Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.

It’s been a while since we last shared some of our amigurumi projects (we’ve released several since the YZF-R1M muffler). This one is our biggest yet because it’s actually the same size as the real Yamaha P-7 outboard!    Needless to say, this one is a serious undertaking, but you can rest assured that it will definitely be a conversation starter if you manage to complete it.    Head here for instructions if you want to take on this unique challenge: https://lnkd.in/gyMDP4Ju    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #outboards #amigurumi #dakimakura #hobby #artsandcrafts #marine

=== Days Gone By===    Together with Outboards – 3. Starting with Developing Countries  <continued>    We slowly but steadily made improvements and resolved the issues causing the complaints, and after a year the outboards were also gradually improving. But I knew the level of progress we made with our outboards still wasn’t enough for them to withstand the harsh use awaiting them in developing countries. It would take time to build an engine that wouldn’t break, but if we halted deliveries and sales until the newly developed engines were ready, we’d lose the markets we’d already worked so hard to secure. The only way to cover this lag time and retain the markets was to improve our post-purchase services as much as possible. After lengthy deliberation, both the engineering and marketing divisions finally agreed this was the best course of action, so I asked Managing Executive Officer Eguchi—he was in charge of sales at the time—to allocate more resources for technical marketing.    I also promised to send somebody from the engineering division well versed in outboard technology to technical marketing, so I made the somewhat painful decision to have Harada-san, the department manager and a key part of our outboard design department, reassigned as the department manager for technical marketing. I did this because I felt that the job was the most important thing we needed for our outboards at the time.    Altering our business methods to compensate for inadequate product reliability with our after-sales services began in earnest with a focus on the developing countries. So our engineers set off together with personnel from technical marketing, running around to every corner of these markets to see them firsthand. My own travels took me from deep in the Amazon in South America to remote areas of Nigeria’s interior in Africa; I saw for myself how our products were being used and I worked hard to improve their reliability.    The reason Yamaha outboards enjoy such a good reputation and have such a large share in most of these markets today is largely based on all the efforts we made back then. The engineering and marketing divisions worked very hard and it was worth it in the end; we knew that if we could ensure reliability in developing countries, there would be no problems with durability in other markets. You could say that the starting point for the quality and the marketing policies of Yamaha outboard motors has its roots in making them a viable business in developing countries.    Photo: A Yamaha service engineer providing instruction to local mechanics in Papua New Guinea <ends>    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #marine #outboards #outboardmotors #manufacturing #engineering #history #design   

===What the Japanese Bayberry Trees Have Seen===   29. The Story of the Gears  <continued>    At the time, gear grinding could only be done with high-end tools and machinery, making it an inherently expensive process. However, the Reishauer method stood out in that it was particularly well suited for mass production. Technical Department Manager Nemoto immediately paid a visit to Ikegai Metalworks, which had already purchased such a machine and put it to use. They tested the machine with one of our gears for him and the grinding time per gear was 3 minutes and 18 seconds, convincing him of its suitability for mass production.    However, the machine’s astronomical price of 12 million yen was far beyond what the Hamana Factory alone could afford. Instead, on May 25th it was decided to purchase the machine and install it in Nippon Gakki’s machine tool factory. The first motorcycle gears produced by the Reishauer gear grinder were used in the bikes that would compete at the Fuji Ascent Race [mentioned in the next story].    This gear grinder was key in establishing Yamaha’s reputation for high quality, and the company has since installed 13 of these machines. Improvements in our gear machining technology have made it no longer necessary to grind the mating surfaces of every single gear, but I think that Reishauer gear grinder was a significant factor during the company’s early years. After all, it solved all our gear whine problems with a single stroke.    Photo: The Reishauer grinder in action shaping a part with a grindstone    <ends>    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #motorcycles #racing #manufacturing #engineering #history #design   

Tokyo Override, a new original anime series from Netflix, has begun streaming! Head here for a link to the series and some behind-the-scenes videos of how we helped create the show: https://lnkd.in/dtenPcsJ    The motorcycles from Yamaha and Honda that feature in the anime will also be on display at the MODI building in Shibuya, so take a swing by if you’re in the area!    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #Netflix #ONA #TokyoOverride #anime #Japan #Tokyo #motorcycles #future #AI 

Netflix’s motorcycle action anime series Tokyo Override has gone live worldwide! 🎉 Yamaha Motor collaborated on this production, which is set in Tokyo 100 years in the future where AI has been integrated into daily life and all aspects of urban living are automated. Enjoy watching Yamaha’s “Y/AI” original race bike concept, the YZF-R1 superbike, and VMAX muscle bike roar through the streets of Tokyo exclusively on Netflix!    #Yamaha #YamahaXTokyoOverride #Netflix #TokyoOverride #RevsyourHeart #ONA #anime #Japan #Tokyo #motorcycles #future #AI 

