There has always been something about rally inspired dual purpose adventure bikes. Could it be the styling with the higher windscreen and bigger fuel tanks that appeal to the buyers out there? Is there a reason to choose it over a regular dual purpose bike?

The XT660Z Tenere has recently been launched right here in South Africa, after the dreaded waiting period, it was definitely worth the wait. There is nothing currently available off the showroom floors that offer the build quality and features of the Yamaha Tenere. I’m sure by now, most of you are aware of the models history, dating back nearly 30 years. What we have now, is a neat package consisting of a great fuel injected engine, mid 400km tank range, high fly screen, hand guards, bash plate and plenty of accessories.

From the aesthetics, the Tenere’s styling is spot on. There’s nothing like it on the road. The high screen and low mudguard is typical adventure tourer, the 23litre tank will give you endless range and the step seat will provide plenty of comfort on those long days in the saddle. From the rear, the hexagon shaped under seat exhausts, add some flamboyance to the package. The pegs are metal off-road foot -pegs to add better grip on your boots when riding off-road. The tank has a plastic protector added to it, incase you do drop the bike. There are a couple of extras available from hand guards to panniers, even some Akroprovic exhausts.

When the Tenere was designed, they decided to build the frame around the engine, instead of the usual, frame first and slotting the engine in. What this equals to is a bike that handles exceptionally well with a low centre of gravity.

The black rubber whoops are courtesy of Michelin. The Sirac range, some might feel, aren’t the perfect tires, but no-one really rides a long time on factory tires anyway. Rest assured though, they do a perfect job of just about anything besides sand, mud and grass. They are provided in 90/90/21 front and 130/80/17 rear. Both are tubed tires.

The 43mm Paioli conventional forks in front work well with the Sachs monocrosser in the back which is adjustable for preload. The front brakes are two Brembo floaters at a size of 298mm, dual piston callipers and a 245mm rear disk with single piston calliper.

The gearing is spot on… the 1^st gear is reasonably low, you find yourself idling up hills the size of mountains, run out of oomph in 1^st, shift to second and it starts right over. I really can’t stop raving about how well the bike builds power in the lower end of the power band. This is probably the 58Nm making things work well on the bottom. On top, things are a little different… 35Kw for a bike like this is sufficient, but we end up running out of steam around 5500Rpm. This could also be due that we were pretty high up in the mountains. One of the journo’s did have a short case of altitude sickness - could the bikes have the same? Who knows… ?

The top speed is just over 160kph, (100mph) although I really wouldn’t keep it there for the day. No doubt the bike is and will be reliable, but if you intend cruising at high-speeds, I’d suggest you look at a bike with a multi-cylinder configuration. The bike is very happy at a respectable 120-130kph. Its fuel efficient too… you should see over 20km/l depending on how heavy the bike is loaded.

Is this the best single cylinder adventure motorcycle available today? I would say yes. There is nothing currently available with a stock long range tank, windscreen, long travel suspension and a superbly smooth fuel injected engine.