Why Do We Buy The Tenere700?

[Burnsey]

It's probably the most often debated point and no one ever seems to agree.

 

What I mean, is it's not the best off road and not the best mile muncher either, so why is it so popular?

 

I think it does both well, but others do each type of ride better. That is my opinion I should add.

 

Ex GS owner for the last ten plus years. In my younger days I did a lot of enduro. Tend to do the odd weekend bimble, plus four or more Euro trips (each 3k miles) per year. More recently, we've started to venture off road, but nothing too mad.

 

The GS is better on the highway (fact), but crap off road (opinion) mainly due to (i) weight and (ii) fear of damage because it's twenty grand plus.

 

A (say) CRF 300 is better off-road(fact & opinion), but a slog getting there and certainly not a tourer.

 

Anything smaller for the trails and you're into needing a van to transport etc, so for me, the Tenere 700 gives the best of both worlds and that's why I bought one. So far, it has served me well.

 

If you're in a group, there's no doubt similar bikes help. On a recent trip, the lads on the GS did tend to disappear on the wide open roads, but now they are used to me and we all ride for each other so to speak. Tomorrow I'm out with a Ducati and Fireblade, so it will be roads, but albeit they have a blast from time to time, they see me catch up on the twisties pretty quickly.

 

Anyway, just came into my mind, so popped a post up.

[Ray Ride4life]

For me the same.
Had a drtbike when i was a kid and as a metal dude you get quite easily into choppers so when i bought my first bike a Harley was out of reach and bought an Intruder which i rebuild from the ground up to be a real chopper.
Due to a lot of chrome and the fact that building never ends i bought another bike for grabs and rainy days, a ZX-6 and discovered that my riding style fitted a sportsbike better.
After crashing the ZX-6 i eventually sold the Intruder and bought a ZXR 750, then a VFR VTEC followed by the Crosstourer.
The Crosstourer was not because i got old and needed to sit more straight but i love riding in the mountains and that one could cover the distances but could throw it into the hairpin turns and the torque getting it out like having launch control.
Not being an allroad but still looking like one i did make it an allroad rediscovering the fun in the sand but after the TET south Netherlands and a offroad basic training it was clear it was way too heavy .
That's when i bought the XT660Z.
In 2020 my relation ended end i started travelling more and further with the Crosstourer.
Getting myself more and more in trouble on the CT due to its weight and limited suspension travel and the XT660Z to restless for bigger trips due to the single cylinder i bought the T7 after i ran into a very low km 2020 model just after my Balkan trip last September.
Tomorrow i will finish the final episode (7 episodes total) of my Balkan travel blog and then in the spring the TET Belgium and maybe another TET weekend, the VFROC club weekend and in July North Cape.
The T7 might be too heavy for serious enduro but i think it will get the closest to that level from any mid size adventure bike available right now and after a 650km day-trip with 60% highway, 35% country roads and 5% offroad i'm convinced it will do just great on long travels even when it's mostly paved.
Another very big plus for those longer travels is the lack of bullshit, no overkill on electrics packed with sensors. What's not on it cannot get broken and mechanical problems are more likely to get trail fixed then electrical issues killing a bike because a sensor is not sure if the engine is happy or not. Even if it works it's pain in the ass having to go through menu's and settings when you change to a different surface or getting surprised with some rain.
Only wished i could turn ABS on and off on the fly but that's not Yamaha's fault but ignorant government officials thinking they need to protect us.

[winddown]

I'm a strictly street bike rider too, all the way from my first road bike up to the bmw1000rr I ride now, I never considered a dirt bike before I saw the tenere 650.  I nearly bought one of those a couple of years back but changed my mind but when I saw the 700 I knew I just had to have it!    Why, I really don't know?  It's certainly not the power, it's just a combination of the looks and a desire to explore some dirt roads up my way I guess.  Pretty shallow motivation but if the bike hadn't been super reliable made in JAPAN I wouldn't have touched it.  I think it's reliability was the key, I think it deserves to be bought hey!  It's just a great little upright bike for cruising through the hills on, dirt roads or not.   The more reviews and videos I watch the more I feel it's a great bike.   I never liked the big Adventure tourers, the BMW's etc, I just couldn't see the point, too heavy and overdone.  But I can see the point in the T7,  I can't wait to get it.

