If there’s one adventure bike to get excited about this year, it’s the Yamaha Ténéré 700. The new middleweight desert rally bike-based concept was long-teased by Yamaha (to the point of frustration) but the brand’s finally coming through on its promise. This week, the EU pricing was announced at €9,699 ($10,965 USD), which means that compared to the rest of the middleweight market, Yamaha just went for a massive undercut.
In a segment growing more crowded by the day, the middleweight adventure motorcycle corner of the market is full of stiff competition, but pricing remains relatively high with bikes like the Triumph Scrambler 1200 ($14,000) and the KTM 790 Adventure R ($13,499).
The KTM 790 Adventure R and the Husqvarna 701 Enduro can’t be touched when it comes to power performance, and the Yamaha isn’t likely to threaten them. But priced just below $11,000, the Ténéré 700 could be a massive success — even with a slight performance deficit to the category kings. Part of that is its unique positioning: it’s the only nimble adventure motorcycle at its price point. You can make the argument for the Honda CRF450L, but that’s a more of a day-trip machine, not a weekend-adventure bike like the Ténéré 700.
Of course, the $10,965 pricing is an educated guess based on the European MSRP. We’ll have to wait a while for an official announcement, and even longer to ride the damn thing. According to Yamaha, the Ténéré 700s won’t hit U.S. shores until 2020.
In the Meantime:
2018 Husqvarna 701 Enduro ($11,799)
2018 Triumph Tiger 800 XCa ($15,850)
2019 Honda CRF450L ($10,399)
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