Tested in Gokarna: Yamaha Niken GT

There’s something about Gokarna at sunrise that messes with your expectations. You arrive thinking you’re just here for some twisties and coastal air, but end up meeting yourself halfway up a hairpin bend. That’s where I found myself last weekend, throwing around Yamaha’s oddball beast, the Niken GT. Now, “oddball” might sound unfair. But let’s be honest, two wheels at the front is enough to make most bikers raise a skeptical eyebrow. Except… this machine doesn’t just defy your doubts. It rips through them with a wicked grin and a footpeg flirting with asphalt. The Niken GT isn’t a gimmick. It’s a 270-kg, three-legged creature that dances through corners like it’s got something to prove. Yamaha hasn’t tried to please everyone with this, thankfully. Instead, they’ve doubled down on tech, premium feel, and unshakable front-end grip. Gokarna’s coastal curves were the perfect place to see if this futuristic sport-tourer could really hold its own.

Unparalleled Front-End Stability with the Niken GT

Relentless, planted grip. The Niken GT’s entire identity orbits around its front end ,two 15-inch wheels working in glorious harmony, each mounted on its own parallelogram suspension. Yamaha calls it “Leaning Multi-Wheel” technology, and it gives this motorcycle the kind of front-end confidence most riders only dream about. You don’t just take corners on the Niken, you commit, lean deeper, and come out the other side with a smirk. It doesn’t just want to be different for the sake of it. It wants to be better. And for anyone who’s ever had their heart skip a beat on an uncertain lean, the Niken GT feels like a solution to a problem you didn’t know could be solved.

This is what it offers

You’re paying €18,399 for something with three wheels and a name that raises eyebrows. So it better deliver. Spoiler: it does. Let’s start with the engine. That CP3 inline-triple is a known warrior,890cc, 115 horses, and 90Nm of torque delivered with characteristic Yamaha smoothness. It doesn’t scream like a sportbike, nor does it lumber like a cruiser. It surges. At 7,000 rpm, torque kicks in like a switch, and suddenly the 270 kg it’s dragging feels like air. The new 7-inch TFT display is slick, intuitive, and the Garmin navigation integration (yes, that’ll cost you monthly) is a proper touring touch. Cruise control is standard, and the quickshifter (up and down) makes high-speed Gokarna coastal stretches feel like flying on autopilot. LED lighting all around. A plush, redesigned seat. USB ports. This isn’t just about performance; it’s built for the long ride.

Control Over Comfort

Throw it into the twisties and it will surprise you. Sure, the Niken GT feels wide at first. You notice the front end in a way you don’t with regular bikes. But once you’re moving, really moving, it fades into the background. What’s left is control. The kind you don’t usually associate with 270 kg of metal and electronics. Leaning into a fast S-curve, the front end bites down and doesn’t let go. You don’t second guess grip. You just ride. Hard. The dual 298 mm front discs have that initial softness common in touring setups, but dig deeper and they haul the bike down with authority. The rear 282 mm disc keeps things balanced. Gokarna’s coastal hills aren’t forgiving, there’s sand on the road, sudden switchbacks, and random cows that think they own the place. The Niken GT handled it all. The adjustable windscreen kept the blast off my chest at speed, and while I had to lean forward slightly for full protection, it never felt uncomfortable. Riding this thing through Gokarna’s backroads wasn’t just safe, it was fun. Honest-to-goodness fun. The kind of fun that catches you off guard because it doesn’t feel like a “safe” bike should be allowed to be this engaging.

The Power of Smoothness

There’s a moment I won’t forget. Cresting a hill just past Kudle Beach, the road opened into a lazy left-hander with the Arabian Sea glimmering to my right. I tipped the Niken in, deeper than I would on any other bike. The front wheels stayed planted, unbothered by a patch of sand near the apex. Most bikes would have twitched. This one didn’t flinch. That’s the memory. Not the tech specs or the display. That corner. That confidence. Yamaha says the new Niken GT has a heavier crankshaft to improve power delivery at low revs. It works. The pull is smooth, predictable. Even better, fuel consumption hovered around 5.5 L/100 km on our mixed route. Not bad for a bike this hefty. The seat height (825 mm) might be a stretch for shorter riders, but the revised padding near the thighs helps in getting feet down at stops. And for those worried about maneuvering a 270-kg machine at slow speeds, trust the front end. It’s stable in a way that changes your whole idea of what a big bike can be.

Technical Specification

Conclusion

There’s no getting around it, the Yamaha Niken GT is a weird bike. But so was the first superbike. So was the first electric motorcycle. Innovation always looks awkward until it works. And the Niken GT? It works. This isn’t a bike for garage queens or spec-sheet warriors. It’s a machine for riders who believe safety and excitement don’t have to be opposites. For those who want to ride further, lean harder, and come home smiling. It may never be a bestseller. But in the quiet curves above Gokarna, it didn’t feel like a bike trying to prove itself anymore. It felt like it had already won.