Edited January 16, 2022 by winddown

[Tenerider]

All of you named most reasons why I bought mine (without ever having ridden ANY motorcycle yet):

 

@Ray Ride4life "lack of bullshit" really sets it - at first, I considered top-grade cornering ABS/TC/whatever bikes, of course with Bluetooth connectivity and so on - not kidding, some of them even have built in GoPro control!

I found out gradually that I could have this experience at home without a motorcycle as well, staring at screens and counting "followers".

KISS.

 

@winddown Build quality and reliability are definitely things I onsider A LOT. I considered KTM as well - look at Petrucci's recent Dakar experience regarding their reliability When I was a kid, I loved BMW's GS (1100 GS back then) - it was so tall and big and powerful, a 14 year old's dream. Nowadays, their build quality and reliability seems not to be any more what it used to be.

I didn't like the looks of the XTZ 660 Ténéré back then, but somehow the famous name settled in my brain.

Definitely, the praised CP2 engine was one of the main reasons to choose the T7. I really did a lot of "research" (i.e. googling/YT) and simply could not find any bad or even mediocre review of this engine, or of the T7.

 

@Burnsey You name it: The Tenere seems to be able to do everything - not perfect, of course, but (quoting several testers) surprisingly well. So, it most likely won't limit my riding style whichever direction it might take (I definitely know that I'm not going to be a racer or chopper guy).

What's important for me: This bike won't force me to "prove myself", let me explain:

Nobody expects a T7 rider to keep up with, say,  a Panigale on the track or the highway. So, when I will be slower than those experienced riders, I won't be blamed

Same goes for offroad riding: If you are riding a very capable dual sports bike like a Husky 701, people almost expect you to perform offroad. I don't want to be pushed by other's or my own expectations. I want to have fun riding and want to enjoy myself, and I don't want to "have to" show off because I'm riding a super-performance naked bike/superbike/dual sports/whatever.

 

Finally, I was really impressed by its size and its sublime/superior seating position. I'm 187cm with quite long legs, so not really a small guy. I admit that I really like the feeling of owning a tall bike made for grown-ups

Yesterday, I spotted a KTM 790 next to a T7... I had to laugh. Call me arrogant

 

P.S: I really hope I won't make a fool of myself as soon as I ride it

Edited January 16, 2022 by Tenerider

[Toppie]

I'm a bit long in the tooth now and haven't done any serious off-road riding since we left Africa two + decades ago.

I enjoy most things on two wheels and owned an assortment of bikes across the years.

When we came to Ireland in 2000 I treated myself to a short series of sports bikes.

Just because I could.

I was 52 then and I thought my Fireblade might be my biking 'swan-song' but.....

I ended up getting another 'blade before a new zx10r.

 

By that time I was up around 60 years old and started to feel ever-so-slightly out of place.

When I glanced at other sexagenarian bikers on sports bikes they somehow just.....didn't look quite right.

I took a good long look at myself as well.

I'd ended up with a bike sporting around 180 bhp that was simply way too much for this auld fellers requirements.

I did however, tour Europe quite extensively on all three of those cramped up flying machines but.... in the end I sort of came to the conclusion that I'd drifted away from what I really wanted out of motorcycling.

 

When the financial crisis hit and the Celtic Tiger ceased to growl I got forced into a bit of an early retirement.

The Dublin based American Company that employed me packed its case and left town.

My wife was still working though and when we downsized to one car I found myself at home with no transport 'cept for a Kawasaki zx 10r.

A zx10r's not a pop-to-the-shop bike.

 

So I promptly bought myself a wee 125 Honda xlr runabout.

Little did I know back then that this would be the catalyst that would lead to me purchasing a T7 seven or eight years later.

 

I felt like some sort of pervert.

I fell in love with a 'baby-bike'.

I rigged brackets to take the sports panniers from the zx10r and turned it into a wee mini-adventure-esque tourer.

In addition to popping to the village I rode the thing all over the island of Ireland and big chunks of the UK as well.

9 bhp and 55mph cruising.

You needed to be patient and I had lotsa time.

The seed was set.  I decided that my biking-way-forward was summat with a similar stance to the little Honda but a bit more of a big-boys bike.

At that time the Kawasaki Versys was making footholds into the market and Kawasaki labelled it as All Roads One Bike.

