1989 Yamaha FZR1000 EXUP

• Complete professional repaint
• Standard apart from a Nitron shock absorber
• Circa 29,500 miles from new

"With the FZR you're neither fighting the bike or different bits of the bike fighting each other. There's a smooth, subtle harmony which the FZR can still call its own and which it shares with and encourages in its rider. Yet it still gives back the thrill of raw power and has enough of it to stomp past three cars where you might normally be thinking of only one at a time. It brings the best out of its rider without requiring the best the rider can give." - Bike magazine on the Yamaha FZR1000 EXUP.

Dating from an era when one-litre sports bikes could afford to be relatively roomy and comfortable, Yamaha's FZR1000 Genesis arrived in 1987 as the class leader, boasting the FZ750's pioneering five-valves-per-cylinder engine technology and a race-developed aluminium twin-spar 'Deltabox' frame. With a maximum output of 125bhp, the Genesis was good for a top speed of over 150mph and had handling and brakes to match. It lasted for only two years before being replaced by the extensively redesigned 'EXUP' model, which took its name from Yamaha's 'Exhaust Ultimate Power Valve'. Installed downstream of the headers, the EXUP was designed to boost mid-range power while at the same time making it easier to meet noise and emissions targets. It certainly worked, but while the 1989 EXUP was stronger low-down than its predecessor, it made no more power than the '88 version because Yamaha had fitted restrictive 'weirs' in the carburettor stubs. Using a Stanley knife, Bike magazine removed the weirs from 'their' EXUP and found an additional 19bhp!

A 'one to have' 1989 'Bike of the Year' model, this EXUP has recorded only 29,500-or-so miles from new. The vendor felt that no engine rebuild was required, as it ran well and strongly, with no smoke. A UK-market example, the machine benefits from a complete repaint, and apart from a Nitron shock absorber is said to be totally standard. All work was carried out by Jap Retro. There is a video of the machine running, available to view on the Bonhams website. Accompanying documents include a V5C, sundry invoices, a quantity of MoT certificates (most recent expired 2019) and a 2020 HPI report (clear). One key present.