Which ADV Tourer? BMW GSA vs Super Tenere?

[HotRodZilla]

I'd go with a GSA, every time, over a Tenere. The Tenere is valid attempt to take customers from the GS. However, The GS-A is an entirely different animal that outclasses the Tenere and standard GS in just about every way.Do it right the first time and get a GS-A. You're definately on the right track. Get it used, cuz new ones are stupid expensive. A used one will get you free upgrades that you may not know you need or want, until it comes time to use them.

Except in the Yukon and Alaska, I don't recall seeing too many BMW dealers, but several Yamaha dealers incase you need something.

That being said, probably every third bike we saw was a BMA GS series headed North. But, I would be thinking final drive and possibly carry one in my trailer with the extra tires if I rode one.

You make a good point. I didn't consider dealer availability. I don't usually think that far ahead. Haha...

On the final drive issue, the last one I heard with issues was about 2012. Has anyone had a newer BMW FD fail? I was told by a service manager that the cause was traced to an incorrect angle in the way some of the drives were assembled, which is why it only happened to some bikes, and if it happened once, it was very likely to happen again. I haven't really followed the newest ones too well, so I'm not up to date on the failure rates of any of the new bikes.

I will say that maintenance on the GS-A is WAY easier than even the FJR. The only thing that requires a special tool is the timing belt. Everything else is pretty basic!

 

[user 8909]

Loving my ST and I wouldnt consider a BMW unless its a wethead, then Id buy the YAMAHA because BMWs suck.

 

[Pterodactyl]

I follow three or four BMW forums and have not heard about any of the water cooled bikes having a FD failure. Annies R12GS had a software issue with the TPS. Had the tech in Seattle been on the ball it would have been a minor issue but became a PITA. That is the first issue weve ever had that affected our travels.

 

[Pterodactyl]

If your worried about dealer support up north then ride a Harley. Whitehorse, Fairbanks and Anchorage. BMW in Fairbanks and Anchorage. Yamaha in the same cities but some would look at an FJR like a hog staring at a wristwatch.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Some of you may have met Nate at SFO, he is Natehawk750 to us FJR folks and Wannabehippy on ADVrider. Nate has been a BMW GS guy for a while, he went from the 1150 to the newer waterhead 1200 a few years ago.

Nate crashed that nice 1200 on the Dempster on his way back from Tuktoyaktuk last month. He destroyed it and 3 of his vertebrae along with it. He had already ridden it to Prudhoe Bay and all over Alaska, he was on his way home when he crashed.

I was talking to Nate last Sunday (he is doing fine btw) and a friend had driven him to a local dealership that sells Honda, Yamaha and Kawasaki.

Nate said, "I loved my BMW but I won't buy another one. I could buy 3 Japanese bikes and farkle them completely for what it costs to buy a new GS. The GS is great but the cost of ownership is just... Great bikes though."

I am also shopping for an ADV/Dual Sport. BMW is already crossed off the list.

 

[BugR]

Reflashing the ECU on a Tenere has been reported to transform the bike particularly in the lower 3 gears.

https://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?topic=14900.0

Chris

 

[Canadian FJR]

Consider a Yamaha Tracer with a few mods

Tires, skid plate, aux lighting.

 

[Bill Lumberg]

Ive never owned an adventure bike. Ive put a lot of miles on a bmw tourer and a Yamaha tourer. The Yamaha broke down once. The bmw broke down every year. Something involving weeks off the road and big money every year. That colors my buying decisions. My bmw didnt have the power of the fjr (or the reliability, or the warranty), but it was way ahead on ergonomics and handling. I would not be surprised if the same dynamics were in place comparing the adventure models.

 

[Fred W]

Ergonomics and handling are far too subjective to say that X bike is better than Y bike. If your physical stature happens to suit one brand of bike without modification then good for you. But that likelihood is rather small compared to the possibility of having to adapt a particular bike to fit you. Same is true of suspension and what people call handling. What one rider thinks is nirvana another finds intolerable. I certainly would not spend twice the money for s bike because someone else said it fits them better.

In owner surveys there is a direct relationship of how committed an owner is to their purchase vs how much they spent. Nobody wants to think that they made a huge blunder by spending more for less.

 

[101stpathfinder]

I was asking the same question as the OP. For a while I was going back and forth. With the GSA having the larger fuel tank, I was thinking that would be nice…

Then I thought with the $ I would save on the Tenere, I could carry fuel or even have a frankentank made for it. I think it came down to the "Bullet proof" reliability

of the Yamaha. (And the crappy BMW service here locally that I would need a 2nd mortgage to pay for)

Retirement is getting closer and so is flower sniffing' pace that will replace this "I want to go to THIS place, but I only have THIS much vacation."

Alaska, N.E. Canada, maybe I will say to heck with it and do the South American tour…

 

[hppants]

I think "Adventure" is in the eye of the beholder and the biggest factor in considering one bike v/s the other (in this general market) is WEIGHT. Sure, I've seen the videos and I've read enough over at ADV Rider to know that a stubborn enough rider can take a 600 pound, 100 horsepower motorcycle on a 150 mile single track trail on a rocky mountain range in the middle of the rainy season. But my (limited) dirt bike riding experience tells me that what they are not showing or telling you is that they are working their ASS off doing it. They are falling left and right and killing themselves trying to lug that big pig in and out of hell. At the end of the day, they are dog tired and beat and worn thin.