(Sounds a bit like an English translation of 'Multi Strada')

 

When I first rode it I thought it was the canines gonads.

It was just about the perfect bike for Ireland.

The problem was......I was still heading of for places like France, Spain, Austria, Czech Republic etc each year and my mates were all firing litre-plus machines.
Long, open road stretch's saw me an' the 650 struggle a bit.

Enter the solution to that problem.

I wanted something akin to the Versys 650 but with around 80-100 bhp.

The Versys 1000 was just tooo heavy.

But this bad boy wasn't.......

 

I bought the MT-09 Tracer back in 2016.  Did the ECU/Dyno thing to smooth the fuelling issue plus it took away the 5th and 6th gear limiters which made me smile and a few of the litre pilots frown a bit.

I was happy with the MT-09.

The trouble was that, I wasn't able to take the occasional lesser-road, gravel track option so easily when the occasion arose so...

...I bought one of these to keep serve as a winter hack and keep those dirty winter miles off of my shiny new Tracer......

 

Damned if that big auld thumper didn't steal my heart......

I rode it everywhere, rain, hail, snow or blow.

I got to go off the grid a wee bit more and loved it.

That led me to buying a newer bike of the same genre.........

 

So....now I had two Yamaha's in my little workshop.

But I was using the 850 Triple less and less........and less.

Then....

I saw this:

I read the reports.

I believed.

 

The Tracer is sold.

As will be the xt660z which I hold in very high esteem indeed.

I expect to go against the flow of most on this forum inasmuch as I'll make my T7 into a road-going workhorse with serious off-road options as they arise which I guess is a bit of a role reversal of sorts.

I know we'll be happy.

Everybody tells me so.

 

I've been riding bikes for over sixty years and it's my belief that as a body of opinion, the bikers of the world are pretty savvy.

You struggle to find much anti T7 sentiment anywhere.

 

That's my reason.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Burnsey]

14 hours ago, Toppie said:

I'm a bit long in the tooth now and haven't done any serious off-road riding since we left Africa two + decades ago.

I enjoy most things on two wheels and owned an assortment of bikes across the years.

When we came to Ireland in 2000 I treated myself to a short series of sports bikes.

Just because I could.

I was 52 then and I thought my Fireblade might be my biking 'swan-song' but.....

I ended up getting another 'blade before a new zx10r.

 

By that time I was up around 60 years old and started to feel ever-so-slightly out of place.

When I glanced at other sexagenarian bikers on sports bikes they somehow just.....didn't look quite right.

I took a good long look at myself as well.

I'd ended up with a bike sporting around 180 bhp that was simply way too much for this auld fellers requirements.

I did however, tour Europe quite extensively on all three of those cramped up flying machines but.... in the end I sort of came to the conclusion that I'd drifted away from what I really wanted out of motorcycling.

 

When the financial crisis hit and the Celtic Tiger ceased to growl I got forced into a bit of an early retirement.

The Dublin based American Company that employed me packed its case and left town.

My wife was still working though and when we downsized to one car I found myself at home with no transport 'cept for a Kawasaki zx 10r.

A zx10r's not a pop-to-the-shop bike.

 

So I promptly bought myself a wee 125 Honda xlr runabout.

Little did I know back then that this would be the catalyst that would lead to me purchasing a T7 seven or eight years later.

 

I felt like some sort of pervert.

I fell in love with a 'baby-bike'.

I rigged brackets to take the sports panniers from the zx10r and turned it into a wee mini-adventure-esque tourer.

In addition to popping to the village I rode the thing all over the island of Ireland and big chunks of the UK as well.

9 bhp and 55mph cruising.

You needed to be patient and I had lotsa time.

The seed was set.  I decided that my biking-way-forward was summat with a similar stance to the little Honda but a bit more of a big-boys bike.

At that time the Kawasaki Versys was making footholds into the market and Kawasaki labelled it as All Roads One Bike.

(Sounds a bit like an English translation of 'Multi Strada')

 

When I first rode it I thought it was the canines gonads.

It was just about the perfect bike for Ireland.

The problem was......I was still heading of for places like France, Spain, Austria, Czech Republic etc each year and my mates were all firing litre-plus machines.
Long, open road stretch's saw me an' the 650 struggle a bit.

Enter the solution to that problem.

I wanted something akin to the Versys 650 but with around 80-100 bhp.

