Yamaha has taken its fun-time MT-07 and bunged an automatic gearbox in it. In an automotive world where autos are the norm and manual gearboxes are increasingly harder to find, this makes sense. It's the way of the future — automatic bikes, that is — and if you're closer to death than birth this may cause some consternation. But it shouldn't. It's not the auto you fear; it's simply change, and the MT-07 Y-AMT brings a new level of user-friendliness to the table.

Now, I say auto, but in fact the Y-AMT's gearbox is similar in most regards to the gearbox found on the regular MT-07, as is the MT-07's 689cc CP2 parallel-twin engine. This is not a fully automatic, dual-clutch setup like Honda's DCT system. Clutch actuation and shifting are simply handled by a deck of servo motors that do the job your left limbs would normally do. If you do feel you need to take control of shifting responsibilities, there are paddle shifters located on the left-hand switchblock. If you're coming from a regular bike, this can take a little while to get used to and, I'll admit, there were a few times in the heat of battle, so to speak, that I attempted to change with my foot and found the space normally reserved for the shifter empty.

The shifting is clean, fast and fairly seamless — so much so, indeed, that you can pop the MT-07 on the back wheel and bang up through the gears with the shift paddles and not spoil a perfectly good wheelie — or so I've been told. In most riding situations, the MT-07's computer brain is bang on with when the appropriate time to shift up or down is, and for anything outside this, the manual shift works just great. So, are there any downsides to the system? Well, I have a couple of niggles. Firstly, it's a bit agricultural-sounding, with lots of mechanical noise as the servos go about their business, and secondly, there are circumstances where the MT-07's brain doesn't get it completely right. Admittedly, this happened when I was doing things the majority of Y-AMT owners will rarely do — such as very slow and tight, feet-up U-turns — and occasionally it would shift up or down a gear mid-corner while I had the bike cranked over. Not ideal.

Now, as for the rest of the bike, it's identical to the regular MT-07. That, readers, is a great thing because the MT-07 is one of the most entertaining yet user-friendly bikes you'll come across. Unless you're looking to go touring, the MT-07 is a real multitool. With its comfortable upright seating position, you get a commanding view above most traffic; it's light and flickable, so threading your way through peak-hour traffic is not only easy but enjoyable. It's also capable of great feats of sporting prowess if you're feeling racy, and although I'm sure Yamaha never envisaged the MT-07 as a track weapon, I wouldn't hesitate to have a crack — auto or not.

Now, the standard MT-07 has a bit of a reputation as a wheelie machine, so has the auto killed that element? Well, I have it on rather good authority (mine) that the Y-AMT is still very capable in this department if you're so inclined, so it maintains the full fun factor of its manual sibling.

The MT-07 was and is a versatile, user-friendly and fun machine, and the Y-AMT simply adds an extra layer of user-friendliness. It's got all the good bits of a regular MT-07, the twist-and-go ease of a scooter, with the versatility of the paddle shifters to give you more control than you get with a scoot. It's a bike that lets you focus on things other than shifting gears — like braking and cornering and, if you're so inclined, the occasional wheelie perhaps.