Seems after reading the entire Internet twice that the two top contenders for solo trans-continental travel are the XTZ 660 Ten and the KTM 690 enduro with fairing and aux tanks fitted.
I wondered if anyone had an informed opinion on the above?
(Not interested in anything else, I've made my mind up and would really like to keep this one thread on topic)
In the blue corner...
:0))
Simple. Fixable. Reliable. Cheap(ish). Economical. Robust. Factory prepared. Tried and tested. Accessories avilable
:0((
High CofG. Underpowered. Basic spec components

In the orange corner
:0))
New. Powerful. Sexy. Desirable. Off road ace. Quality components. Now reliable(?)
:0((
Expensive. Small tank. Expensive screen-tank mods to construct the missing adventure model. Not as reliable as yam. Fussier regarding servicing than yam. Not as good MPG as yam

Personal use.
I plan to travel into Morocco. Like to do some dune riding maybe (KTM). Like to do the Alaska to Argentina Trans trip (YAM) and overland to India and throughout India (?)
I don't know myself how much "off roadness" I would require and therefore which bike or the spares availability. I don't want to drag alternators and rectifiers around if possible

What say you and is the new true 690cc Ktm the way to go?

Please keep on topic....
Thanks in advance

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have fun with your helmet!

To ad... I have a road bike (R1200r classic) which I love so it would not be my only bike. I did wonder if I could do some green landing as well if I went for the KTM?

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have fun with your helmet!

Hmmm... being a LC4-640-Hybrid smart ass my self, I would say stick with the YAM for what you would like to do... (I stick with my 640 because I got one and would not swap for a 690 at all for my travelling habits)

Had a riding buddy with a 690R and guess who had problems with the electric... yeah it was the 690R not my 640-Hybrid.... further more... the frequent stop or better hunt for a fuel station... not to top up my 640 with it's 30Lt. ADV-tank, but the 690R twice the day. And the missing carriage capability is another point that would put me off... otherwise it's a nice beast to play with.
(part of the wrong colours.... well the 690 only comes in bright orange and not in black)

You are saying that you are not so much in to the offroad play... well I guess the YAM would be more your piece of cake than... would be way easier and cheaper to find the additional parts you would need to build an overlanding bike on the YAM-base, and in case of a bush repair, parts would be more likely wildly around to source locally if needed.

And by the way... you don't want to race around the globe, do you, so this "underpowered" issue with the YAM is not true.. may only if compared with the 690 for competitions, otherwise you would have plenty power anyway.

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The trouble is that he was talking in philosophy, but they were listening in gibberish.

Tenere owner here, so read into that what you will in terms of bias, but for me the only reason you'd consider the 690 as a "solo, trans-continental travel bike" is if you already had one, or you really wanted one for other reasons (which is, of course, fine ).

The Tenere will do everything you want out of the box. It won't excel at any one thing, but it will do it all without fuss.

50% more horsepower, 20% less weight, and better suspension make the stock 690 a much better bike for off-road racing than a stock Tenere (although most of the people that race them seem to end up upgrading the suspension anyway). Outside racing, 46bhp is plenty, and you'll have lost the weight benefits by the time you've fitted big tanks, fairing, and luggage capacity.

I've been rallying my Tenere this year. I've spent quite a lot of money on the suspension, and I'd probably still be faster on a stock 690. But a 690 wouldn't be as good for *anything* else I do, and I don't want to have money tied up in a dedicated race bike at the moment.

You can put a WP48 front end and a Nitron race shock into a Tenere for about the same money you'd spend putting a fairing, tanks, and racks on a 690. But again, outside racing use, the stock stuff (possibly with uprated springs) is fine.

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dashmoto.net

Thanks guys. Not the partisan bullsh1t you get on BMW sites. Good honest stuff x

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have fun with your helmet!

I've had my KTM 690 Enduro from new (2009) and I use it mainly for trail riding. It would take quite a lot (of money) to get the KTM up to scratch for long distance travel and there is nothing wrong with the Tenere's off road ability although it is a bit heavy.

The KTM is reliable, good service intervals but quality components is argueable although probably better names than on the Yamaha. Yamaha would need an LC4 rear hubb.