The Versys 1000 was just tooo heavy.

But this bad boy wasn't.......

 

I bought the MT-09 Tracer back in 2016.  Did the ECU/Dyno thing to smooth the fuelling issue plus it took away the 5th and 6th gear limiters which made me smile and a few of the litre pilots frown a bit.

I was happy with the MT-09.

The trouble was that, I wasn't able to take the occasional lesser-road, gravel track option so easily when the occasion arose so...

...I bought one of these to keep serve as a winter hack and keep those dirty winter miles off of my shiny new Tracer......

 

Damned if that big auld thumper didn't steal my heart......

I rode it everywhere, rain, hail, snow or blow.

I got to go off the grid a wee bit more and loved it.

That led me to buying a newer bike of the same genre.........

 

So....now I had two Yamaha's in my little workshop.

But I was using the 850 Triple less and less........and less.

Then....

I saw this:

I read the reports.

I believed.

 

The Tracer is sold.

As will be the xt660z which I hold in very high esteem indeed.

I expect to go against the flow of most on this forum inasmuch as I'll make my T7 into a road-going workhorse with serious off-road options as they arise which I guess is a bit of a role reversal of sorts.

I know we'll be happy.

Everybody tells me so.

 

I've been riding bikes for over sixty years and it's my belief that as a body of opinion, the bikers of the world are pretty savvy.

You struggle to find much anti T7 sentiment anywhere.

 

That's my reason.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Great post that, thanks for taking the time and not an unsimilar 'journey' to many, but great to read.

[winddown]

On 1/17/2022 at 4:12 AM, Toppie said:

 

A zx10r's not a pop-to-the-shop bike.

 

 

 

True, but they are a lot of fun for a quick squirt around the hills if you have smooth roads.  The guy in the shop told me I'd sell my bmw rr when I'd riden the T7 for a week but he's never owned a rr, they are something else all together and although they are a sport bike you can actually sit nearly erect on them, quite comfortable for us older guys

 

 

Edited January 17, 2022 by winddown

[Bartek]

I'm riding adventure bikes pretty all of my life (28 years of riding) with only 3 road bikes (XJ550; SV1000; FJR1300).

Started from DR600, then DR650Dakar, XT600, DRZ400, BMW650Dakar, XT660Tenere, KTM990Adventure, KTM450EXC, Husqvarna 701... 

Love the KTM's, and in my opinion they are the best bikes. Never have any big problems with them, do have problems with Yamaha - my tenere 660 gearbox exploded and ruined whole engine (this scared me off from japanese bikes and cause to buy KTM - this will be funny to some of you, but so far more problems with Yamaha's including wheelspokes corrosion on T7).

After riding KTM's and Husky for 7 years it was the time to change bike and... I didn't like the look of 790 adventure R   Plus when i was trying to book a test ride they didn't have any demo bikes available nearby, so i decided to test ride pretty looking Tenere 700, and dealer was only 6 miles away. To be honest i didn't expect to like it as on paper T7 looks far worst than KTM - 22BHP less, smaller suspension travel... Was not expecting miracles.

But...  during test ride i fall in love with behaviour on the road - i was actually able to go faster round twisties than on my husky or 990 ADV. That was during 1 hour test ride! Bike feels awesome on the tarmac. Engine was slightly wheezy up in the rev range, but nicely smooth and torqey, and... it sound a bit like a single

So after this test ride i decided i will give it a try.

Then i went offroad and immediatelly regret it! When you are used to WP suspension - finding yourself all of the sudden riding on cost cuting, undersprung KYB feels like a massive joke. Its alright when taking it easy, but i like to go faster, and i find out the limits of the suspension very quickly - Riding KTM's and Husky my skills were limiting factor - here - the bike. I didn't like that... at all. But i love the bike on the tarmac, and i do 80% of tarmac riding.

So i dished out 700 quid on suspension upgrade and now i will be happy on and off the road

Will go back to KTM's in two years time when i get bored, but so far enjoying Tenere.

 

 

 

Edited January 18, 2022 by Bartek

[Totti]

Because back then I didn't have the money for a 790R. And still don't.

