Two Up.
 

Hey All,
I'd like to take my wife on my trips out more often this year but as we found out last year the 'r just isn't up to it not without improvement to the brakes and seat. Thing is I'd like to stick with a big single can anybody tell me how the XTZ performs two up. I noticed in the Yamaha brochure the Z makes less torque higher up the rev range and with the extra weight does that make it too slow espically with a passenger. Otherwise its off to Transalp/Tiger/TDM land for me!

Hi, I wouldn't know about riding two up and fully loaded but one easy (obvious??) way of increasing effective torque would be to fit a larger rear sprocket (cheaper/simpler than engine/exhaust mods). What you lose in top speed is made up for with increased acceleration.

Cheers, Rick

It has been stated here in the past the Tenere is not ideal when loaded up for 2 up riding/touring power wise. Its got the same engine as the R so you basically you already know what it will feel like bearing in mind the Tenere weighs more. Braking wise the Tenere has a double front disc so it should be better than the R on road. The seat looks ok to me for the pillion as well, ironically the riders section of the seat IMHO is poor so a reprofiling may be needed but may affect the pillions section.

Get a proper seat sorted and you're good to go. I've done many trips with my mrs, including a 5000km jaunt around Turkey, without a hitch. Dazzer went around Europe IIRC.

Personally, I won't put the missus on the back of the Tenere, it's a good few inches higher than the rider. But my missus is a wuss and doesn't like anything over 60mph, so don't let that bother you.

Stoic Bloke rides his Tenere with his missus on the back (she's about 20Kgs soaking wet through) and you wouldn't even know he has a pillion.

I guess what maters is how good a passenger the pillion is, the sizes/weights and what you expect.

The bikes you are suggesting, other than the Tenere are different alltogether, in fact I wouldn't want to take any of them off the sealed road! They are more road orientated than the Tenere, having lots more power and smoother engines. If you are looking at the Tiger, then you should also consider the Varadero - these will eat the miles like nothing else and in lots of comfort too.

If it's road's you want then I would say that the multicylinder bikes are better for two up riding (in comfort) than the Tenere - however for long distance adventure type riding then I would choose the Tenere, it's the best value for money bike out there with huge versatility.

I dont know what size weight etc you and your mrs are but, Im 5'8 n 16 stone and mrs stumpyd is same height and only a couple of stone lighter, she is however a good experienced pillion but we dont have any great problems on the road on my R. I know its not the fastest off the mark or the sharpest at stopping but with a few alterations to my riding style weve been fine. Still thats my opinion and obviously not yours.

The Tiger is a well proven bike which I have seen on many a trip overseas loaded with two up no problems. The Tenere will do it but at a more relaxed pace.

I was going to write my missus luvs going 2 up, and then I read it back :O :what: so I re phrase to love going pillion.. anyways she has no compliants on the ten though commented it wasnt that fast. Of others she absolutely loved the 1150GSA and didnt like the Katoom950A as the grab rails were narrow and uncomfortable..

The main problem is I'm 6 foot 4 and weigh 15st and I tend to take a lot of the seat. I found moving foward towards the tank made it a bit difficult to change gear. I'm not worried about speed I like to see around me nor do I venture off road but I love all the little B roads we have round here as does the r, so I'll think about testing the Z sometime this summer (providing the current economic climate gets better and we both still have a job).
As always thanks for the wide range of advice.

T.

Ive an R so dont really know what size the Z is two up but im 6ft4 and 15stone and i know what you mean you need to seat back in the seat. Ive taken my dad/mate on the back both about 6ft and 14-15stone and you did have to give the bike some to keep it going and over takes etc.

My dads got a tiger and its got plenty of power and can cope with the 2 up but my mum finds the pillion seat slopes forward too much causing her to constantly to slide back etc.

That's not quite what it said on the toilet wall in Bridge Court ........

yes but lets not dig up the one on the the carlisle sheepmarkets bog door either with reference to ur wellies and velcro :unibrow:

Hi Max, The tiger looks like an attractive propoistion, Mccallen has a black 2003 which looks good, slightly longer suspension than the later ones. That said the Bonnieville Scrambler looks great (but not at near 7 grand though).

went from Dublin to Venice and back last june, 2 up fully loaded.

Except for the pillion sitting too high and the seat being too narrow, Missus had not complain.

ALthough i must say that the additional weight (2 side-cases full, 1 4men tent, 2 camp bed) make the front end very light.

you wont break speed records but I was on holidays so that was not my point anyway.

Thus far I have done around 3,000km two up. Also loaded with Touratech 45 litre cases and a topbox. With my weight (98kg) plus wife (actual weight is non-disclosed =) we were a little over the factory recommended capacity for the T�n�r�. However we crossed the French Alps and back up to Paris with no problems. We were able to maintain highway speeds but I was always aware that the center of gravity had shifted to the rear of the bike and much higher, but you just adjust your riding style to suit. The pillion seat as standard was a little too narrow and hard for any distance so I tried the smallest of the AirHawk seats for the Boss. Magic! She was able to ride all day with no cramps, pains or complaints of vibration. I was well pleased as this type of riding was within the capabilities of the T�n�r� as a dual-purpose (multi purpose?) bike.

I found it to be a bit dear to my liking :p

I tried a tied-on gel pad, but the seat being so narrow made it difficult to attach correctly.

My plan is to get the seat remodeled (as I did for my previous 2 bikes) with this crowd:

http://www.sellerie-moillo.com/

zOU, I just checked the website you quoted, it seems that they have a nice quality of work and would be a good long term touring solution. I liked the look of the tank bags too.

yes they're very good.
pricey but good.

Expect around 300euros for a touring seat with dual gel pads.
you can also ask then to raise/lower/narrow/widen the seat to your liking.

I have one on my VFR750, and I had one made (and raised) for my GSE500.

you need to send them your seat as they don't stock them but you can get lucky and get a 2nd hand for cheap on ebay and keep the original intact

Hi Tommy,

Don't know if you're still considering the 660Z but I've had a 1 tooth oversize rear sprocket on mine for about a week now and can say that there is a noticable and usefull difference. The engine obviously revs up quicker and makes the bike quite a bit smoother as the engine can pull better from lower revs. But perhaps of more use is improved response/acceleration at motorway speeds. Holding a GPS 80mph (when you're going with the flow!) into a head wind/turbulance/heavy air mass feels a less of an effort than before - for the bike, at least - and with about 2000 rpm still in reserve and between 1/2 - 2/3 throttle opening, mpg shouldn't be adversely affected either.

1 tooth was enough of an increase for me - those with a, err...."less than advantageous" :p power to weight ratio may want to try a 2 (or more) teeth increase.
It would be interesting to see how the increase in rear wheel torque with a larger rear/smaller front sprocket compares with the increase in engine torque from a modded engine/exhaust (in terms of gain per �'s spent)
Oh yeah, one thing - the OEM speedo now reads about 12% over.

Cheers, Rick