hello guys

I am a happy TTRE owner, just got back from a 4000 miles european summer tour... you can view itinerary and photos here:
http://web.onetel.com/~dieg0/easyrider/

please let me know your thoughts and comments.
i want to do africa, next year.

i can list here some points, that indicate why i am a happy TT600RE owner:

• in the london traffic the bike is very agile and maneuverable. nippy and fast enough.

• you can travel with it, it takes racks for the rear and for side luggage (people in these treads have been all over the world).

• maintenance is cheap and very little.

• it's a very simple bike, the air-cooling system is great. this is one of the last engines built to last.

• other modern bikes in the same category are all made with lighter and lighter materials.
very light engines, for great performances, heat-up too much and need liquid-cooling systems, which make the bikes more complicated (more things that can go wrong).

• it just looks beautiful!
its simplicity and its spartan look earn big respect in the traffic and in any road.

• other better performance bikes, like all those gorgeous KTM, are beautiful and have great performances, but they're not built to last, plus they are mostly owned by trendy kids in orange/black who can just follow fashion.... we don't wanna be mistaken for one of those

• yeah, it has some bad points too... but not many, and it doesn't pretend to be perfect.

waiting to hear from you guys.... more positive points to add to the list, and some negative ones too?
we should start a community website for TTR / TTRE owners and their trips around the world!
cheers
diego

I brought a nearly new TTR for my trip to Africa last year at the time I had two to choose from the R or the RE, I went for the R beacause of its better off road pedigre.

In hind sight I wish I had gone for the RE, I had a few starting problems with the R which can make you paranod about stoping and starting in case the thing wont restart.

I would buy another TT, but next time it will be the RE, kit it out with all the goodies and it's a great bike, IMO.

Hi Diego! This recent jaunt of yours is exactly the sort of thing i have in mind for my (impending, when the right one appears...) next mount. You've certainly checked out some of my fave alpine areas - the Dolomites are just outrageous, eh! Of course, as you've added to this thread, i'm eager as to your experience of various aspects of the bike - namely fuel range/seat comfort/luggage strapability etc. All potentially mega-useful info!

cool, Pottsy! good luck with your trip, and i am glad to give you some info that could be useful... i wish someone told me these when i left for my trip.

yeah, the dolomites are fantastic, the heaven of bikers.
Also switzerland alps have some fantastic roads.

I travelled mainly on normal countryside roads, avoiding motorways, taking it easy, and managed to do an average 450 Miles (700 km) per day, in about 8 or even 10 hours.
Depends on your state of fitness, really; in my opinion, the seat and suspension are comfortable enough... but i stopped frequently.
The bike is not a road bike and because of the air-cooled engine, it's better let the engine breath quite often, especially in hot weather, otherwise it sucks too much oil.

On the way to padova (padua), I did 1200 Miles (1900 km) in three days, arrived there with a finished tyre, and had to top-up 1 liter of engine oil.
Yamaha dealers are pretty much everywhere in Europe, and in a couple of days I had a new tyre.

Dunno if it's just my bike (I'd like to hear from other TTRE owners about this), but I found that stretching the engine up and down the gorgeous Alpine roads consumes high quantity of engine oil.
On my way back to london I had with me some oil, for topping up.... and would advise you to have always some with you.

Fuel wise, in almost every european country you can choose between 95 oct. and 98 oct. petrol. I kept on 95 oct. one and did around 130 Miles (200 km) with a full tank, never had problems to find a petrol station, as soon as I was in reserve.

I had a Metalmule rear rack (metalmule.com), packed light, as you can see from the photos and it was more than enough for me.
Also from Metalmule, you can add the side racks, which are good for longer trips, or travelling with a passenger... i was considering those, in case my girlfriend wanted to come with me, but in the end she decided not to, as finds my bike too uncomfortable for her arse...

Next year I wanna go to Morocco and perhaps explore more in north Africa, but i am wondering to get a more touristic bike, like a BMW GS.... dilemma.
I am very fond of the simplicity of this TTRE tho... I love the air-cooled engines,
and seems there are not many bikes like that left.

Anyway... hope this helps your next european trip.

Cheers
Diego