Personally I'd go for the Tenere for all the very valid reasons you've mentioned in the first post.

Legends are in the past! the futures bright, the futures orange
Much more fun and if you are riding it everyday that's what it's all about.
Mark

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Mark
www.bamriders.com

You've cornered me! I give up!

Perhaps I am a little biased in favour of the legendary and venerable Yamaha XT600. I do after all own 2 of them myself.

But whatever you "Orange" dudes say, KTM's do have a way to go to catch up with the XT in terms of VALUE FOR MONEY.

I rest my case on the value for money thing.

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Triumph Bonneville 800 (2004), Yamaha XT600E (1999), Honda XBR500 (1986).

Have you ridden a KTM 690?

You might not want to.. you might end up selling the 2 Yamis you love so much to buy one.

The original post was meant to compare a 660 tenere and a 690 KTM. New I think. If he is looking at cheap used bikes, then i'm sure the xt600, dr600, ktm 640 adv are all options.

I would love to hear what decision he actually made if any?

Have people forgotten about the incredible Honda's?? 650L and the 650R. Both hugely reliable...

www.touringted.com

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

www.touringted.com

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

I'm not sure which KTMs you have ridden.. But the only way you can group them with BMW is "European made". BMW are very.. well.. soft. (rims, suspension, riding style required..) Maybe uninspiring is a better word.

I promise "uninspired" will never be the feeling you get if you ride a 690. I guarantee most of you who dislike the 690 have not ridden one.

For those of you who have ridden a 690 and can honestly say that the Yamaha is the one you will choose... I'm sorry. but you can't be saved

Try to rent (or borrow) both bikes for a weekend and try them by yourself. Buying a bike is a very personal choice.
You should not buy the bike "most people" like but the bike you like.

It will cost you two wekends and some money but then you know that you spend your money on the right bike for you and not on the bike that other people like, but that may not suit you and your riding style.

You can try to make a deal at the bike shop, that if you buy one after the testweekend, you don't pay the rent (I have done that too).

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Jan Krijtenburg

My bikes are a Honda GoldWing GL1200 and a Harley-Davidson FXD Dyna Super Glide

My personal homepage with trip reports: https://www.krijtenburg.nl/
YouTube channel (that I do together with one of my sons): motormobilist.nl

While I like that idea in theory, I think its impossible to work for adventure riding in practice. If you borrow a bike, you are going to do some light touring on it around town, some country back roads, some motorway, all on asphalt probably, around the developed world for a day or so. Without luggage.

I think that gives a very misleading impression as to how you will feel on the bike after riding in the 3rd world, loaded up, for 6 months.

Everything is easy when taking bikes for test rides in the developed world, so with very little else to go on, people tend to go for the most comfortable bike ... which is why so many choose the 1200GSA, but then that choice becomes a misery when loaded all up in Mongolia.

Borrowing a bike for a weekend and riding around roads (or even short offroad sections) in the west is, I think, likely to lead to a poor bike choice for a long duration overland journey thru the developing world. My previous point about weight is a classic example. In the west, 50 kgs extra dissolves away and isnt a big issue. Out in the adventure zone, it takes on more significance, and for off road, its critical.

Its almost impossible to test for how will you feel about a bike after being on the road with it in the 3rd world for 6 months, without going on the road in the 3rd world for 6 months with it. i.e. there is no substitute for experience.

I think to a large degree, someone choosing an adventure bike should still be very open to the advice of others who have used those bikes under consideration (or similar), in the real world, on the types of rides you want to do, over the kind of duration you want to ride.

If you borrow or rent a bike and ride it around town for a weekend, its a suitable method of choosing a bike that you ride around town on, on weekends or maybe commute to work on. There is no equivalent method of evaluation for 6 month adventure rides.

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Some chance!

It would be interesting to know if the decision is made and how it turned out though - as per an earlier comment; that might bring the OP to a satisfactory conclusion.

I recall that there have been one or two reports of failure of the XTZ Ten standard shock absorber when it is pushed in hard riding; unlike the almost constant emphasis on the short comings of other manufacturers OEM shocks, this factor doesn't get the exposure that it might deserve so that owners are forewarned.

I am very happy with the OEM White Power kit on the front and back of my bike.

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Dave