Super Tenere or Stelvio NTX or ?

[kballowe]

Kballowe. Did you have a lot of problems w the Guzzis? If you had 6 there must be a lot you liked about them. I have heard the quality control has gotten better since Piaggio took them over.

I STILL like Moto Guzzi - but the rub is that dealers are far and few.

Yes, I did have problems with two late model Guzzi's. Well, I had problems with all of them, but the last two were purchased brand new and had warranty.

Don't want to brand bash. That's all I have.

 

[Gramps]

Triumph Explorer?

 

[want2ride]

You need to keep her Greg. She sounds a lot like my wife, a real treasure. The bikes a plus and she understands what you like and need.

 

[Abercrombie FJR]

I can get a leftover 13 for 4000 off. Which is very tempting. Come on warm weather so I can test them both!

If you can swing it, I would look for a 2014 holdover. They made a ton of significant improvements along with adding cruise, heated grips, and better windshield for 2014. I made a hasty decision under the influence of Hydrocodone to stay with the 1st generation Tenere because of all my accessories that were undamaged in the crash and the price difference between the 13 and 14. In retrospect I wish I would have spent a little more for the 2nd generation 2014 and sold my 1st gen accessories on the Tenere forum.

 

[HotRodZilla]

At 6'4", you should look at a GS-A. My brother's has been stone reliable and the new liquid cooled bikes are ballsy. Pretty sure the new GS-A will blow a Teneré out of the water. The new RTs with the same engine are almost FJR fast.

 

[900gc]

The real question is, what does she get in exchange.

 

[gregarious]

Zilla: I looked at the GSA in the showroom, and even with my long legs- holy shit that thing is a bitch to get on without whacking the bags with my big ass foot. Plus, I have heard too many horror stories on final drives and CAN BUS.... Gramps, I will put the Explorer on my list to try out as well.

Thanks everyone!

 

[Fred W]

I've never ridden a Stelvio, but they certainly are an intriguing looking bike. I suspect they are more "characterful" than the Yamaha, with all the baggage that this entails.

I did ride a 2014 Super Tenere ES and was a bit underwhelmed. I really expected it to be a quantum leap better than my tired old Suzuki ManStrom DL1000, and frankly, it just wasn't better enough. (The 2014 FJR ES that I rode the same day was a quantum increment over my old 2005 FJR, and so I bought that on that day)

Sure the Tenere has a shaft drive, but that is just not the "end all and be all" for me that it is for many others. Certainly not on a bike that will see dirt road duty, as changing gearing is a PITA on any shaftie. I tossed a 1 tooth smaller front and 3 tooth larger rear onto the 'Strom and it completely transformed its off pavement manners, and actually helped on pave' also. I guess if they really "got it right" with the stock gearing it would be a non-issue, but often they will have missed the mark at least a little bit.

Also, the S10 is bit heavier than my old Strom and it felt like it during the test ride (I was led to believe it carries its weight lower). I think if I am ever going to replace the Strom it will end up being with a lighter bike with better suspension like a twin KTM or similar. Unfortunately Suzuki missed the opportunity to make a big change to the Strom with the latest Gen 2 revision. It looks better, but it's the same basic bike underneath and has some of the same foibles, so I would not recommend one of those.

 

[gregarious]

I am adding another possibility to the mix. Triumph Trophy, which I have heard some FJR riders have switched to. Any inputs from Trophy owners?

 

[Geezer]

The Trophy is more like the FJR than any of the adventure bikes that have been brought up so far. Are you planning to replace the FJR or add another bike to your stable?

 

[Queensland Ken]

I wouldn't touch a Trophy.

Had a 2013 for 3 months, worse bike ever, traded it on another FJR.

A list of 9 crook and faulty items with poor dealer service & backup.

 

[gregarious]

I am replacing the FJR, not adding to the stable. I know there were lots of problems w 2013 Trophys, but reliability is better on the 14s.

 

[Fred W]

I think more folks would be tempted away by the Tiger (800) or Tiger Explorer (1200) than the Trophy. The Explorer is the Triumph equivalent of the Super Tenere.

 

[20valves]

The Explorer is the Triumph equivalent of the Super Tenere.

Except without the off road capability. I've seen the word "poser" used in print media when talking about the Explorer's lack of off road competence. But if you're not going off road, no worries.

 

[gregarious]

I probably won't be doing any more than dirt roads. So the poseur Explorer may work

 

[NMRoadRunner]

Well my first thought was, "I wish your wife were mine"

No disrespect to you, you're a lucky man.

 

[gregarious]

None taken. NM

 

[bikerskier]

I think more folks would be tempted away by the Tiger (800) or Tiger Explorer (1200) than the Trophy. The Explorer is the Triumph equivalent of the Super Tenere.

A friend has the Tiger 800 and loves it.

 

[Fred W]

Yes, of the Triumphs, it's the Tiger 800 XC that would be of most interest to me. It would be a solid increment better off road than my Manstrom is. A triple makes some wonderful noise and has inherently less vibration than an I4 or L twin.

I really wish that Yamaha would put the new FZ/FJ-09 triple into an adventure sport package. The FZ-09 is almost there, and probably wouldn't take too much to get it the rest of the way with a healthy dose of after market parts. Especially since the price is so low and the stock FZ suspension is of throw away quality anyway. But a bigger hoop up front (at least) would need to be found.

 

[Gramps]

I've had my Explorer for 2 years now and for me it will do everything the FJR will do "on road" except 140+ mph, plus I can go "off road" without feeling like I'm riding on marbles.

With that said, it still weighs 560lbs so doing dirt bike trails is out of the question for me, but forest service roads & dirt/gravel roads it performs very well. I think they are great bikes.