Thinking of selling to buy a Tenere 700

[Buggy Nate]

20 hours ago, skipperT said:

KTM makes both a 790 and 890 adv. They just don’t have the Yamaha reliability. They do offer tubeless wheels, which is a plus. And the weird styling of the fuel tank does make it feel lighter in comparison to the T7. Stock seat is marginally better. Stock suspension on reg Adv is “eh” IMHO but the 790/890 Adv R suspension is pretty killer. 
 

-Skip

The amount of bagging out I’ve done to Ktm’s after working on them for years would have me institutionalised by my mates if I ever owned one! 
I simply cannot trust them nor give them a dollar of my money after they bought my favourite company Gasgas and turned them into another variety of lemon.

I think they’d be a fantastic bike to race on someone else’s budget.

[Buggy Nate]

So I did a thing! Went for a 1/2 hour ride on the T7. Stupidly smooth motor. Basically zero vibes at all, quite odd! Still got a bit of punch but it isn’t a Mt-09 motor!

The seat is firm but comfortable, bars are in the right spot and ergos feel spot on sitting or standing.

Yamaha still cannot make a quiet screen though! 🤣

The instruments wobble around a bit which is my only gripe. But apparently there is an aftermarket fix already.

Got a reasonable trade in price for the old girl. Pick up the new steed on Monday. Feel a bit stupid selling a perfectly good motorcycle but I fell in love with the tenere as soon as it came out. Spent the arvo pillaging the good bits like the hydraulic conversion, Brembo master cylinder and the top box.

Ill sell the genuine rack, rear sets etc when I get a second.

@skipperT what bits do the stealership assemble so I know what to specifically go over when I get home?

Edited May 25, 2022 by Buggy Nate

[Wintersdark]

22 hours ago, Cogswell said:

I was in a dealer in Asheville N.C. last weekend and looked at the T7 they had on the floor. If one was leaning toward a lot more off road type riding it looked like it would fit the bill well.  It was just too minimalist for my current riding style.  Tall and narrow seat doesn't look like it would be comfortable for hours on end riding. Not much wind or weather protection as well.

 

The stock seat is definitely not comfortable for hours on end riding.  Honestly, I would not buy one of you weren't interested in taking it out on dirt, at least fire roads.  It sacrifices some road manners to be over dirt capable; it's not a touring bike like the larger ADV bikes are.  

I just replaced my fork springs and took mine on my local groups twisty mountain road group ride (normally 100% the domain of the Tracer) and while it did the job and kept up, it definitely highlighted the Tracer's strengths.

The T7 gets *atrocious* fuel economy at high speeds (80+mph), and it's a bit of a sail so crosswinds on highways are more challenging... And big, knobby 50-50 tires are big knobby 50-50 tires.  And just a throttle lock vs cruise control.

So while I absolutely prefer it haunting around town, on shorter trips, or heading offroad.... Highways, faster rides?  It's definitely inferior to the Tracer.  This may seem obvious, but it's a major difference of midsized and large adventure bikes.

A 1250GS, or KTM1290, or even Super Tenere are very comfortable tourers, but the T7 has much more dirt bike in its DNA.  

[Wintersdark]

3 hours ago, Buggy Nate said:

So I did a thing! Went for a 1/2 hour ride on the T7. Stupidly smooth motor. Basically zero vibes at all, quite odd! Still got a bit of punch but it isn’t a Mt-09 motor!

The seat is firm but comfortable, bars are in the right spot and ergos feel spot on sitting or standing.

Yamaha still cannot make a quiet screen though! 🤣

The instruments wobble around a bit which is my only gripe. But apparently there is an aftermarket fix already.

Got a reasonable trade in price for the old girl. Pick up the new steed on Monday. Feel a bit stupid selling a perfectly good motorcycle but I fell in love with the tenere as soon as it came out. Spent the arvo pillaging the good bits like the hydraulic conversion, Brembo master cylinder and the top box.