[NZIAN]

Ex sportbike rider. Owned a few: Suzuki 750, Kwaka ZX9, R1, VFR, then got old. Tried a Husqvarna 630, DR200 and 650, now on a T7. 40 years on bikes, and the dual sports are the best. Old wrists won’t take the fwd lean of a sports bike anymore, and knees just seize as well. The upright riding style suits my bones these days, and the freedom to explore is a major draw card. The Portuguese back roads are twisty, scenic and there is always a fire trail or logging track to follow. I now own two bikes, a CRF250 and T7. it would be rude not to!

[Landshark]

I've had many bikes over the 40 + years I've been riding.  I sold them all to buy something different and did the same to acquire a T7.  I could have bought any bike I guess but I prefer a bike that will take my butt where most vehicle traffic doesn't go or want to go.  And that's why I bought it.  This bike replaces the two KLR's I've owned over a 20 year time.  What a great bike in comparison.  No looking back at all.  I like working on it to make it a bit better for my liking.  The Tenere just works and I won't be replacing it or buying another bike for the stable.  The times of multi-bike ownership are over and I'm glad.  Now I have more room in my garage for maintenance once I back my old truck out of there.  

[Firebolter]

On 1/15/2022 at 9:46 AM, Burnsey said:

It's probably the most often debated point and no one ever seems to agree.

 

What I mean, is it's not the best off road and not the best mile muncher either, so why is it so popular?

It is cheaper than most like bikes, just as reliable, no electronics the majority of riders NEVER use and it does everything pretty good and it has HUGE aftermarket support. GS' may leave you if they are doing 90+ mph for extended periods, but my T7 runs all day at 80-85 with no issues. I too am a previous GS owner and agree with your comments. The only bike I would use other than my T7 for ADV rides? My 2020 KTM 500. It can cruise comfortably at ~55-60mph and go ANYWHERE any other MC can go easily.

[Wintersdark]

Lots of answers!

 

First, I'm a 6'4" 300lb late-40's guy.  So, bike size is a crucial component for me - the taller the seat the better.  Can still easily flatfoot the T7.

 

Personally, I bought mine as a N+1 bike alongside my Tracer 900GT.  I like to Go Fast on the street, and it's a great mile muncher and in that sweet spot where you can go *very* fast, and it's limitations are rarely encountered on road (you're WAAAAAAAY into felony speeding at that point).  But I wanted to try out offroad.  I'd done some fire roads on the Tracer when I had my winters mounted (the Anlas Wintergrip Plus tires aren't just good winter tires, they're actually a shockingly effective 70/30 tire) but the Tracer is not by any definition a good offroad bike.  I did consider getting into heavy modding to improve it, but the reality is that I didn't want to decrease it's effectiveness as a road bike, and I wasn't about to run 70/30's or such in the summer as that would require slowing down way too much in the twisties. 

 

I'm finally in a place where I can manage a second bike financially, so... Shopping I go!  

 

Requirements:

 

• Significant budget concerns.  My Tracer is financed, I'll be financing the new bike too.   So cost is a definite concern, though I don't have a hard budget in mind.
• It needs to be physically large enough to be comfortable for my frame.  
• It needs to have enough power to move said frame around without feeling like it's going to die
• I've got a bare minimum of half an hour riding to get to the nearest dirt road, and often significantly more.  It needs to do highway speeds and it needs to do them without feeling like it's going to die.  
• It needs to be tough.  At that point, I'd not ridden offroad since I was a teenager other than the odd brief (well maintained) dirt road in the spring/fall on the Tracer. I'm going to drop it, a lot.  I can't afford to be making expensive repairs regularly.
• It needs to be as light as possible, as I have no offroad skills but am going to go full send in full offroad circumstances because of course I am.  
• It needs to be a good on-road winter bike.  The Tracer is actually quite competent with it's winters, but it's a fairly expensive bike and isn't constructed to survive crashes.  I don't really like riding the Tracer in the snow.  It needs to start reliably at -20C, so carbed bikes are basically out.

 

Large Adventure bikes are way too expensive, and are going to be very difficult to learn offroad skills on.  They're basically an entirely different class of bike for an entirely different use case.  If I was trading in my Tracer instead of buying a second bike, maybe this would have been the way I went.  I'm glad I didn't, though.

