I've had a few messages about what an "R71" is, thought this might help.
Back in 1999, World Superbike displacement was limited to V-twin 1000cc (RC-45, Ducati 916) or inline-four 750cc bikes (ZX-7RR, YZF-750). 1000cc inline-fours (R1, ZX-10, GSXR1000) weren't allowed until 2002. World Superbike is a 'production' bike series. Bikes must be 'homologated', meaning that a manufacturer must build 500 road versions of their bike to be legal for WSBK racing.
The Yamaha R1 hit the street in 1998. This was the replacement for the YZF1000 and YZF750. Yamaha did away with the 750 version of their bike, and hit the market with the 1000 (R1) and 600 (R6). However, WSBK rules hadn't changed, and they still needed a 750 to race the series in 1999.
Yamaha secretly developed a WSBK weapon for Nori Haga....the YZF-R7. The R7 was built with similar dimensions as Yamaha's YZR-500 GP bike. They built the racer first, then 500 road versions with lesser-quality OEM bits. Civilian R7 models were sold as race only, to team owners and licensed racers. Asking price was $32,000, and Yamaha did not offer a warranty. OEM bikes were heavily restricted, making only 106 hp. YEC offered modification kits that would bump output to 135 hp (Stage 1) or 160 hp (Stage 3).
Power aside, the R7 is known as one of the best handling bikes in the world....even by today's standards. Frame strength and geometry help the bike to hold a line similar to a GP racer.
Right off the bat, R7 cranks failed from a manufacturing flaw. Crank alone was $4500. There was no factory recall, no warranty, and Yamaha had to come out of pocket to replace cranks free of charge. In addition, racers complained that the need for YEC kits made racing the R7 far too expensive. Many R7 models sat in showrooms well past 2002, heavily discounted. The R7 was expensive to produce, and Yamaha lost considerable money on each one. Last nail in the coffin was Nori Haga's championship loss in 2000 because of a positive drug test for Ephedrine.
Because of Nori Haga's success on the bike, limited numbers, and overall beauty of the motorcycle, the R7 has developed a cult following in the motorcycle world. During the bike's life, there's been many different interpretations of what an R7 or R71 actually is.
1) Because the R7 cost so much, many R1 owners converted bikes to look like the R7.
2) Many R7 owners yanked fragile motors, and modified the R7 frame to accept an R1 motor.
3) Stateside, Graves Yamaha entered the Formula Extreme class with an R7 chassis and R1 motor. The AMA eventually banned this successful bike, stating that '50% of the frame had to be from the same bike as the motor'. Graves quickly mated an R1 and R7 frame together, calling the bike an "R71".
4) In the UK, QB Carbon created the R71 SPS. This bike was built with Yamaha's blessing by QB Carbon. Was an R1 frame and motor, with modifications to accept an R7 subframe and tail. Made in very limited numbers.
5) Also in the UK, the Harris Performance R71 was a hand-made frame with the same dimensions as the R7, but with modular mounts to accept an R1 motor. Because Harris made this frame so close to the WSBK switch to 1000cc bikes, not many sold. Asking price was close to $10,000, and they only made 8 total frames.
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Original Yamaha R7 racebike, Nori Haga
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Road version of the Yamaha R7
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Factory Yamaha R7 race bike, Aaron Gobert
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Graves Yamaha R71 race bike (R7 frame and R1 motor)
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Graves Yamaha R71 race bike (50-50 R7/R1 frame and R1 motor)
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QB Carbon (UK) R71 SPS (R1 frame/motor and R7 subframe/tail)
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Harris R71, sold as a 'frame kit' for nearly $10,000. Only 8 were ever made.
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Yamaha R1/R7 Replica. Many bikes in the US with this style. Sharkskinz sells an "R71" bodywork kit, which is an R7 upper/lower made to fit the R1. Bike is essentially ALL R1 with a different fairing and replica paint job.
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Back in 1999, World Superbike displacement was limited to V-twin 1000cc (RC-45, Ducati 916) or inline-four 750cc bikes (ZX-7RR, YZF-750). 1000cc inline-fours (R1, ZX-10, GSXR1000) weren't allowed until 2002. World Superbike is a 'production' bike series. Bikes must be 'homologated', meaning that a manufacturer must build 500 road versions of their bike to be legal for WSBK racing.
The Yamaha R1 hit the street in 1998. This was the replacement for the YZF1000 and YZF750. Yamaha did away with the 750 version of their bike, and hit the market with the 1000 (R1) and 600 (R6). However, WSBK rules hadn't changed, and they still needed a 750 to race the series in 1999.
Yamaha secretly developed a WSBK weapon for Nori Haga....the YZF-R7. The R7 was built with similar dimensions as Yamaha's YZR-500 GP bike. They built the racer first, then 500 road versions with lesser-quality OEM bits. Civilian R7 models were sold as race only, to team owners and licensed racers. Asking price was $32,000, and Yamaha did not offer a warranty. OEM bikes were heavily restricted, making only 106 hp. YEC offered modification kits that would bump output to 135 hp (Stage 1) or 160 hp (Stage 3).
Power aside, the R7 is known as one of the best handling bikes in the world....even by today's standards. Frame strength and geometry help the bike to hold a line similar to a GP racer.
Right off the bat, R7 cranks failed from a manufacturing flaw. Crank alone was $4500. There was no factory recall, no warranty, and Yamaha had to come out of pocket to replace cranks free of charge. In addition, racers complained that the need for YEC kits made racing the R7 far too expensive. Many R7 models sat in showrooms well past 2002, heavily discounted. The R7 was expensive to produce, and Yamaha lost considerable money on each one. Last nail in the coffin was Nori Haga's championship loss in 2000 because of a positive drug test for Ephedrine.
Because of Nori Haga's success on the bike, limited numbers, and overall beauty of the motorcycle, the R7 has developed a cult following in the motorcycle world. During the bike's life, there's been many different interpretations of what an R7 or R71 actually is.
1) Because the R7 cost so much, many R1 owners converted bikes to look like the R7.
2) Many R7 owners yanked fragile motors, and modified the R7 frame to accept an R1 motor.
3) Stateside, Graves Yamaha entered the Formula Extreme class with an R7 chassis and R1 motor. The AMA eventually banned this successful bike, stating that '50% of the frame had to be from the same bike as the motor'. Graves quickly mated an R1 and R7 frame together, calling the bike an "R71".
4) In the UK, QB Carbon created the R71 SPS. This bike was built with Yamaha's blessing by QB Carbon. Was an R1 frame and motor, with modifications to accept an R7 subframe and tail. Made in very limited numbers.
5) Also in the UK, the Harris Performance R71 was a hand-made frame with the same dimensions as the R7, but with modular mounts to accept an R1 motor. Because Harris made this frame so close to the WSBK switch to 1000cc bikes, not many sold. Asking price was close to $10,000, and they only made 8 total frames.
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Original Yamaha R7 racebike, Nori Haga
Road version of the Yamaha R7
Factory Yamaha R7 race bike, Aaron Gobert
Graves Yamaha R71 race bike (R7 frame and R1 motor)
Graves Yamaha R71 race bike (50-50 R7/R1 frame and R1 motor)
QB Carbon (UK) R71 SPS (R1 frame/motor and R7 subframe/tail)
Harris R71, sold as a 'frame kit' for nearly $10,000. Only 8 were ever made.
Yamaha R1/R7 Replica. Many bikes in the US with this style. Sharkskinz sells an "R71" bodywork kit, which is an R7 upper/lower made to fit the R1. Bike is essentially ALL R1 with a different fairing and replica paint job.