Ill sell the genuine rack, rear sets etc when I get a second.

@skipperT what bits do the stealership assemble so I know what to specifically go over when I get home?

https://camel-adv.com/collections/yamaha-700-tenere-t7-parts-and-accessories/products/yamaha-700-tenere-t7-anti-bobble-head

This is the anti-bobblehead bracket.  You can get it for $20 from AliExpress/eBay as well, but CamelADV are the creators and have lots of GREAT other farkles, too.

They make the auxiliary fuel tank (very cool) too.

If you're looking for crash bars, I'd recommend anyone really *except* the OEM/Givi bars.  Heed, Adventurespec, Outback, etc, just not the OEM bars.

If you're going hard at farkling, you need to plan out your tail mods (rear racks, side racks, tail tidy) as there's only 4 bolts under the tail that can be used and there can definitely be compatibility issues between manufacturers.  

If you're riding offroad, be aware the stock exhaust will bend into the swingarm on a right side crash (be prepared to bend it back out, or you'll damage the exhaust and swingarm).  Many of us swap it for an aftermarket high exhaust which sits up more under the tail to be protected:

If you do, this needs to be checked for compatibility with racks/side cases too.  Above is a Huzar system ($250 shipped), CamelADV makes an option, and several others.  Not necessary, but if you're planning on crashing it probably a good idea.

[skipperT]

7 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

https://camel-adv.com/collections/yamaha-700-tenere-t7-parts-and-accessories/products/yamaha-700-tenere-t7-anti-bobble-head

This is the anti-bobblehead bracket.  You can get it for $20 from AliExpress/eBay as well, but CamelADV are the creators and have lots of GREAT other farkles, too.

They make the auxiliary fuel tank (very cool) too.

If you're looking for crash bars, I'd recommend anyone really *except* the OEM/Givi bars.  Heed, Adventurespec, Outback, etc, just not the OEM bars.

If you're going hard at farkling, you need to plan out your tail mods (rear racks, side racks, tail tidy) as there's only 4 bolts under the tail that can be used and there can definitely be compatibility issues between manufacturers.  

If you're riding offroad, be aware the stock exhaust will bend into the swingarm on a right side crash (be prepared to bend it back out, or you'll damage the exhaust and swingarm).  Many of us swap it for an aftermarket high exhaust which sits up more under the tail to be protected:

If you do, this needs to be checked for compatibility with racks/side cases too.  Above is a Huzar system ($250 shipped), CamelADV makes an option, and several others.  Not necessary, but if you're planning on crashing it probably a good idea.

And while I’m thinking about it, make sure you pound in those T40 (or whatever size they are) sockets into the bolt with a BFH BEFORE trying to remove them from the tail section. they don’t like to stay in the bolt head while reversing. 
 

(Don’t ask me how I know that one…)

-S

[skipperT]

19 hours ago, Buggy Nate said:

So I did a thing! Went for a 1/2 hour ride on the T7.

**snips** 

The instruments wobble around a bit which is my only gripe. But apparently there is an aftermarket fix already.

@skipperT what bits do the stealership assemble so I know what to specifically go over when I get home?

btw, don’t look at the rear fender and turn signals bouncing around while riding or you’ll never un-see how much they move.. Lolz!

Front wheels are off, bars are on except for the rear bolts, IIRC. Front fender, front speed sensor, axle pinch bolts f brakes and covers for the lower fork tubes are all assy by dealer. Fender position is adjustable btw. 

up top it’s handguards and mirrors. None of the 3 wind (🤣 see what I did there…) pieces are installed, and technically Yamaha wants you to pull the fairings to insert the rearward “hook” into the plastic recepticle it goes in so that the rubber “bumpers” on the side wind deflectors don’t get mashed (my analysis). But not everyone does that…

battery, Allen key attached to front seat at rear, and dig the sticker under the brace between the pillion and main seat - my interpretation is that Yamaha wants the tool kit installed in a certain place with the owners manual (marked by OK and a X of death symbol)…. But for the love of (whatever) why???

inquiring minds want to know what that one’s about….