 

Small Adventure/dual sport bikes are too small, or too underpowered, to be an enjoyable experience while on the road. Little CRF300's and such are obviously out, because while some people might be ok with riding WOT to do highway speed, I'd hate that.  I like my zoomies.  Likewise, I suspect a KLR650 is not going to be something I want to ride on road.  This, incidentally, absolutely turned out to be the case when I finally had a chance to swap bikes for a bit with a guy on a KLR on the street. Ugh.  Terrible.

 

Midsized adventure bikes, then, are definitely the key. There's not a lot of options when you rule out the 650 single dual sports above.  A KTM 890A would be freaking fantastic, but is expensive and brings a lot to the table that I don't really need.   I owned an MT07 and absolutely loved it, but it was too small for me.  Always thought the CP2 platform would be great offroad.  The T7 comes in thousands of dollars cheaper than the 890A, I'm used to doing maintenance on the CP2 (what little maintenance is required), and it's gloriously tall.  So, it was kind of a given.  The 890A cost almost 40% more, and while it's a flatly better bike, I'm nowhere near the skill level to utilize a lot of what it offers.  And a lot of the features (ride modes, etc) I'm really uninterested in.  I mean, my Tracer has ride modes, and it sits in A mode 99% of the time.  My experience with ride modes is that I want the bike to perform predictably at all times, so I find a ride mode I like and leave it there. 

 

Now, one could claim, "But Wintersdark! There's so many bikes you could get that are great offroad and much less expensive used, and you're gonna crash it anyways, right?"  Except that, at least here, getting used dualsport/adventure bikes is insanely difficult and shockingly expensive.   I mean, I could get a twenty year old 650 for just 2k less than a brand new one.  Spending the extra 2k is kind of a given there.   Used 790's are rare as hens teeth.

 

 

How did it work out?  

 

I'm super happy with my decision.  I've put in a couple thousand kilometers in the dirt, from dirt roads to hard enduro offroad stuff (which has also seen several significant get-offs, on account of my utter lack of skills).   I'll probably steer clear of the harder enduro stuff in the future, simply because I don't have the physicality to do that anymore.  Too old to go through the learning process.  I may revisit that as my skills increase, however.  I ride with people on a wide range of bikes, and I'm deeply thankful I don't have a big GS when offroad having watched people with better skills than me struggle with things that are easy on the T7.  I'm also very thankful I don't have a KLR650 or similar, having left them so far behind hitting the twisties at 180kph once we're on pavement.   

 

I still think I'd like a 890A even more, but $4000 more?  Probably not.  The Taureg 660 looks amazing, but no dealer support here, and again: Cost + features that are cool but not necessary.

 

 

[Wintersdark]

TLDR: The Tenere 700 is absolutely outstanding and a top tier entry, when you consider it's capabilities, dealer network, and cost together.  If cost isn't a concern (how often is that really the case?) then there's definitely better options. 

 

And of course, it depends on what you're actually planning on doing.  If you're buying something for pavement touring exclusively or nearly-exclusively with some well maintained dirt roads, then the T7 is kind of a silly bike to consider IMHO.  I'd far rather have a bike with a lower COG, cruise control, and 17's in that case.  

 

I honestly don't see bikes like a gs1200a or a CRL300L being even in competition with it at all - there really isn't a reason to ever be debating between them; you need to figure out what you want to accomplish first.

[Burnsey]

26 minutes ago, Wintersdark said:

The Tenere 700 is absolutely outstanding and a top tier entry, when you consider it's capabilities, dealer network, and cost together.  If cost isn't a concern (how often is that really the case?) then there's definitely better options. 

 

I honestly don't see bikes like a gs1200a or a CRL300L being even in competition with it at all - there really isn't a reason to ever be debating between them; you need to figure out what you want to accomplish first.

 

 

Disagree on the first point. I don’t think there’s particularly better, just different.

 

Second point is a great point. Each mentioned to a better job than the Tenere in their own niche. Tenere straddles both well.

[Wintersdark]

3 minutes ago, Burnsey said:

 

 

Disagree on the first point. I don’t think there’s particularly better, just different.

 

Second point is a great point. Each mentioned to a better job than the Tenere in their own niche. Tenere straddles both well.

You don't think the 890A (let alone the AR) is an objectively better bike at everything the T7 does?  More power, better suspension, better brakes, better load distribution, lower weight, more ground clearance?  I mean, I think the T7 is much better looking, but that definitely doesn't outweigh the rest.  However, there's a HUGE gap in price.

