I own 2 F800GS's and we took them to over 10 countries. I have also had the Africa twin on a 48 hour test run (pretended I was trading in, really was just nosey and had nothing to do for a weekend).

Honestly?

Neither bike is a hugely capable adventure machine. At best they are sports tourers with sharper styling to suit the looks. The F800 weighs a absolute ton as soon as you get off the pavement. The AT was 20kg's heavier. They are no more dirt worthy than any other 200kg road bike with knobbled tyres.

The 2 F800's we have, have showed a number of faults. Failed fuel pump on one in France, failed water pump seal on the other in Norway. There are other known faults too.

The AT seems to have a stronger reputation, but it felt notably less capable than F800 to me.

If I had to choose i'd go 800 again.

If I was doing it all over, i'd go KTM690. The reliability issues are no worse and the costs are no greater. But at least you can ride it up a sand bank without a backup crane to lift it up again when you fall.

that's what I figured, next bike will be ktm.

Hej guys, I rode a new AT a couple months ago, very comfy, and blistering quick in city's and lane splitting, however i found it had some issues that took me by surprise, at a green light, and with lots of cars and trucks behind me the power completely shut off with just a bit of gravel under the rear wheel, where on the highway above 75mph i felt it became instable.
After that i took it off road, the dealership told me to, in deep sand, and again i was dissapointed, the old RD07 would run circles around this bike in this department, and the F800 probably would to, except for power and comfort.
First i thought it was just my opinion, but the same week i read some test reports in some British magazines sharing my opinion.
The original Africa Twin was just an awesome bike, the new one only shares its name.

Maybe Honda will adres the issues, i rode the bike in the beginning of januari.

Different folks, different strokes...

Some people will love something on a bike and for the next person it will be a deal breaker. (E.g. I find the seat very comfortable, but other people go on and on on how uncomfortable the seat is). I think every person has to way up their options and requirements and see what works for them.

I tried to do a review of the new vs. the old AT a while ago from my perspective. For me, the new AT is better and more capable in almost every way compared to the 800GS. The 690? Yes, very capable off-road, but not as comfortable on the bitumen.

The new AT is not as 'great' as the reviews say. It's a good bike, but has its shortcomings (same as any other bike). Unfortunately, its a bit hard to sometimes separate honest opinions from hype- e.g. die-hard fans will call any negative reporting as bike-bashing, whilst refusing to acknowledge improvements can be made. Whereas others will make a massive issue over IMO small things like spokes tarnishing.

The CRF1000 was made at a price, and it shows in some places. My biggest gripe with the new AT: rear suspension needs work. Very simple to solve, but adds to the price.

Different countries and different situations - In Australia, the new AT is cheaper than the 690 KTM, 800GS and Tiger 800XCX. So an excellent alternative/option and cheaper to boot. And Honda has a much broader support system here than the European brands. In other countries it might be different, but here in Australia (which never had the old AT), I think it is a game changer.

I love my DCT, but won't get rid of my RD07 :-)

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