Yamaha at EICMA 2026 with RW700 and Ténéré 4

What Yamaha has brought to EICMA 2026 in Milan is visible from a distance at the stand. Two scooters that have no intention of being well-behaved city runabouts: plenty of suspension travel, knobbly tyres, footpegs for standing up. Yamaha calls the new range RW, and it's challenging a duel that has been raging between two top dogs for years. On top of that comes a new small single with a layout I've never seen before. And then, after a short search through the hall, a crowd gathered around a bike that immediately rekindles my own enduro longing. In the end it even gets personal, because my son needs a new bike, and at the stand I get some colour advice from a colleague.

The RW700 uses the familiar CP2, the twin from Yamaha's middleweight models, here with 689 cc, 69 hp and 65 Nm. At its core it's a scooter, meaning a comfortable vehicle with practical use and storage space. But here you get loads of suspension travel, a rugged look and knobbly tyres, according to Yamaha on spoked wheels, 17 inches at the front and 15 inches at the rear. There are simply people who don't need quite as much off-road capability as a Ténéré offers. For them, the RW700 has floorboards and footpegs, so you can ride standing or seated. Bad tarmac, light off-road, all with the accessibility of a scooter but with the ingredients of a bike. A scooter-bike hybrid, if you like. According to Yamaha it weighs 221 kg fueled up, and the seat height is 810 mm. It's exactly this mix that makes it so exciting.

The most exciting part is the drivetrain. Instead of a CVT belt, the RW700 uses a regular motorcycle gearbox, as known from Yamaha's twins, combined with Y-AMT, an automated manual transmission. According to Yamaha, it's the brand's first scooter with gear changes. Compared with a scooter, that means higher efficiency, no belt losses and so on. Shifting happens without a clutch lever and without a gear pedal, either via paddle or fully automatically. A fascinating story, and I'm curious to see how the RW700 stacks up against the top dog. This duel has been going on for years: Honda with the X-ADV, Yamaha with the TMAX. Now the duel is being expanded, as Yamaha throws the RW700 into the ring as well. For the A2 licence, Yamaha says there will be a 35 kW version, and the better-equipped RW700 Explore gets heated grips and a heated seat, among other things.

The range also comes as the RW350, and around that one it gets really crowded. I'm being pushed aside, seriously pushed aside. Huge storage space, I notice, and a new small single with 327 cc and 29 hp. So Yamaha is investing in new engine technology too. The layout is fascinating: according to Yamaha, the engine is fixed in the frame, and only the transmission unit swings around the pivot point at the crankshaft. That means only it counts as unsprung mass, not the whole engine. Then I make some room and sit on it. I stand up, standing position, good overview. Then sit back down, and the seating position is comfortable. A full-face helmet fits under the seat, I checked that straight away. Display and cruise control are on board, plus an automatic. I think it's cool that Yamaha is launching this new engine generation in, of all things, a scooter-bike hybrid like this.

And then there's one more thing: a small Ténéré with a compact single. At first I don't know where it is, but the crowd gives it away. Anyone already popping the champagne, I have to bring back down to earth right away: the Ténéré 4 Concept is a concept, according to Yamaha a lightweight adventure bike for the A2 class with a new single, new frame, KYB suspension and 21- and 18-inch spoked wheels. Yamaha isn't revealing displacement or power. But this is exactly what we need right now: Japanese reliability, accessible weight, a cracking single, riding comfort and rally looks. I'd ride that all the way to Tajikistan and beyond. The swingarm isn't as massive as on the Ténéré 700, but it's no flimsy junk either. The engine doesn't look feather-light, but it doesn't look like a heavy lump either. My guess: 182 kilos wet weight. It feels like we waited seven years for the Ténéré 700. Please bring the little one sooner, 2028 or even 2027.

The Ténéré 700 continues, of course, shown at the stand in the Rally version. But out of personal interest I'm drawn to the new MT-125. My son has reasonably good grades, and he's as tall as I am. The MT-125 is roomy, and the seating position suits taller people too, while other Japanese 125s turn out pretty compact. Variable valve timing and an anti-hopping clutch are on board, plus a seriously wide handlebar. So Dad's getting him two bikes right away, better now, while we can still ride together, than him inheriting them in 30 years. As everyone knows, the hearse doesn't tow a trailer. That leaves the colour question, which I put to Zonko, my 1000PS colleague I bump into at the stand. His answer: "For Yamaha it would of course be red and white. But personally I think this blue is really great." I like the Icon Blue too, but I fear my son will go for black. In Germany the MT-125 costs 5,949 euros including on-the-road charges.

Just how crowded it really got around the new scooters is shown in my four-hour walkaround of EICMA 2026 on the 1000PS YouTube channel. After just under an hour and a half it's Yamaha's turn, this link jumps straight to the stand. You'll see the RW700 with floorboards and footpegs, my sit test on the RW350 including a look under the seat, the search for the Ténéré 4 Concept in the crowd and my first look at the swingarm and engine. Plus the new MT-125 and meeting Zonko, who helps me choose a colour for my son. Stick around afterwards and you'll get more than 40 further stands, from Honda to Ducati to KOVE, with sit tests, stand chats and clear verdicts. Four hours of EICMA to watch at your leisure, without the crowds and without paying for a ticket.

• RW700: 689 cc CP2 twin, 69 hp at 8,250 rpm, 65 Nm, six-speed Y-AMT, 221 kg fueled up, seat height 810 mm, 14 l tank, 17/15-inch spoked wheels, A2 version with 35 kW
• RW350: 327 cc single, 29 hp at 7,000 rpm, 31.5 Nm at 5,750 rpm, swinging transmission unit, cruise control, helmet compartment, 192 kg wet weight (according to reports), seat height 810 mm (according to reports), 13 l tank
• Ténéré 4 Concept: concept for the A2 class, new single, new lightweight frame, KYB suspension, 21/18-inch spoked wheels, no market launch or price announced
• MT-125: 15 hp at 10,000 rpm, 142 kg wet weight (according to reports), seat height 810 mm (according to reports), price in Germany 5,949 euros incl. on-the-road charges, from January 2027