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Well, time to dig out and whip another much-abused cliché – beauty is only skin deep. Yamaha's 'newest' offering, the Fazer, is a shining example of this statement. How? Well, for starters, it looks like a million bucks and way better than the original, bug-eyed Fazer (remember that bike?). Apparently, this FZ-based Fazer offers the 'Touring Spirit' to those who desire it. But does simply adding on a mass of plastic at the front do that to a motorcycle? What does a touring motorcycle need, really? Let's try to break it down, shall we?
What we have here is the FZ-16 with a fairing bolted on to its front end. Quite a nice looking fairing it is too; the Fazer looks bigger than almost every other bike in the market today and cloaks its 150cc capacity with ease. We won't make fun of you if you say that it's a proper 250 or even a 400 because we think it looks the part too. The fairing does not look like an add-on or an afterthought and gels perfectly with the rest of the bike. The R6-like pilot lamp is a sweet detail and the new and cool blue colour helps the bike look newer. But that's it really.
Three minutes into the ride, I was tired of the looks it got me and all I wanted was the go to back up the show. The familiar 153cc motor's 13.8 bhp and 1.4 kgm now has to lug around 141 kg, four more kilos than the FZ, and it doesn't help the Fazer at all. No matter how much you wring the throttle, the rate of progress leaves a lot to be desired on this bike.
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