After you’ve spent some time aboard a motorcycle like Yamaha’s FZ6, you really have to take a step back and marvel at its technology. The engine in this bike is just 599cc in size, yet it bangs out almost 100 horsepower. I regularly drive cars and trucks with engines that have a larger displacement than that in each cylinder.

Furthermore, the FZ6 revs to 14,000 rpm. That’s racing-bike territory, even though it reaches its maximum output at 12,000 rpm and most of the top-end power disappears after about 10,000 revs. The bike is still accelerating at that point, but there’s no real bite. Still, it’s amazing how far you can rev this engine in each gear and when you crank it, it just seems to go on and on. The FZ6 is a very quick motorcycle, and the majority of riders will never find its performance limits, mainly because you need a lot of road to really wring them out.

All of this comes from a liquid-cooled in-line four-cylinder engine that is transversely mounted and features dual overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder, as well as a plethora of high-tech engineering highlights, such as a one-piece cylinder and upper crankcase assembly, lightweight pistons, and a high-capacity radiator. It’s mated to a six-speed transmission, and the final drive is chain. For motorcycle gearheads who appreciate technical details and state-of-the-art engineering, this bike is a feast.

It also has one of the smoothest and most nicely coordinated drive trains I’ve encountered lately. Despite its formidable power-to-weight ratio (186 kilogram dry weight), the FZ6 is still a very usable and accessible motorcycle. At highway speed, for example, it’s rolling over at just 5,500 rpm at 100 kilometres per hour in top gear. That means you’ve still got 8,500 rpm to play with.

And at low speeds, power is linear and readily available. During my time with the FZ6, I did a few impromptu and extremely unofficial roll-on tests. Letting the bike drift down to about 40 kilometres per hour in sixth gear, I cranked it, giving it wide-open throttle. While it didn’t leap ahead, nor did it stumble or balk. Power came on cleanly and built up astonishingly fast. High-revving little powerhouses like the FZ6 don’t usually like low rpms, but it handles them, no problem. That’s a good thing because around town, at any engine speed over 5,000 rpm in the lower gears, the bike is buzzy and frantic. Sure, you can ride it hyped-up and ready to pop if you want, but it doesn’t mind loafing either; in other words, you can relax on it, which isn’t always the case with similar machines, and you don’t have to constantly use the transmission to keep things interesting.

Elsewhere, the FZ6 has dual-disc brakes up front and a single disc in the back, with substantial 43-millimetre front forks and a single rear shock. There are two kickstands: centre and side, and although the former works just fine, the latter is hard to get at, tucked up under the foot pegs and shift lever. The riding position is fairly upright, with conventional handlebars mounted on decent-sized risers, which I really appreciated. In most respects, this is a sport motorcycle—although it’s officially classed as a middleweight street bike—but there’s no prone riding position, and you can actually ride the FZ6 all day without hurting yourself in the process.

Seat height is a manageable 795 millimetres and the saddle itself is reasonably comfortable, though a little shy on padding. I could also say the same about the handlebar grips, which will transmit some vibration into your hands at certain rpms, but not enough to whine about. Yamaha tweaked the front fairing for 2007, and it does provide some refuge from the wind, though not a lot. The company is claiming that the FZ6 is a—and I quote—“tourer, commuter, and sport bike” but for long-distance rides, this is not the first model that springs to mind.

I also want to put in a word about the shifting mechanism. In a word, it’s flawless. Clutch action is effortless and the gears slip almost eagerly into place. No audible clanks, false neutral, or balky shift points—nicely done, Yamaha.

In most respects, this is a very agreeable motorcycle. It has enough power for all but the most rabid performance enthusiasts, features a comparatively civilized ride, and doesn’t throw down the gauntlet every time you climb aboard. Like its rivals, the Suzuki Bandits and Honda 599 (no longer sold in Canada), the FZ6 is an all-purpose street bike that can easily do sport-bike duty. Because of its nice sense of balance and freewheeling nature, I can see stunt riders and hooligans gravitating this way.

Prices start at $9,300, and you can choose from two colours: blue and red.