2021 Yamaha Ténéré 700 | First Impressions

Yamaha finally brought the Ténéré 700 to the US market and we couldn't be happier to get it on and off-road for a true test! The 2021 Yamaha Ténéré 700 features aggressive Dakar styling, a torquey engine from Yamaha's MT-07 naked sport bike, and high quality components like Magura hydraulic brakes all for an MSRP of $9,999. But how does this bike compete with other adventure motorcycles in it's category? That's exactly what Eric aims to figure out with his first impressions of the 2021 Yamaha Ténéré 700.


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[DGETHIS]

i just put 3000 miles on this bike in 11 days. It performed beyond my expectations. Rode on rock trails in moab, through silt hills, to the beach sand and into the forest. Anyone who thinks this bike isnt the one for all is rather stubborn in that its more along the lines of "its the one for some" ... like any other bike out there.

I felt the brakes did everything i needed with 120 pounds of gearon and offroad.. took the bike up to 100 mph no problem... fuel economy for me was 55 mpg at 80 mph. keep the bike at 65 mph and you will get 60 plus mpg. the fuel tank was 4.2 gal and always looked for fuel at 200 miles.. i can go 250 max. the bike is very nimble for an adventure bike and the power is right where you want it offroad.

a 19/17 wheel combo well handle better in the turns but the 21-18 does almost as well. Could careless about traction control

This bike will perform well in everything but nasty single track with mud off camber situations. I dont ride places that are insanely treacherous for big bikes. I have other dual sports and this bike will be replacing a modded DR650 and a modded vstrom 650




Heres my list of tweeks needed to be awesome

I did 500 mile days with the seat... it breaks in over time.... but still would rather have a new seat

get bark busters

buy a puig windshield attachment and puig headlight protector.

buy a cheap throttle lock

buy engine guards and HD skid + center stand

New knobbie tires

and get some stiffer springs

youll be happy. trust me i rate the bike a 8.5 out of 10. Remember its an adv bike ... not a dirt bike and its not a street bike... other than that ... its a damn fine bike

[freddyvalencia]

I just bought this bike and this is an amazing machine OLD SCHOOL simply is the best !! Love it

[frankensteinsgarage]

I've owned a KTM 1190 Adv R. It was a great adventure bike and I took it everywhere it could go. Single track, fire trails etc. Don't get me wrong, the electronics were great. But honestly I think it's just so much marketing. Especially on a bike that doesn't have a huge amount of power (mid size adventurer) you just do not need all the electronics. We ride for fun. I don't need shit that's going to add cost, complexity and potentially reliability issues just to enjoy myself. It's an adventure bike.
I am somone who would appreciate a premium model. Say if Yamaha brought out an SP model with improved suspension. But you can keep the traction control for bikes with over 100hp. Cheers
Nice review btw.

[StillSNEAKERfreaker]

Love this Bike, bought it, rode two days later for 6 hours to Paris in September, been commuting with it every day to work. Handles as nicely in chaotic Parisian traffic as it does on weekend explorations a long the coast of Normandy.

I‘m 6‘2 (25 years old) and ride with a MX helmet, the wind drag is alright, I can understand that the older chaps are bitching about it ;)

I feel the steering is quite „sensitive“? If you could say so? Had to watch out for the handle bar on rocky terrain, so need to find a solution for that I guess... steering damper probably?

Love the bike so far, it’s my first „modern“ bike after riding only CB500/750 fours, and XT250s/500s...

Can’t wait to ride it back home to Germany for Christmas

[mikestowe]

simple is better less stuff to break and keeps the cost down

[phreenom]

I loved my WR250R, and am planning to buy this beast. I actually really like the fact that it doesn't have all sorts of electronic aids. I want to be the one in control.

[danielmarin]

I guess we are coming to the age of riders being intimidated by riding off road without electronic aids (judging by erics comment riding down that dirt road) ive never had the pleasure of any of that stuff my last bike an 07 gixer ( ran circles around most), klr650 ( riders running circles around me), . and now the T7 (still running circles around most) with ABS for the first time in my life. The suspension adjustments really work on the T7 unlike some other bikes. This bike will not break your heart if you own one.

[kojack]

I'm buying a wr250r tomorrow to get back into riding...but the Tenere will be my next bike!

[allenhuling]

At 6' 1" I can tell you that I definitely feel the wind buffeting, I'll be interested to see if you come up with your own version of a windshield for it, and for me a tail tidy will need to happen too! Had mine for the summer...lovin it!!

[jetdr]

Love the Bike, surprised Yamaha didn’t use the SSS suspension off of their Off-road Bikes! That is tried and true and should be fairly cheap since it’s their own design.

[Alejandro]

i know it's a different class of bike, but still im wondering how would you compared off-road performance of Tenere 700 vs KTM 690 Enduro R that you've tested last year on similar tracks?

[aeror]

great first impressions on this beautiful machine!
i hope to join the T7 owners club soon its definetly a great bike for amazing bike adventures👍
Have a good one

[SigmaSheepdog]

I really like this bike and I may purchase one sometime in the next year or so. I currently own a 2008 KTM 990 Adventure S that doesn't even have ABS. I definitely like the lack of riding nanny's.

[WillysPerformanceCycleCtr]

Good review. Thanks for posting this and providing feedback from a riders perspective. This bike should be a winner for Yamaha.

[glossblack]

Great video thanks. I'm interested in what you changed on the suspension, to make it so much better on the second day. Apart from removing the luggage, did you set the sag? Did you play with the rebound/ compression clickers? Will the stock suspension be OK for an average ADV rider, of average weight (85 kg). Cheers

[izuksammy]

I like the less electronics and basic machine of it. I don’t like how all these new bikes have electronic everything. Too many setting to toggle through and mess with and worry about. Just fire it up and ride. ABS won’t hurt anyone in a panic stop, so I’ll take it since it there and it’s easy to turn off. I’m 27.

[Cross-Country-Biker]

Thanks for the excellent talk and vid. Kooks so much more than the 600 tenere in all ways. With Yamaha reliability

[ForTheChristians]

Since the typical adventure bike spends 90%+ of its life on pavement, the stock tires are very understandable.

[frooke]

Good info.. just keep in mind though $9999 + $1000 of BS dealer fees +tax. probably more like 12k out the door.

[robsonenduro]

don't understand some reviewers, this bike suspension is NOT soft, when I tested it was on hard side and I am 240lb guy...