The Honda Adventure Bike That Makes Every Ride Feel Like A Good Idea
Over the last decade or so, adventure bikes have taken the motorcycle industry by storm. With so many riders looking to get into adventure riding, all the leading manufacturers answered the call to develop more of these versatile machines. With a reputation for building some of the most incredible off-road bikes, it seemed like this would be a natural fit for Honda. We’re happy to report the CBR-maker has followed on that, building one of the most versatile midweight ADVs in the highly competitive segment.
A Bigger Adventure Bike Isn’t Always Better
It actually took Honda quite some time to launch a proper ADV. But, back in 2016, when the Africa Twin eventually did come out, it was every bit as good as we expected it to be. Just like the other bikes it was competing with back then, it was a physically large motorcycle that offered more touring comfort than off-road ability. It wasn’t until a couple of years later when the Yamaha Tenere 700 was introduced in Europe that everything shifted.
The Tenere highlighted all the deficiencies of all the bigger adventure-tourers, and with that came a surge in demand for more capable middleweight bikes. We expected Honda’s response to be swift and unequivocal. Once more, the brand took its time, and when the bike finally arrived it certainly wasn’t what we expected. But once it got into the wild, it proved to be even more versatile than what other manufacturers had to offer in this incredibly competitive space.
The Honda Transalp Is One Of The Most Versatile Motorcycles On The Market
MSRP: $10,199
Initially, it seemed as though the Transalp had missed the mark. It clearly wasn’t going to be as capable as the Tenere, but in reality, that was never the kind of motorcycle Honda planned to offer. The Transalp is by far and away the more comfortable bike, and instead of simply getting fixated on off-road capability, the Japanese brand developed one of the very best all-rounders money can buy. It can do pretty much anything you want it to do (within reason), all with the same peace of mind usually associated with any Honda product.
A Fashionable 270 Degree Parallel-Twin Offers Balanced Performance
Power: 91 Horsepower (Euro spec)
Parallel-twins, in particular crossplane parallel-twins, are ubiquitous these days. Motorcycle manufacturers realized that this engine configuration offers an almost ideal balance between performance, reliability, and more importantly, manufacturing costs. With fewer moving parts than an inline-four, triple or V-twin, these engines are quite simply cheaper to manufacture. With 90 horsepower, this is actually one of the more powerful middleweight twins, but that figure is more or less moot when it comes to powertrains like this. The more important fact is that it offers a meaty midrange, with most of its torque available from 2,000 RPM.
The E-Clutch Adds Value
Midrange performance is what makes modern middleweight bikes like the Transalp so effective in the real world. While you don’t get to win any spec sheet wars, the Transalp is a fun bike to ride at regular speed in an urban environment. An E-Clutch works more or less like a quickshifter, but you can also choose not to use the clutch at all, and treat the bike like a twist-and-go automatic. While the Transalp is already pretty accessible, this only serves to make the bike even easier to ride, opening it up to even more riders. While it has added a couple of hundred dollars to the price, to the right buyer, this is a price well worth paying.
The Transalp Offers A Good Balance Between Weight And Features
The E-Clutch is not the only addition this year. Honda finally caved and put on a skid plate. While some adventure enthusiasts might replace this anyway, it looks sturdy enough for the vast majority of us that won’t necessarily be doing any hardcore off-roading. Further than that, you get ABS, traction control, ride modes, and a TFT dash with smartphone connectivity. As is the case with any adventure bike, there is always an intricate balance between features and weight. Any bike with off-road ambitions needs to be as light as possible, but most modern riders will expect certain comfort features on a bike like this.
Moving on, both the fork and rear shock now have compression and rebound damping adjustment, which means getting the bike set up appropriately will be that much easier. Adding the skid plate was absolutely necessary. Quite frankly, it was a little cheeky of Honda to initially leave it off of the bike in the first place. Meanwhile, the skid plate and the E-Clutch add around nine pounds. So the total weight of the bike goes up to 468 pounds, as opposed to 459 pounds when it first came out.
A Blank Canvas Ready For Your Unique Brushstroke
For the money, the latest Transalp actually has a lot to offer. It is light enough to be pretty effective off-road, and with the addition of the E-Clutch it will also make light work of the daily commute. But its key strength is actually how comfortable it is. Unlike most of the bikes in this class, which fall short in this area, the Transalp is actually more comfortable than several bigger expensive models.
Out of all the great all-rounders on the market, this has to be the easiest to live with. It is pretty clear that Honda has listened to customer feedback, but it is still a bike that begs to get modified. There are several great in-house accessories to choose from, and the aftermarket for these bikes is just incredible. You can take this bike in any direction you want.
While it is certainly more of an adventure-tourer from the factory, there is nothing stopping you from adding a few off-road mods and converting it into the Tenere slayer we all expected it to be. You could also very well take it in the other direction and lean into the touring side of the bike, and it won’t disappoint. The only limiting factor here is your imagination and budget.With the latter the most critical, because it is quite easy to go too far if you are not careful.
Source: Honda Powersports
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