So, the Yamaha Tenere 700, eh? Been hearing a lot about this bike for ages. Everyone’s yapping about it, how it’s the real deal for adventure riding, simple, tough, all that good stuff. Naturally, I got curious. You know how it is, you hear the buzz, and you just gotta dig in a little yourself, see what all the fuss is about. It’s not like Yamaha just hands you a neatly typed spec sheet the moment you think about it, all gift-wrapped. Nah, you gotta do a bit of legwork, piece things together from here and there.
So, I started poking around. First place I usually check is the official Yamaha site, obviously. It’s a good starting point, even if they sometimes make you feel like you’re solving a cryptic crossword to find the actual, hard numbers. Then, you know, I cross-reference with a few review sites, maybe some forums where actual owners hang out. You gotta see what real riders are saying, see if the numbers match up or if there are any little quirks people have found in the wild. It’s like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, bit by bit, until the whole picture of the machine starts to form in your head.
Engine Deets
First thing that really jumps out, or at least the thing everyone talks about, is that CP2 engine. That’s the heart of the beast, right? So I dug into that. Here’s what I remember piecing together from my online scrounging:
- It’s a 689cc parallel-twin. That displacement sounded about right for this kind of bike – not too crazy, not too wimpy.
- Horsepower? I kept seeing figures around the 72 horsepower mark, give or take a nag.
- Torque? Somethin’ like 50 lb-ft, or 68 Newton-meters if you’re into that. Decent grunt for pulling you up hills.
Now, numbers on a screen, yeah, they’re just numbers. They don’t tell you how it feels when you twist the throttle. But it gives you an idea. It’s not some fire-breathing monster that’ll try to throw you off the back every five minutes, but it clearly has enough poke to have some serious fun and, more importantly, get you through the rough stuff. I remember thinking, ‘Okay, that’s sensible. Sounds like a usable engine for real-world adventures.’
Chassis and Suspension Stuff
Then you gotta look at the bones of the thing, the frame and all that. They talk about a lightweight, double-cradle tubular steel frame. Sounds plenty sturdy for taking a beating, which is exactly what this bike is supposedly all about. You expect it to handle some tumbles without complaining too much.
And the suspension – man, that’s a big deal for any bike claiming to be an adventure machine. From what I gathered, it’s got fully adjustable long-travel forks up front. I think the travel was something like 8.3 inches (that’s 210mm). And at the back, a linkage-type shock with a similar amount of give, maybe 7.9 inches (200mm). That’s plenty for soaking up nasty bumps, rocks, and whatever else the trail throws at you. Makes you think you can actually take it off the beaten path without your teeth rattling out of your skull.
Size, Weight, and That Sort of Thing
Then there’s the practical stuff – the size and weight. Always important, especially if you’re not built like a heavyweight wrestler. The seat height, I saw it listed around 34.4 inches (875mm). Not exactly a low-rider, but it’s in the ballpark for serious off-road capable bikes. You gotta have ground clearance, right?
And the weight. They say it’s around 452 pounds (that’s 205 kg), wet. That’s with all fluids, fuel, ready to roll. For a bike this capable, with that kind of suspension travel, that’s not too shabby at all. Lighter is often better when you’re wrestling it through tricky sections, or, let’s be honest, when you have to pick it up. It happens to the best of us.
Other Bits and Bobs That Caught My Eye
What else did I jot down in my mental notebook? Ah, the fuel tank. Capacity is something like 4.2 gallons (16 liters). Should give you decent range between fuel stops, which is absolutely key when you’re venturing out into the boonies where gas stations are few and far between.
Brakes – seemed like standard fare for this type of bike. Dual discs up front, a single disc in the back. And crucially, ABS that you can switch off, at least for the rear wheel. That’s a must for proper dirt riding; you need to be able to lock up that back brake sometimes.
And then there’s the electronics… or rather, the beautiful lack of them! This is a big selling point I kept reading about. No super complicated riding modes, no overly sensitive traction control systems to fiddle with or, worse, to go wrong when you’re miles from anywhere. Just a throttle, your right wrist, and your brain. I kinda like that old-school simplicity. It’s refreshing in a world of bikes that sometimes feel like they have more computers than a space shuttle.
So, after digging through all that spec info, you get a pretty clear picture. The Yamaha Tenere 700 specs, they paint a portrait of a no-nonsense, properly capable machine. It’s not trying to be everything to everyone with a million gadgets. It’s focused. And that’s probably why so many people are drawn to it. It’s a tool, built for a specific job: real adventure. And from the looks of the specs I managed to unearth, it seems pretty damn well-equipped for it. Made me think, yeah, I can definitely see why folks are raving about this one.