 

Not many people, presented with a KTM 890 Adventure and a Tenere 700, both for the same amount of money, are going to pick the Tenere 700.

[Burnsey]

2 minutes ago, Wintersdark said:

You don't think the 890A (let alone the AR) is an objectively better bike at everything the T7 does?  More power, better suspension, better brakes, better load distribution, lower weight, more ground clearance?  I mean, I think the T7 is much better looking, but that definitely doesn't outweigh the rest.  However, there's a HUGE gap in price.

 

Not many people, presented with a KTM 890 Adventure and a Tenere 700, both for the same amount of money, are going to pick the Tenere 700.

 

Ignoring reliability, you're right to be fair.

 

BUT, I didn't have a budget (not showing off, but genuinely) and the Tenere won. I suppose I can't see the difference in price being justified enough and as much as I had it, I don't waste it.

[Wintersdark]

5 minutes ago, Burnsey said:

 

Ignoring reliability, you're right to be fair.

 

BUT, I didn't have a budget (not showing off, but genuinely) and the Tenere won. I suppose I can't see the difference in price being justified enough and as much as I had it, I don't waste it.

 

Oh, for sure.  I think there's a VERY strong argument that where the 890A is a better bike, it's not enough of a better bike to be worth the cost in comparison. You're paying a lot for features you likely don't need or even particularly want.  I mean, I was able to get one when I got my T7, too (though it would have been a much harder justification with the wife!) but it's a LOT more money for a bike you're probably going to smash about.  Personally, the ride modes, increased ground clearance and such are not really relevant - the T7 itself is more bike than I can use offroad.  

 

That's pretty much the point I was trying to make, though.  Cost is always a factor, even if you can afford a more expensive machine, you need to decide if it's worth it to you spending that.  The T7 is an incredibly good value. 

[Ray Ride4life]

You can't compare these bikes.
First, power is overrated. The XT660Z already had enough but the T7 has a lot more making it more fun to ride but more is useless.
Offroad you're more likely to spin the rear instead of going forward and onroad knobby tyres limit the need of that extra power.
When using it only onroad there's no reason to complain about the less suspension travel which is enough on the T7 i think.
With the price difference you can buy the best suspension you can get for the T7 and still have a lot cash in the pocket to use for what the bike is made for, travelling.
Offroad the weight is a downside but manageable and onroad it's a plus because a heavier bike vibrates less and not so sensitve for wind making it less exhausting on long travels.
Overall i think but that's just my opinion that the T7 can be customized to your needs and still doesn't brake the bank making the list with downsides very short. Take that and the fact that this bike is not packed with nonsense and gimmicks the best bike, at least for me. I like gadgets but not on a bike because i also like riding and not be ridden because the bike makes the decisions and i also don't want to go through a menu and have to thing about what setting i need and stop later on to do it again because the surface has changed.

[Hammerhead]

Main reasons in no particular order;

  - simplicity & lack of electronic wizardry  

 - CP2 engine. What good is a motorcycle without a quality usable power plant.

 - low maintenance Japanese reliability 

 - value for money. Ya there’s plenty of room for improvement,

but out of the box it’s a great machine for it’s cost. 
  - it just looks right & doesn’t try to be something it isn’t. 

  

[winddown]

I bought a fancy new fan months back and it died on me in no time.  Then I found an old 1970's fan, bulletproof it is.  A fan has a single purpose and in reality bikes do as well, to take us where we want to go.  I had no problems with the rudimentary bikes I rode decades ago,  we just rode them to their limits and were happy.  I'm sure I'll adjust to the T7 just as I did to my GS750 back in 1978, it was a pig by today's standards but I had some of my best times on it.  Lol, I imagine the T7 would easily outperform it on the road, murder it in the gravel. 

 

GS750

Category- Sport touring?

HP-  63 (46kW)  *Yawn*

Weight wet-  253.0 kg (557.8 pounds) Ouch!

Fuel capacity-  18.00 liters (4.76 US gallons)

brakes-  *Ordinary*

 

[Landshark]

15 hours ago, winddown said:

I bought a fancy new fan months back and it died on me in no time.  Then I found an old 1970's fan, bulletproof it is.  A fan has a single purpose and in reality bikes do as well, to take us where we want to go.  I had no problems with the rudimentary bikes I rode decades ago,  we just rode them to their limits and were happy.  I'm sure I'll adjust to the T7 just as I did to my GS750 back in 1978, it was a pig by today's standards but I had some of my best times on it.  Lol, I imagine the T7 would easily outperform it on the road, murder it in the gravel. 

