In 1887, Nippon Gakki Co. Ltd was established, which later became Yamaha Corporation in 1987. They started out in the world of musical instruments, initially manufacturing reed organs before moving on to pianos. To this day, Yamaha is still the world’s largest piano manufacturer.
The Japanese company first became involved in motorcycle manufacturing post-World War Two, with company president Genichi Kawakami repurposing their war-time production machinery to produce motorcycles, creating the YA-1 in 1954. As a direct result of the success of this vehicle, Yamaha Motor Company was formed in 1955.
Yamaha Motor Company didn’t just stop at making motorcycles though. Over the years, they’ve also made ATVs, boats, snowmobiles and various generators too!
Yamaha in motorsport
Yamaha is one of the most famous names when it comes to motorcycle racing, particularly in the world of Grand Prix class events. Yamaha Motor Racing, or Yamaha Factory Racing as they’re otherwise known, have provided the machinery for 17 riders championships over the years, with Giacomo Agostini the first rider to win on a Yamaha machine in the 1975 500cc Grand Prix class. Since then, a number of legendary riders such as Kenny Roberts, Wayne Rainey, Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo have secured world titles riding for the Yamaha team.
Away from two wheels, Yamaha have also had some involvement in Formula One
What size are Yamaha motorcycle plates?
Yamaha motorcycle number plates are of the standard size for UK motorcycles, this being 228mm x 178mm. These can of course be customised with a number of options including borders, slogans and text styles such as 3D Gel, just head over to our Plate Builder to make yours today!
However, we also have a number of custom motorcycle plates available, with various different shapes and sizes in stock. For those Yamaha owners with more Tourer-focused models such as the Tracer 9, you may be interested in one of Avventura plates, which measure 150mm x 192mm. Alternatively, those with more sporty models like the R1 may want to take a closer look at our Velocita shape plate, which has dimensions of 249mm x 203mm. The custom shaped motorcycle plates we offer can be made bespoke to your needs, with any design used as the off-plate graphic. Choose from our incredible range of presets, or get in touch with us to discuss a custom design.