AoS 2019: Yamaha Y15ZR goes fat-tyred style

Growing from strength to strength, year to year, the 2019 Art of Speed (AoS) custom car and motorcycle show at the Malaysian Agriculture Exposition Park (MAEPS) in Serdang, Selangor, this year showcased builders and builds from the world over. One of the highlights of the show was a series of fat-tyred Yamaha Y15ZRs, known colloquially as “Y Suku”.

Yamaha’s Y15ZR supercub has proven popular with local riders and it was only a matter of time before customisers set their sights on it. In this case, the Geng Tayar Besar or Fat Tyre Gang (GTB) takes a stock Y15ZR and dresses it up to look like a superbike, down to the proper superbike sized tyres and suspension, along with brakes.

The Y15ZR is modded to accept a swingarm taken from a sports bike that allows for the fitment of a 140 to 180 size rear tyre while the front is usually a 120 size unit, sometimes in 16-inch diameter instead of the usual 17. Other dress up parts taken from the full-size superbike world include single-sided swingarms, dry clutch assemblies and upside down forks.

Looks are also customised to resemble the original superbike taken for inspiration, such as look alike fairings, LED lighting and paintwork to match. The Y15ZR’s single-cylinder 149 cc mill is also similarly modded, with some GTB bikes sporting proper superbike technology such as twin injectors and milled aluminium triple clamps.

Naturally, such customisation does not come cheap, with owners spending three to four times what the original Y15ZR is worth. For example, GTB owner Rudy Norman, who owns the Rossi Replica Y15ZR, says he spent around RM35,600 for the mods, including RM2,000 for the dry clutch and RM3,600 for the carbon-fibre exhaust.

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