 

GS750

Category- Sport touring?

HP-  63 (46kW)  *Yawn*

Weight wet-  253.0 kg (557.8 pounds) Ouch!

Fuel capacity-  18.00 liters (4.76 US gallons)

brakes-  *Ordinary*

 

 

I had a 1979 GS 1000 back in the day.  It was a real speed bike.  It looked a lot like the one you posted.  I sold it to buy a new 2001 KLR.  

[Bartek]

On 1/18/2022 at 8:10 PM, Ray Ride4life said:

You can't compare these bikes.
First, power is overrated. The XT660Z already had enough but the T7 has a lot more making it more fun to ride but more is useless.
Offroad you're more likely to spin the rear instead of going forward and onroad knobby tyres limit the need of that extra power.
When using it only onroad there's no reason to complain about the less suspension travel which is enough on the T7 i think.
With the price difference you can buy the best suspension you can get for the T7 and still have a lot cash in the pocket to use for what the bike is made for, travelling.
Offroad the weight is a downside but manageable and onroad it's a plus because a heavier bike vibrates less and not so sensitve for wind making it less exhausting on long travels.
Overall i think but that's just my opinion that the T7 can be customized to your needs and still doesn't brake the bank making the list with downsides very short. Take that and the fact that this bike is not packed with nonsense and gimmicks the best bike, at least for me. I like gadgets but not on a bike because i also like riding and not be ridden because the bike makes the decisions and i also don't want to go through a menu and have to thing about what setting i need and stop later on to do it again because the surface has changed.

Just my opinion - I think we can, and should compare these two bikes - yamaha released this bike as lightweight, offroad capable adventure bike, and it honestly is best Japanese made ADV for going offroad, so I think it's only right to compare it to 790R... 

Power is overrated? I partially agree... But on 200kg bike "silly power" is somewhere over 120 bhp, as even on 990R 10 years ago we had 113 and it was perfectly manageable, so poor 72 is less than single cylinder 701... Fact. And it's wheezy on motorway, and my God... Try to ride it with passenger and luggage

Suspension wise to make it as good as stock WP on 790/890 you looking at 2400Gbp... You already more expensive than KTM. 700 quid K-Tech will improve it but you still have small suspension travel and its hard. I learn that upgrading mine suspension. 

 

In my opinion Tenere is better on the road and it looks better, but if you want more offroad bike then KTM's are far ahead. Tenere high CoG is also a challenge off the road. 

I love my Tenere, but I know its cheaper for the reason... Suspension, corossion, display a'la 1990's.  I'm OK with that, but I'm also fully aware ktm is a better package... Shame it look so ghastly  

And in regards to reliability - everyone will have different experience. I had more problems with Yamaha. 

[Goup]

BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK.....PERIOD !

[Tenerider]

12 hours ago, Bartek said:

Just my opinion - I think we can, and should compare these two bikes - yamaha released this bike as lightweight, offroad capable adventure bike, and it honestly is best Japanese made ADV for going offroad, so I think it's only right to compare it to 790R... 

Power is overrated? I partially agree... But on 200kg bike "silly power" is somewhere over 120 bhp, as even on 990R 10 years ago we had 113 and it was perfectly manageable, so poor 72 is less than single cylinder 701... Fact. And it's wheezy on motorway, and my God... Try to ride it with passenger and luggage

Suspension wise to make it as good as stock WP on 790/890 you looking at 2400Gbp... You already more expensive than KTM. 700 quid K-Tech will improve it but you still have small suspension travel and its hard. I learn that upgrading mine suspension. 

 

In my opinion Tenere is better on the road and it looks better, but if you want more offroad bike then KTM's are far ahead. Tenere high CoG is also a challenge off the road. 

I love my Tenere, but I know its cheaper for the reason... Suspension, corossion, display a'la 1990's.  I'm OK with that, but I'm also fully aware ktm is a better package... Shame it look so ghastly  

And in regards to reliability - everyone will have different experience. I had more problems with Yamaha. 

I think you are referring to the Adventure R models, right? The non-R have less suspension travel than our T7, IIRC.