Originally Posted by
Padmei
...Underground I love your Africa twin. I've been looking them up on the adv rider. It sounds like they're rare as hens teeth. How do you get on with parts? Also when did they stop making them & change to the transalp?....
There is a few @ around NZ but not many. Started of as 650 (RD03 model) like UG has then enlarged the engine to 750 making the RD04. The RD03, RD04 and Tranny can pretty much share any body work, tank, etc. The frames are very similar. The RD07 came next which has some significant changes to the frame and was followed by the RD07a. The @ is a tougher better suspended, more powerful version of the Tranny (or the other way around not sure which actually cam first). No idea why Honda made two very similar bikes. Tranny started out as a 600 and was maxed out at 650.
The RD03 has the best suspension of the lot (supposedly) and the RD04 is very similar. For RD07/a the sus travel was shortened significantly hence the RD04 is thought of as the one to have as it has the better suspension with the 750 motor. Uber reliable - guy in ausi with 245,000kms on a RD04 (ATgreg on Advrider) with a single motor - carbie rebuilds and top end rebuilds excepted. About 65ish hp and pretty good torque - 3 valve heads.
Anyway enough dribble the Super Tenere (S10) is a better bike even if it has a weaker frame (when treated roughly with a full load), more prone to burning oil due to 5 valve head but has more mumbo (75hp) . Still not that common in NZ and due to the lack of marketing hype compared to the @, the S10 is often a lot cheaper in Europe. Though of as a very under rated bike in Europe.
I take dakar wins to be the definitive guide about these bikes The race version of the @ won the dakar in 86, 87, 88 ,89 i.e. 4 years. The S10 race version won the dakar in 91, 92, 93, 95, 96, 97, 98 i.e. 7 years. Of course the homoligation bikes are noting like the dakar bikes
Cheers R
"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools." - Herbert Spencer, English Philosopher (1820-1903)
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