Hi all. I want to create a travel bike. The journey so far has been F800gs new thinking it would be one bike ticks all boxes but I hated every minute on it and traded it immediately after a trip to Malta and back for an R1200R Classic (which I looooove)
So I need a smaller travel bike for the midlife crisis trip.
The ktm 690 has been my pinup for weeks but it's dawned on me that it's too competition/off road orientated and needs thousands to make it travel in any comfort so my attention has brought me here. The Tenere looks lovely and is ready to go however experience has taught me (f800!!!) that high top heavy bikes are scary dangerous unless you've got Dakar skill levels and weight is another enemy so I am now looking at the 660R with aftermarket protection, aux tank strapped on back. Am I heading down the right path?
My trips will be 60/40 road ideally

and to

I'm 6 footer (in the old measure) with a fairly chunky frame (yes o/k ... a little overweight) and have a R fitted out for off road work with protection and other upgrades from various sources ... but no additional fuel capacity other than a plastic Jerry can !!!

Did think about a Gilimoto 22 litre tank but eventually decide to spend money on suspension upgrades instead.

Have done over 30k kms through the Australian Outback and never felt that I'd made any wrong decisions. Have tracked my riding buddy on his 660 Tenere and gone everywhere he's been so the "poor cousin" in the Yamaha Adveture fleet can't be all that bad

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Regards
Pete

expat Kiwi - now living in Melbourne - now riding a XT660R and a XT1200Z

Yes it was your compatriot 'Edog' that got me hooked on the KTM in the first place but then when all the balloons had popped and the champagne gone flat I realised the 690 is too focussed, way better off road than I am. Then I noticed his mate 'Phileppe' having a good time on the Tener�. That's more me I thought (age 54). I envisage plodding down dirt tracks wary of falling off and breaking something rather than floating across the top of ruts at speed plus a lot of unavoidable time sitting on hard top wishing I'd gone for a softer more ergonomic bike. The 660R seems to me to be even better than it's tall handsome cousin due to it's lower seat and lighter weight. Plus I can pick a new one up for the price of a screen and fuel tank I'd need to buy for the KTM!

Hi and welcome to the forum

I'm 6ft 4 and have owned both xtr and xtz. I'd say the tenere would be better suited to the road but can still handle plenty off road where as the xtr can still do the road stuff but just not as comfy as the xtz but as it's a good bit lighter is easier and less tiring off road

But as you've found out with the gs best way to find out for you is test ride both.

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Plough on

Welcome on board mate.

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Hmmm 'Edog' ... the man from MADtv ... have you watched his recent 6 part series about crossing the Simpson ... interesting, funny and certainly in his usual style

The first part can be found here ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeT0jY8gUtQ

Yes, he does like (love) the KTM690 ... I must admit I've also been tempted but the initial purchase cost, maintenance regime and the additional long distance rally pack (Rally Raid EVO Kit or Dalby KTM Adventure Kit) just make it too much of a dream project ... even if it is a real light weight package.

Like a number of others I'm waiting to see what Mamma Blue does with their new MT-07 & MT-09 power plants for the Adventure market in the near future. My riding buddy and I looked at the new Triumph Tiger 800 XCx specifications with some interest but the quoted wet weight of 221 kgs is just daunting.

Like many Adventure riders I'm in the older demographic ... well actually I'm already on the wrong side of 60 and growing old disgracefully I also have a Super Tenere 1200 as well but the R is still used for general work commuting, off road adventure and just general fun riding.

So o/k back to the question at hand XT660R v's XT660Z !!!

Oh and interestingly ... we have a Tenere Tragics group here Downunder who seem to believe that attaching the name "Tenere" to a bike imparts magical capabilities to that specific machine

No disrespect but of course I wasn't allowed to join this august body for their special ride because the R obviously doesn't have the right DNA No problem I just went out and added a S10 to the stable so they have to play with me now

I'm no expert but I see the Tenere are having advantages with better instrumentation, standard suspension, fuel capacity, weather protection, seating (but only just), front brakes, ground clearance and places to hang things !!!

But the disadvantages are cost, ride height (yeaph it's tall in the saddle) weight, weight and weight ... did I say weight

When I brought my R the relevant purchase costs (down here in Oz) were $8,500 for the R (in model run out) as against $11,500 for the Tenere (which was a new release at the time). So I was already $3k in hand to start the farkle process with.

So what have I done with the R ... well most things were just simple bolt on upgrades that I could largely do myself.

Yamaha Bash Plate (yes it's OEM but has stood everything I've thrown at it)
Yamaha Large Smoked Screen
Renthal Fat Bars, Bark Busters (Storm), Upgraded Control Levers (cheapie HK sourced)
Engine Crash Bars (Hepco & Becker)
Rear Rack & Pannier Mounts (Hepco & Becker - but run Andy Strapz Pannierz)
DNA Air Filter (stage 1)
Front Forks Re-valved (Local suspension tuner)
Remus Slip-on Mufflers (should have fitted a 2 into I but didn't !!!)
Ohlins Rear Spring Unit
OTR 525 Chain Kit (15 / 48)
Rear Drive Carrier Bearing Upgrade (double row bearing)
Rear Drive Damper Upgrade (polyurethane cush inserts from SA)
Seat (recovered by local shop and fitted with gel insert)
Pivot Pegz

O/k so there was nothing tooo over-the-top in that lot

The resultant package has been reliable and has consistently got me where I've wanted to go ... with one exception ... we don't do sand ... the bike most probably can but I definitely can't ... yes I know all the theory about weight distribution and floating over the sand at speed ... but I'm to am wary of falling off and breaking something ... at the very least it hurts

So what's missing or would I like to improve ... well other than my own riding skills ...

The fuelling on the R is still bloody poor - haven't done the Kev Mod but thought about the Power Commander
Longer fuel endurance would be nice (it would have been great if the standard tank was at least a few litres bigger - I average about 20 kms/litre off-road)
Instrumentation - miss a Tacho (yes I know I'm a gadget guy) but seriously on an Adventure bike fuel management is critical (especially so in the Oz Outback) and a hit and miss fuel light just simply isn't enough
Heated Grips - yes I'm getting old (have them fitted on my S10)
Exhaust - a 2 into 1 would be better (lighter) and enable the space saving to be utilized for storage (maybe a customised fuel tank)
Main Stand - would be useful and haven't fitted one yet but carry a "support stick"
Additional Lighting - easy if there was somewhere to hang them !!! (I've considered dropping the mudguard with a spacer somehow and fitting a single Baja LED light in there)

Anyway that's gotta be enough for this post

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Regards
Pete

expat Kiwi - now living in Melbourne - now riding a XT660R and a XT1200Z

wow cheers patty theres certainly a ton of useful info there, cheers!
Trying to arrange a test ride but no luck so far...