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  #1  
Old 10 Mar 2013
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650 transalp weak spots
Hi not long got Transalp 650 with 26k on clock -no service history but has been well used. Any ideas on weak spots to check/replace/carry spare before month long trip in the summer.

No obvious problems so far except smoking a little from exhaust on start up, but once warmed not too bad. Done about 500 miles with liberal throttle use and doesn't seem to have used oil . Suspension on the soft side but still handles well one up with no luggage. Will load her up and give test run with heavy luggage when weather picks up above 10 degrees consistently!

Appreciate any advice

Cheers
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  #2  
Old 10 Mar 2013
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Hi,

Well smoke at the start usuarly means its burning oit but the transalp can do 200.000 easily anyway. Check chain and break pads and tires the transalp is known to be very long lasting so no weak points

Enjoy it http://afrikamotorrad.eu/?report=en_westkueste

Last edited by ta-rider; 8 Jan 2017 at 07:30.
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  #3  
Old 12 Mar 2013
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Cheers for advice Ta-rider.
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  #4  
Old 12 Mar 2013
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No weak real spots that I can think of.. Very solid bikes.

There are a couple of things which have put some people off though.

Tank:

It's only about 18L and gives you less than 200 miles. There is no replacement available that I know about.

Suspension:

You can't lower this bike due to the linkage design. Well, you CAN but it's expensive and requires more than dog legs.

Rust:

The fasteners rust quickly quickly on this unless looked after.

Servicing:

It's unnecessarily complicated. Lots of bits have to come off to do routine maintenance. No worse than a V-strom, BMW etc though. On the plus side, the maintenance schedules are VERY long. Valves hardly EVER need adjusting.


Apart from these minor things its a VERY capable bike and I'd happily go RTW on one.
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  #5  
Old 13 Mar 2013
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Did a lot of adventure miles on 400 and 600 TransAlps back in the 1990s. The 600s were built in Japan, the 650s I think in Italy or Spain and the build quality is lower.

The engine is excellent.

The plastics are very brittle (wrong type of plastic used). It cracks and breaks instead of bending like more modern plastics.

The brakes are poor.

The suspension is poor.

Ground clearance is low.

The weight is more than ideal.

If you buy a Transalp, you are buying it for the engine. Its quality Honda engineering. The rest of the bike is not great and there is very little you can do to fix those issues. Suspension could be remedied at considerable expense. Brakes and weight and plastics you are stuck with.

A good, inexpensive, solid, capable bike for asphalt and light gravel road work anywhere in the world. The relatively poor brakes and suspension are nevertheless surprisingly durable. The bike is a bit out of its depth on more tricky off road or 4WD tracks. It'll do the job for sure, its just hard work.
Last edited by colebatch; 14 Mar 2013 at 15:51.
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Old 14 Mar 2013
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With regards to suspension I have found progressive springs for front and rear suspension. Do you thinks these are good enough mods or is replacement of forks and rear suspension unit a much better (although much costlier) option.

I am about to add goodridge braided hoses for front brakes (as you said they are weak). Model is '02 so original hoses are not great.

Cheers
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  #7  
Old 7 Jan 2017
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Does the FI of a transalp 700 pose a real pb ?
dear bikers of transalp,
Riding currently a gtr 1400 kawa, I am about to buy a transalp which should be more convenient for a trip to Central asia. But which one ? a xlv 650 with carburators (but with no ABS, front tires of 21) ? a xlv 700 with FI (and ABS, front tires of 19) ?
I need some advices from those who are riding transalp 650 /700.
I am tempted to buy the XLV 700 because of the ABS. ABS served me well few times on my own bike. This is an added value for me. However I have read that the 650 should be more appropriate for such an adventure because of the lack of FI. No all posts share this view though.
I have read many posts on this point and I do not get the feeling that the FI poses a real pb even when riding in such countries.
Could you share your experience with me ?
Thanks a lot in advance.
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  #8  
Old 21 May 2017
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stephanebrion View Post
dear bikers of transalp,
Riding currently a gtr 1400 kawa, I am about to buy a transalp which should be more convenient for a trip to Central asia. But which one ? a xlv 650 with carburators (but with no ABS, front tires of 21) ? a xlv 700 with FI (and ABS, front tires of 19) ?
I need some advices from those who are riding transalp 650 /700.
I am tempted to buy the XLV 700 because of the ABS. ABS served me well few times on my own bike. This is an added value for me. However I have read that the 650 should be more appropriate for such an adventure because of the lack of FI. No all posts share this view though.
I have read many posts on this point and I do not get the feeling that the FI poses a real pb even when riding in such countries.
Could you share your experience with me ?
Thanks a lot in advance.
I ride Suzuki DL650 (2006) with FI. I've been to Central Asia (Pamir mountains, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan etc..). We poured fuel into the tank from bottles, from cans and many other things that can hold fluids I didn't have any problems with FI during the trip. I had a problem with clogged fuel filter though. When I came back to Kazakhstan I fell with a totally empty fuel tank (I was going on vapours) and I think I got some dirt into the filter.

My fuel pump was making noise and I had to take it off, clean the filter and it is still going strong!

So don't worry about FI.
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  #9  
Old 28 Jul 2017
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journey in Central asia
thanks a lot for the info.

By the way do you have any blog on your journey in Asia? I would be interested in readin it and know more about your trip...

Finally I bought a Transalp 650...

Stephane
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  #10  
Old 30 Jul 2017
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Keep an eye on your output shaft, the splines have a tendancy to wear down.
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