“ IT DOES HAVE EXCELLENT LITTLE LUGS FOR BUNGY STRAPS , SO A DAY PACK TIES DOWN TO THE BACK OF THE SEAT
down to the back of the seat piece of cake . Again , a very effective , but simple and workable solution from Yamaha .
The dash is not the latest mega-sized colour TFT screen , but it ’ s clear and highly functional with all the information required . One button held in a few seconds disables the ABS – easy . You get the impression that a real rider has played a decent part in the T700 design and it wasn ’ t just left to engineers and accountants .
PARALLEL TWIN The single most impressive feature of the 700 Tenere is the power delivery – it ’ s bloody brilliant . There ’ s torque , useable drive and responsiveness , along with a decent fun factor are the key elements . As a useful indication and reflection of torque and ease of use , I could take off from a standstill on hard wet sand in first gear , simply by dropping the clutch – zero throttle required . It pulls faultlessly from idle . In everyday use this means stalling is unlikely even in difficult conditions .
From that point on there ’ s a smooth and flexible power delivery which ensures great traction and drive from then . Of course , as the engine inertia increases in the mid-range , a very effective and predictable gravel road sliding rev zone is reached . The Yamaha can be easily rear wheel steered predictably , without the need for the highest rider skill levels or the excessive tyre wear associated with larger capacity machines . Happily , this is all achieved without any form of traction control . Like Tim Gibbes ( NZ ISDE / MX team
54 KIWI RIDER