2022 Yamaha Tracer 9 GT Long-Term Review

Over the course of the past year, we’ve been riding Yamaha’s 2022 Tracer 9 GT. Introduced in 2021, the Tracer 9 GT is a middleweight, sport-touring bike from the Tuning Fork brand. We’ve reported on its performance and capability during the 2022 Yamaha Tracer 9 GT Review and 2021 Yamaha Tracer 9 GT MC Commute Review articles and videos. Now, after riding this machine for nearly a year and logging almost 4,000 miles, we’re discussing what it’s like to live with from day to day.

Our original review discussed a couple of annoying hiccups, but fast-forward to now and those bugaboos irk us much less. We’re keen on the versatility and function of the Tracer 9. We really like this middleweight’s size; because it’s a bantam sport-touring bike, it has great everyday utility. It’s great to have a bike with manufacturer hard cases, eliminating the need for a fanny pack or backpack as the lockable and removable luggage swallow nearly 8 gallons of goodies on either side. And even with the luggage mounted, the bike remains svelte and nimble.

Traffic is a bear in Southern California, and larger touring bikes and cruisers can be a handful to slide in and out of traffic. Not so with this Tracer 9 GT; it may weigh just over 500 pounds with a full 5 gallons of fuel, but it’s surprisingly responsive, really fitting our SoCal lifestyle.

We love the ergonomics, particularly the adjustability. The broad seat is nice and plush and can be easily raised or lowered without tools; at 6 feet, the tall position worked for me personally. And the ability to adjust the rider’s footpegs made us happy. This was already a common feature on sportbikes many years ago, so it’s a no-brainer for Yamaha to include this. We kept the pegs in the low position to reduce painful knee contortions. Rounding out the triangle, if you will, the handlebar is proportioned well and can also be adjusted to rider preference. Overall, a really accommodating ergonomics package.

The manually adjustable windscreen is easy to use, and we value how tall it is in the high position, where it does a fine job of flowing turbulent air over the rider. The OE-fitted plastic hand guards are another valuable touch, and do a marvelous job of keeping hands warm in cold weather. This along with 10-way-adjustable electronic heated grips make riding in chilly conditions much more bearable.

Of course comfort is only half of this bike’s appeal; performance measures up as well. The 890cc inline-triple is awesome, with gobs of torque, more than 50 lb.-ft. from as low as 2,500 rpm. And there’s right around 104–105 ponies at the business end of the Bridgestone Battlax 180-series rubber, so the Tracer 9 has plenty of get-up-and-go, which is easy to use thanks to its electronic quickshifter, a nice add-on. No need to use the clutch when upshifting or downshifting makes for a much more entertaining experience with the torquey punch of this inline-three, which as a bonus, sounds really, really cool.

What’s also cool, in a quieter way, is this bike’s elevated maintenance intervals. Yamaha Motor recommends engine oil swaps every 6,000 miles, engine oil filter changes every 12,000 miles, along with fresh spark plugs and an air filter. The valve adjustment intervals are spaced to 24,000 miles. This streetbike goes quite a ways between services.

The KYB semi-active suspension is decent, and it’s neat that Yamaha added this feature to the bike. But the actual function of the semi-active suspension is meh; we’ve ridden other bikes with semi-active suspension that performed near-magically. Around town the Tracer 9 handles nicely, soaking up the bumps well. But when you’re getting some in the corners on a favorite curvy road, it has a tendency to get a little bit unglued. Still, most can certainly live with the minor disappointment given the bike’s day-to-day capability.

Fuel economy-wise, well, we love riding fast, so we only averaged around 32 mpg. But again, this engine is so peppy, with a neat-sounding engine and exhaust notes, we feel the average rider is going to find it really easy to rev this thing out and let ‘er eat, so we stand by our numbers. And with its 5-gallon-capacity fuel tank, there’s decent range. Of course, even bigger fuel tanks are always better in our notepads, especially for a sport-touring bike. But we can live with this capacity for urban touring.

During our nearly 4,000-mile stint the only real hiccup we had was a flat tire. Even then, the OE centerstand made it easy; pop off the wheel, fit a new tire, and away we went.

Which brings us to the other stumbling point: No doubt $15,000 is a lot of money, especially considering the outgoing FJ-09 only cost around $11,500 with luggage. But, for the added price of the ‘22 version, you get a lot of accoutrements. We especially like the heated grips. Other features were appreciated, with nitpicks: We like the cruise control, though it is a little bit annoying that you can only engage it in fourth gear and up; we like the LED cornering headlights, though they don’t do a great job of throwing light into corners.

But overall this Tracer 9 GT definitely grew on us. It’s a great package. It’s nice to have a sport-touring bike that doesn’t take up a car’s worth of room in your garage, and we love its peppy, fun-loving engine.

Would we pony up $15,000 for this motorcycle? Initially we thought it was far too expensive based on features alone. But after riding it for nearly a year our tune has changed. Among other refinements, its high-end electronics package, particularly its more refined throttle response courtesy of Yamaha’s updated D-mode system and APSG throttle tube setup make it a lovable, easy-riding bike. And it won’t break the bank in terms of maintenance. After a year, we believe the $15,000 Tracer 9 GT can do a whole heck of a lot for us.

Helmet: Shoei RF-SR

Jacket: Rev’It Tornado 3

Pant: Rev’It Jackson RF

Gloves: Rev’It Sand 3

Boots: TCX Rush 2 Air