Introducing our next-generation HARMO 2.0 Electric Outboard. We’re delighted to announce the next step in our electric propulsion offering as we strive towards a more sustainable future for the marine industry. Building on the highly acclaimed, original HARMO, this next-generation model combines an exciting new design, more configuration options and a choice of control packages to redefine what’s possible in electric propulsion. By developing electric power options, we’re taking important steps to decarbonise the marine industry and ensure a cleaner, more sustainable environment for generations to come. You can check out the HARMO 2.0 at METSTRADE by visiting our booth: 06.102. Discover more: https://brnw.ch/HARMO2 #YamahaOntheWater #RevsYourHeart #HARMO

The 2024 MotoGP season came to a close last weekend and the first official tests for 2025 are underway today.    While Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP did not feature in the title chase, the hard work being done to improve the competitiveness of the YZR-M1 has not gone unnoticed. We finished the season as the top-ranked Rider, Team, and Constructor for a Japanese entry, but this is obviously not where we need to be—fighting for the #1 spot overall for each of these titles is our goal and we will keep working hard to put the Tuning Fork brand back at the front of the field.    Finally, a big congratulations to 2024 World Champion Jorge Martin and the Prima Pramac Racing team. We can’t wait to have the series’ newest title-winning squad in our corner!    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #motorcycles #racing #history #MotoGP #brand #manufacturing #engineering #design 

=== Days Gone By===    Together with Outboards – 3. Starting with Developing Countries    From there, our work moved to finding permanent solutions for the problems causing customer complaints and developing new outboard models to expand our lineup. At the time, we had four models: the P-45 (2 hp), P-95 (5 hp), P-200 (9.9 hp), and P-250 (15 hp). Sanshin Industries was in charge of production and yearly output was just under 60,000 units.    These outboards were used for recreation in Europe, for fishing and transport in developing countries, and for fishing in Japan. But all of them suffered problems with reliability. Yamaha’s first outboards used motorcycle engines and most users operated them at full throttle for 6 to 8 hours every day on the open ocean.    The quality of gasoline was also poor in developing countries in particular, and there were even some areas where users mixed gear oil for cars with the fuel since there was no proper 2-stroke engine oil available. With the engines operating for more than 10 hours a day, it’s really not surprising that they would fail. On top of that, the outboards were being used out on the ocean and constantly exposed to seawater, which would work its way inside the engine and cause rampant corrosion.    Every day began and ended dealing with customer complaints. We got an earful from the sales divisions as well: “You can’t come to us with such an inferior product like this and honestly expect us to get good sales numbers. You guys in engineering keep spouting excuses, but the fact of the matter is the outboards aren’t getting any better.” It was all a total mess and I was so frustrated. I remember thinking to myself, “Damn it, you just watch. We’ll build an engine that’ll never break!”    Photo: The use of Yamaha outboards in developing countries (photo from Pakistan) was the starting point for later model improvements. <continues>    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #marine #outboards #outboardmotors #manufacturing #engineering #history #design   

===What the Japanese Bayberry Trees Have Seen===   29. The Story of the Gears    In February, we somehow managed to assemble 30 motorcycles, 17 of which were shipped out. However, shortly after we returned from our training at Hitachi Seiki in late March, we ran into a big problem with the precision of our transmission gears. As production proceeded, it was only natural that our ears became more attuned to the sound of the engines and that quality control standards became stricter. The biggest problem we picked up thanks to this was the noise we’d hear from the gears.    At the time, we believed that the best way to produce high-precision gears was to lap the teeth in by running the two gears together simultaneously during the final stage of finishing. But since the gears were surface-hardened by carburizing after machining them, if we had gears with imprecise teeth cuts at first or warped teeth caused by the heat treatment, we couldn’t improve the precision of the gears by lapping.    The problem was the machinery we were using to cut the gear teeth: an old Reinecker hobbing machine from the propeller production era—even back then it was rarely used—that simply wasn’t good enough. Also, our skill at polishing the hobbing tool was inadequate and on top of that, our heat treatment capabilities were still lacking, so it was only to be expected that our gears would be so noisy.    In an effort to rectify the problem, we visited various companies specializing in gear making and got advice from experts, but none of it resulted in a quick fix to our problems. It wasn’t until May that we discovered our miracle-maker. At an international trade fair held in Tokyo, Manufacturing Division General Manager Aisa saw a Reishauer gear grinder on display and suggested we get one.    <continues>    #Yamaha #RevsyourHeart #motorcycles #racing #manufacturing #engineering #history #design