Motor 52 degree V-twin liquid cooled fourstroke; SOHC; 3 valves, two sparkplugs per cylinder bore x stroke 79 x 66 mm; capacity 647 cc; compression ratio 9,2 : 1; 55bhp, 56,2 Nm Tyres front: 90/90-21, rear: 120/90-17 Dimenions wheelbase: 1501 mm, length: 2257 mm, width: 922 mm, hight: 1318 mm ground clearance: 192 mm, weight: 191kg, max.load: 180kg Misc. Gasoline: unleaded 91 octane or higher, fuel capacity 19 liters.
Tyres. I started with Metzeler Tourances, later switched to Michelin Anakees and Michelin TKC80 tyres. The Tourances were good tyres, lasting long and performing very good on road. The Anakees that became available later were even better. The TKC's don't last that long but are confidence inspiring on unpaved roads.
So, no cons? Yes, one major one: the bike is a nightmare to work on. Removing the plastic parts is a drag and even more so is the rebuild of them. It's hard to get to the valves and sparkplugs, fortunately it doesn't have to be worked on frequently. The second worry is it's vulnerability: on rough roads it's dropped now and then and both the plastic and subframe are easily damaged. To address both weaknesses I replaced the fairing with an aluminium tophalf. It's more sturdy now, looks better and is easier to work on.
I have real trust in the bike, as world traveller Sean Kelly said:
"Best advice I could give on what to take? Well, as I sit here back in Bangkok waiting for my second stripped cylinder head stud to be repaired - take a Honda! Every Beemer we've come across has had some sort of problem whilst every Transalp or Africa Twin has had none."