I snug the spokes at pdi as well. 

I think that’s it. There’s a bit to the setup on those. congrats!

-Skip

Edited May 26, 2022 by skipperT

[Buggy Nate]

Cheers for the replies guys!

Got some bits on the way already. That’s the fun part but it hurts the wallet! 🤣

[Wintersdark]

6 hours ago, skipperT said:

dig the sticker under the brace between the pillion and main seat - my interpretation is that Yamaha wants the tool kit Installed in a certain place with the owners manual (marked by OK and a X of death symbol)…. But for the love of (whatever) why???

I've wondered about this since the first day I got my T7 home.  It's bizarre.  That sticker makes it look like you'll cause your T7 to spontaneously combust if you should have the audacity to put the toolkit on the wrong side of the owners manual.  

[skipperT]

2 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

I've wondered about this since the first day I got my T7 home.  It's bizarre.  That sticker makes it look like you'll cause your T7 to spontaneously combust if you should have the audacity to put the toolkit on the wrong side of the owners manual.  

Right?

I think it’s got something to do with having the tool kit on top of the battery when the seats installed. But IIRC the diagram shows to do exactly that?

it’s been a bit since I’ve seen one.

-Skip

[skipperT]

Oh and before I forget (again), clutch lever free play and chain tension are both different on this model:

-Yamaha wants chain measured on the side stand (suspension uncompressed)

-Clutch lever free play (measured at end) is 5-10mm, unlike the 10-20mm we are used to in the Tracers. Or, thinner than the width of a quarter (visualize a dime maybe?) When lever free play is lightly taken up.

Not a fan of some of the aftermarket center stands…. YMMV. 

-S

[Wintersdark]

9 hours ago, skipperT said:

Oh and before I forget (again), clutch lever free play and chain tension are both different on this model:

-Yamaha wants chain measured on the side stand (suspension uncompressed)

-Clutch lever free play (measured at end) is 5-10mm, unlike the 10-20mm we are used to in the Tracers. Or, thinner than the width of a quarter (visualize a dime maybe?) When lever free play is lightly taken up.

Not a fan of some of the aftermarket center stands…. YMMV. 

-S

Regarding center stands: If you're looking for one, or even considering the OEM one, do some research. 

Some have a real problem with the "deployment peg" sticking out so far as to be a serious problem offroad, as they tend to be fully perpendicular to the length of the bike, and only moves forwards and down so if it catches on a rock or other unyielding obstacle, it's going to cause a very hard crash.   I don't have one myself, but I've *heard* that this is a problem with the OEM stand.

Also, there's been complaints about some having weak springs and being very loud offroad, bouncing and bashing off the underside of the bike.  There's a thread or three on it on the t7 forum.

The clutch has a MUCH broader friction zone than the Tracer and a very common modification if you don't have OEM crash bars is an aftermarket (see CamelADV again) clutch arm extension which lightens the clutch pull and increases that even further. 

And the chain slack measurement is done from the bottom of the chain guard rib, not the swingarm itself.  

[Buggy Nate]

On 5/26/2022 at 3:42 PM, skipperT said:

Oh and before I forget (again), clutch lever free play and chain tension are both different on this model:

-Yamaha wants chain measured on the side stand (suspension uncompressed)

-Clutch lever free play (measured at end) is 5-10mm, unlike the 10-20mm we are used to in the Tracers. Or, thinner than the width of a quarter (visualize a dime maybe?) When lever free play is lightly taken up.

Not a fan of some of the aftermarket center stands…. YMMV. 

-S

My hydraulic clutch is going straight on! I’ve got a sw motech stand on the way. They are usually good quality. Cheers for the list mate. 

Edited May 27, 2022 by Buggy Nate

[Heli ATP]

Benelli takes on the Tenere