The off-road thing

[Alun]

If you've been following the thread 'The Hunt Begins' then you'll be aware that I'm in the mood for a change of steed. First up; it has to do the business well with two-up touring complete with the full range of gear. That in itself has narrowed down the choice.

Next up is 'the off road thing'. And by that I mean this...I know I'm not going to ride a 1000cc adventure bike with full-on blood and guts vengeance over trials or enduro type terrain. I value my life and bank balance far too much for that. But I do know that I will be taking it off-road and that is likely to be on graded piste, ungraded piste, rough trails, muddy trails and the occasional tougher enduro type conditions but at a slower and more controlled speed than I would on a dedicated enduro machine.

I also know that I'm going to drop the bike and therefore I want something that's capable of surviving the occasional slow speed off with the minimum amount of damage – that's probably got more to do with how I battle proof the bike with aftermarket kit.

So, here's what I'm looking for when it comes to the off-road thing;
The ability to battle proof it for slow speed offs.
A design and features which will make my limited off road ambitions (on a bike of this size) a lot more pleasurable and fun.

Here's the short list, how do think they measure up to the above?

BMW GS(A) 1150 and 1200
Honda Varadero
Ducati Multistrada?
Yamaha Tenere 1200
Suzuki V Strom 1000

[Warthog]

Of those bikes, I can say that the 1150GS, having ridden one in exactly those conditions, two-up and heavily laden, did very well indeed, particularly as I had absolutely no off-road experience prior to our trip. Despite being heave, the engine configuration does mean that the CoG is pretty low.

Although we never crashed at any speed, the bike shrugged off these mishaps. The cyloinders do make lifting that bit easier too.

On those grounds, I would imagine that the lighter, more powerful 1200 would be equally good, but I will say that it does not look as sturdy: this is purely a visual, not factual opinion...

From what I've seen first hand, I can say that the V-strom can handle itself in the dirt very well, being lighter albeit taller. The oil cooler has always look vulnerable to flung stones, but I've not heard of any issues yet.

Members have also said that the Varadero can manage the dirt too, but as I stated in the other thread, the radiators and the linked brakes could be weak points, IMO.

Tenere: do you really want to risk dropping £13k?!

Multistrada: road bike in DS clothing, IMO: alloy wheels, fat tyres...

My 2p

[scurrell]

In my mind, the 1150GS (the "A" is toooo heavy) and the Tenere are the only ones that qualify.

[Magnum]

I've just taken delivery of a GSA and i parted company with my F 800 GS, purely because of the bias towards road use i seem to be doing, based on the last two years with the trips we did, the consistent all rounder was the BMW f 800 gs when we added off road potential into the pot along with the usual key criteria, its worth a try before you decide if you've not ridden one, it is surprisingly punchy performance wise, dropped mine a few times and it was tough enough, plus cheaper to buy with good long term residuals and dealer support, 2 up and kit haulage no probs....worth consideration???????

hope that helps

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[Treadtrader]

First thing to decide is budget?

A Multistrada, looks nice, but off road? not a chance.

Tenere 1200, too much wonga to keep dropping.

Real world, any of the other three, all have good reputations.
Plenty about allready fitted with the obvious extras.

[Curzon]

One obvious bike would seem to missing from your list. KTM 950 / 990 Adventure. Would certainly meet the off road side of your criteria and the survivability of off-road drops.

By all accounts people seem to rate the earlier 950 Carb version slightly better than the later 990 injection version.

One criteria I would consider, re the off road side of things, would be could you pick it up after a fall, by yourself if you had too? Espesially if the bike had fallen awkwardly! Speaking as a Varadero owner, that would put me off this model.

[Alun]

Treadtrader wrote:

First thing to decide is budget?

That'll be coming up next.

[herman]

The best off roader in the size bracket has to be the ktm but you need to carry spare fuel(rotopax seem good). I've ridden both the 800 and 1200 in anger off road and the 800 is far better,but not on road. I'm going to have to try one of those Honda thingys if only to keep certain forum members quiet. :blink:

[africajim]

I've dropped my Varadero offroad and the only issue was the brake pedal, it was easily straightened but a steel replacement would be better! I'm looking into a CBF steel pedal to see if will modify. I managed to pick up the Varadero no problem. The BMW would probably be the best for offroad out of the bunch but price and reliability let it down in the other departments. Still between the Varadero and the Vstrom for me, I suppose money has a fair bit to do with that choice!

[Warthog]

africajim wrote:

I've dropped my Varadero offroad and the only issue was the brake pedal, it was easily straightened but a steel replacement would be better! I'm looking into a CBF steel pedal to see if will modify. I managed to pick up the Varadero no problem.

You're obviously a fan of the 'dero and you've taken it off road, so can you satisfy my curiosity with some insider info?

Do you feel that the rads are a risk or are they no more vulnerable than a traditionally forward facing radiator?

I just have images of the bike falling over onto a dry branch, at the wrong angle, and then sitting watching the coolant pool in the dirt....

Secondly, do the linked brakes make off-road harder, eg using the back brake on a gravelly decent: does the front get twitchy?