I think you start by defining precisely how much off road you want to do.

Hard packed and graded gravel roads that really just connect one paved road to the other?

Forest Service roads that are rutted up by logging trucks

The occasional groomed forest trail that is only about 5 miles long.

The "bucket list" trail that runs hundreds of miles from sea to shining sea

I want to blaze my own trails and go wherever the hell I dam well please.

The farther down the list you do, the lighter your bike has to be. This is coupled with your thoughts on how to get to the off road stuff. Are you going to ride it cross country to the head of the Dalton Highway? Or are you going to trailer the bike to the park parking lot?

Riders get too mixed up in engine size. In the woods, 35 mph is FLYING.

I'm 99% certain that when I retire to the mountains, I'm going to buy a used dual sport. It's going to weigh about 300 pounds full of fuel. We'll start there and see how I like it.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

I think "Adventure" is in the eye of the beholder and the biggest factor in considering one bike v/s the other (in this general market) is WEIGHT.
I'm 99% certain that when I retire to the mountains, I'm going to buy a used dual sport. It's going to weigh about 300 pounds full of fuel. We'll start there and see how I like it.

I hate to disappoint you but you better start reading some spec sheets. You won't find too many sub 300 pound options.

 

[Fred W]

This past winter I picked myself up a 2014 WR450f that had a Baja Designs dual sport kit installed, and was titled and plated by the previous owner. Spec sheet puts a stock WR450 at 250 lbs dry, 270 lbs wet. Turn signals and mirrors dont weigh all that much. I put a larger (3 gal) tank on it but Im pretty sure its still less than 300 lbs. That said, this is an off-road race bike turned into a Dual Sport. It is no fun on the paved road for very long or far. It will want to ride the trailer to get to the dual sporting.

An ADV Touring bike is a completely different animal from a dual-sport, IMO. I consider my DL1000 an ADV bike as it is great on the road for any distance, and is a blast to ride on unpaved roads. Ive had it on some ATV trails that used up all of the limited clearance to the skid plate I had (thankfully) put on. Riding an ADV bike on single track is pretty much out of scope.

Every bike is a compromise.

 

[bigjohnsd]

Being bikecurious, I noted a nice recently traded used '14 S10 on a local dealers website. I rode Bestia de Azul over for a little tire sniffing, even put my checkbook in my tank bag. I've only ridden an S10 once before yesterday. I test ride Pterodactyls last summer on the way home from Alaska. His was a 12 as I recall. When I rode his I just "wasn't feeling it" maybe it was the 7,000 miles on the Bestia that affected my judgement? Yesterdays ride was maybe a little different, the Tenere is a damn big bike! Feels more like an FJR than a KLR. I ride on the frontage road, went up a short gravel bit, turned around without tipping over and returned via the freeway. Plenty of power, not an FJR, but respectable. Cruise was nice. Windscreen works well especially when raised at speed. Tires had 8,000 miles on them, a bit squared off so handling was not up to par. Could I sell Bestia de Azul and find myself on an S10? Not certain, still want to ride a Tiger 800 xcx even though the closest dealer is over 300 miles away near Denver. The Tenere is a big heavy bike. The Tenere is a big heavy bike..... the Tenere.......Big ....Heavy .....Bike!

 

[Fred W]

Didn’t you have a WeeStrom for a while John? What didn’t you like about that?

 

[HIGHLANDER]

The Tenere is a big heavy bike. The Tenere is a big heavy bike..... the Tenere.......Big ....Heavy .....Bike!

Yeah, but that’s what Scooters wants, the 2018 GSA weighs 580 wet, the ST is 575 wet, both big heavy bikes.

The 2018 FJR is 642 wet, another “big heavy bike.

 

[Fred W]

All of these weights mean nothing if your intent is to make this bike your Long Distance Adventure Mule and hang ~200 lbs of luggage, gear and camping equipment on the bike.

 

[bigjohnsd]

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="Fred W" data-cid="1400539" data-time="1531075076"><p>

Didnt you have a WeeStrom for a while John? What didnt you like about that?</p></blockquote>

I liked the Weestrom but thought the ground clearance was lacking for even gravel roads, I thought it was too top heavy for the Dempster last year so I traded up/down to the KLR. The KLR was great on the Dempster and in Baja but doesn't like 75 mph paved stretches much. As you said, every bike is a tradeoff.

 

[HIGHLANDER]

All of these weights mean nothing if your intent is to make this bike your Long Distance Adventure Mule and hang ~200 lbs of luggage, gear and camping equipment on the bike.

Exactly my point ! I don’t see Scooter doing single track on the ST, although he’s warped enough to try it,

 

[HIGHLANDER]

Didnt you have a WeeStrom for a while John? What didnt you like about that?

I liked the Weestrom but thought the ground clearance was lacking for even gravel roads, I thought it was too top heavy for the Dempster last year so I traded up/down to the KLR. The KLR was great on the Dempster and in Baja but doesn't like 75 mph paved stretches much. As you said, every bike is a tradeoff.

Ha! Different strokes for different folks, I thought the KLR was too top heavy and traded it for a WeeStrom, thought it was the perfect Alaska bike on the trip, 80 all day long and better gas mileage than the KLR.