersen's tales, the little mermaid, wind turbines, great handball players ...
And also straight lines!
And yes, It’s very flat between Rodby and Copenhagen
So when they built roads, they didn’t draw curves.
We can tell you that riding a bike here, it quickly becomes very boring.
Fortunately, the landscape is pleasant and when you ride along the coast, you meet nice little ports.
The opportunity to take a break and detail our bikes.
At 70%, the Tracer comes from the standard MT-09
We note however a lot of tourism items as the adjustable windscreen, hand protectors,
18 liters tank, modified suspension settings or adjustable seat height.
Electronic equipment is nice too, there is an ABS, three engine modes and a disconnectable traction control.
The Yamaha is already well equipped. And not much can turn it into real adventure bike
SW Motech was very generous with us.
A first Tracer is equipped with soft luggages, a Slip Stream tail bag easily accessible
and a small tank bag Quick Lock Evo that can be remove in a snap.
For real adventurers, on our second Tracer we can find Trax Adventure top case and suitcases.
A strong item, practice and very easy to remove
We almost needed that to travel peacefully and protect Julien’s underwears.
It was long trip, 1500 kilometers, and the Yamaha Tracer was a very good surprise for us.
To realize the dream of our friend, have fun on small roads and for a cheap price,
we did the perfect choice.
However, it seems that our choice for the final destination wasn’t so perfect…
Here is it. Don’t thanks me Julien, it was a pleasure
What, all that trip for that small thing !
Next time if you want to make me a pleasure, please don’t do it !
Julien, wait, I know where Elsa from Frozen !
She lives near here, on the other coast !
On the Yamaha Tracer We liked
The versatility of the bike
The engine, good for every day and exciting too
The price
The lightness of the chassis
We didn’t like
the width of the handlebar
The suspensions, too soft when you push a little bit
The windscreen, a little bit too small
The feeling of the Dunlop D222