Continent Crusher: Yamaha Ténéré 700 Custom

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomEtto Motorcycles Recreates a Trans-Australian Ténéré…  

The original Yamaha XT600Z Ténéré launched in late 1982, and it brought some serious innovation to the enduro / dual-sport world. Named after the brutal desert section of the Paris Dakar Rally, the Ténéré was the world’s first 600cc single-cylinder enduro. In contrast to the venerable XT500, the Ténéré had long-travel suspension (255/235mm), a rising-rate “Monocross” rear shock design, and a massive 8-gallon tank that meant the bike could go nearly 500 miles before refueling…incredibly important for remote areas where filling stations are few and far between.

One rider who put his Ténéré to the test was Chris Wilson. In the mid-1980s, Chris rode his XT600 Ténéré 72,000km (44,700 miles) across Australia, totally unsupported. Here are a few photos and descriptions from his trans-Australian adventure.

“The lonely places started 34 years ago — riding a modified 600cc Tenere along every desert road in Australia. Over 70,000 km on my own — 54,000 of them dirt.”

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom

“68 litres of fuel, 1350 km range, fitted with Honda oil cooler (thanks dry sump), Ohlins shock. Twenty litres of water, 4 litres oil.”

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom

“The prototype of the BMW racks! Welded in my garage. My tourniquet and suture kit were taped back of the Jerry can. No GPS back then. The tube under my green tent carried 1;250,000 aeronautical maps — used with a compass.”

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom

“1000’s upon 1000’s of kilometres of the Big Red. As remote as you can be in Aussie. Fixed one back inner tube over 28 times !”

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom

“Rabbit Flat was out of fuel. 1070 km between gasoline and cold beers. No phone, no radio, no GPS, no backup…. The big empty miles. I could go days seeing no-one.”

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom

“Road signs – Aussie Style. Best ‘Lift-Um-Foot’. The corner dropped hard to the left. Slow it down fast.”

XT600Z Ténéré

Fast forward to present day, and Chris picked up a brand-new Yamaha Ténéré 700, the most recent motorcycle to bear the fabled Ténéré name — and according to owners and experts alike, one of the best. The 689cc parallel-twin “CP2” engine is the same one used in the MT-07 and R7, delivering 72 horsepower and 50 lb-ft of torque in this application, and the T7 offers around 200mm of suspension travel.

If you have any doubts about the bike’s off-road chops, just take a look at Yamaha factory rider Pol Tarrés, who managed to finish Red Bull Romaniacs on his T700…competing against modern dirt bikes!

“In a lot of ways, the Ténéré 700 feels a lot like the bike Kawasaki and Honda fans asked about for years: a modern version of the venerable KLR650 or XR650L. It’s a simple, no-nonsense adventure bike that’s more big enduro than anything else.” –Cycle World

As soon as Chris Wilson got his hands on his new T7, he brought it to our friend Ian Davis of Etto Motorcycles and gave him the design brief:

“I want you to turn it into a replica of my bike I took to Oz, including a 30-litre tank, racks front and back, with capacity to carry two 20-litre Jerry cans.”

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomChris also wanted two GPS unit and supplied spotlights to light up the night.

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomIan, well-known here on BikeBound for his previous builds and incredible hand-shaped metalwork, ripped off all the OEM bodywork and fabricated aluminum panels, a rear seat cover, and the 30-liter (8-gallon) tank.

“It was a massive job. The internal fuel pump had to be ditched and a new external pump fitted matching the flow rate.” -Ian

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomA close-up of the fuel lines shows how Ian had to fit an external fuel pump and link it to a return valve (the machined aluminum cylinder on the side).

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomThe suspension was upgraded with custom springs to cope with the increased weight. The rims were anodized gold (like the originals) and fitted with stainless steel spokes.

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomThe exhaust was tucked up super high to give more clearance for the jerry-can brackets.

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomFor the two Garmins, Chris wanted one mounted portrait and one landscape.

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport CustomIan fabricated the front and rear racks from scratch.

And the whole lot was given an eighties paint job to echo Chris’s original Ténéré.

The end result is a modern incarnation of Chris’s continent-crushing XT600Z. With a bespoke exoskeleton of luggage racks, massive 8-gallon tank, high-power lighting, full suite of navigation aids, and a lovely retro livery, this Ténéré 700 won’t just bring back memories of crossing the Outback on two wheels, it’s ready to bring Chris on whatever new adventures he can cook up. Enjoy the miles, Chris!

More Photos

Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom Yamaha Tenere 700 Dual Sport Custom

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2 Comments

  1. Hell of a story, incredible adventure, and a modern bike to tackle some new rides. And watching that Romaniacs video reminds me of how well really talented riders can make these machines perform.

  2. What a wicked story and matching new bike. Superb!
    The only question I have is why keep the stock rims? After all the experience with punctures on the original, I’d be looking at tubeless spoked rims…..

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