It seems like nothing thrills motorcyclists like tributes to great bikes of the past. So Yamaha grabbed the spotlight at the American International Motorcycle Expo when it pulled the cover off the DT-07 concept bike.
The bike, in classic Yamaha bumblebee yellow and black, reinterprets today’s FZ-07 twin-cylinder street bike as a reincarnation of the company’s legendary TZ-750 dirt track race bike. The concept was developed by Jeff Palhegyi Design, a custom bike-building shop with a resume deep with custom cruisers.
Palhegyi evidently also has a soft spot for other kinds of classic Yamahas, as shown by his ownership of a number of the brand’s old bikes, including a TZ-750 dirt tracker.
Although it uses the FZ-07’s engine and bears a resemblance to the production model, the DT-07 has a unique frame, suspension and wheels. Yamaha and Palhegyi did use the production gas tank as a mold for the concept’s bodywork, to help retain similar appearance.
“When the FZ-07 was first introduced, we knew that the bike’s ‘Crossplane Concept’ parallel- twin engine had outstanding low- to mid-range torque, which is ideal for flat track racing,” remarked Keith McCarty, Motorsports Racing Division Manager for Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. “The FZ-07 is a great bike and also a great platform for customization. We wanted to see what we could do with the bike as a flat tracker, and we’re very pleased with the results.”
As they should be. Now we need only wait for news that the company will actually sell a production DT-07.
For the latest bike news, follow @MaximRides and Dan Carney on Twitter.
Photos by Yamaha Motor Corp.