Gas up - Let's Go!

They have recently been released in Austrailia, and South Africa have them now too. I do know of a good few folk who've ditched the BMUU for the Tenere - Why would you spend £2 or £3K more for a BM when you get a Yam that does the same job ?? The SuperMoto versions of these bikes are popular too - there is a clip on U-Tube somewhere of a couple of guys leaving some sportsbikes for dead in the mountain roads, but I think it's more to do with the rider than the bike!!!

Nope. It doesn't, how cheeky! The boxes are Touratech Zega Pros, so they are extra - but there are any number of pannier options available. It is a very tall bike, and takes a bit of getting used to, especially if you are coming from a sportsbike, but it is much more comfortable, with much better viasability and loads more road presence than other bikes. They do have thier downsides though; The Cush Drive Rubbers are weak, they need changed every 10,000 miles (depending on your riding) Crash bars and bash plates are also weak at the mounting points, These bike are available in Spain, in fact the production of them is moving from Italy to Spain. Other than that they are very reliable, I've covered 17,000 miles on this one with no problems to speak of. You can find loads more information on them (all three types) over at www.xt660.com , they even have a spanish speaking section!

Take a look at an XT, any one will be under the restriction for you. Me, I like this one : The XT R, X or Z (Enduro, SuperMoto or Adventure) all come with the same motor as the MT-03, that is the 660 single, and it comes in at 35kW, but you can squeeze a lot more torque and a bit mor epower by adding a PowerCommander-V and DNA Air filter. More power than putting on a new can!

Welcome. When you say smoking, is it oil, or water ? Yes These are airheads, but is water getting into the exhaust at all ?? Is it using any oil (remember these have a dry sump so you need to run it for 20 minutes before dipping the oil). If it's not using oil then you've no worries. Mine 'smokes' a bit on startup if it's been outside, but it's not oil it's normally just the contents of a lake that has gotten in there, Dunno how........ I'd have thought more than 1200 miles from the Distanzias, although they are quite a soft compound. I run Michelin Enduro Comps on mine and get around 1000 but these are very soft off road tyres. I really depends how you ride it, maybe a little less 'spirited' and you'll get more miles to your rubber! Never had the need to worry about jetting the bike - runs fine for what I use it for :

These lot have a red one, on 2003 at £3750. Unless you find someone who is dead set on a red one, then the colour isn't going to make a huge difference in price, no matter how rare it is. Alot also depends on where you are in the country, how desperate the seller is, how keen the buyer is and what the market is like (if there are 100 red R6's then your price is going down, like it or not!) I would always take the bike to a local dealer or two and ask about a trade in (pick a bike in the showroom similar to what you want, as they will often price yours agains the prospective sale), try a couple of dealers and this will give you a good idea what your bike is worth. Trade in V's Private sale is a subjective thing, personally, I can't be done with the hassle of tyre kicking time wasters so I go to the dealer, or sell through word-of-mouth ( I also don't like advertising that I have a bike, in local or national papers/forums/auction sites etc). I wouldn't spend anything over a grand on a private sale either as I'm just too suspicious - but that's just my prefferance, it doesn't mean it's right for anyone else. The downside is, you always pay for that little bit of 'piece of mind'. Many people use private sales, and some people make a killing on them.

I was wondering how a Diode can be non-polorised. Even went back to my old elecronic books, but no refference of such a thing anywhere....

Sorted (you were quite right, it was missing)

It'll take you around the world if you choose to go...... just might take a bit longer than 'bigger' bikes, and you'd have to travel light This will let you put your Satnav on the bike - I've heard very good reports on these. --> http://www.cmcbikes.com/givi-sat-nav-gps-holder.html As for the power, you need to work out your power budget - SatNav doesn't take much Ummphh to charge.

The old Tenere isn't my strong point, but I know a place that has loads of advoce on these bikes. Have you tried looking at the Yamaha Tech sub-forums on the HUBB ?? http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/ There are loads of folk who've ridden these bikes around the world, who should be able to help.

Nice bike, but I'm a little mor einterested in the dolly you had her on. I've a trailer and I've been considering a bike trailer, but to be honest there isn't the space for that and another bike (reason fo rthe trailer!) - so where did you get that dolly, I think it would be great in me ol' little trailer......

Even on bigger bike you get this at times. For a long time now I've been in the habit of using the bike weight, under braking to apply maximum pressure to the first set of road sensors. You need to time your braking so that the front springs are at full compression just as you go over the bands in the roads. I've also seen people put the sidestand down on the sensors and sit on the bike, with the weight on the band on the road. I'm not sure about the legality of going through a Red Light under failure, but you would have to be careful not to cause any kind of incident.

If your swift was registered after 1998 ('S' Plate) then you can only fit a Type Approved 94/20 EC Towbar, it must have an indentification plate attached to it to show it's approval, weight restriction, hitch nose load etc. So making your own is probably a costly thing to do, then get approved. If you intend fitting it yourself, try www.towsure.com, they are reasonably priced for new brackets. I'f fitted a few of these and they don't take very long at all - unlike the electrics!! You might also find a local supplier who can do you a decent deal for a fitted unit. Of course, people still make thier own brackets, but as these don't conform, then there is a good change you could get a prohibition notice (if caught, while towing) from Plod, or VOSA (who have the legal right to stop any vehicle anywhere on the UK roads).

The old ones are the best eh? Still, had me in stitches.....

Lois hasn't written in TBM for a while now. There is another Girly who is a bloody good rider BTW, Jenny Morgan, she did the Heroes Ledgend Rally in November (that's the real Dakar, not the one in South America), she's currently doing a few articles. Lois has two books (Lois on the Loose, Red Tape & White Knuckles) and numerous videos - mad a box of frogs though!

We got defrosted yesterday!!! Yipee, all set to go for a ride,,,,,,,, It's bloody well back today though. White everywhere, with a bit of black ice under it all, just to keep you on your toes, or arse if you're not carefull...

Pah! 8086, then an upgrade with an 8087 and 10Mb hard drive, could run a small company's accounts........ Wouldn't even get a decent photo on it these days!

Been folowing it on http://www.dakar.com/indexus.html We have a rising star in the form of Tasmin Jones, built the bike on a shoestring and is currently running 82nd, She's a trouper!

I wouldn't say it's evil, sure there are a good number of extremists but many more decent Muslims who are happy to get on with the British way of life, whilst practising thier own beliefs in private. The problem, or not depending on your viewpoint, is that if a cleric makes a bold and dangerous statement on the meaning of something, then there are too many idiots willing to believe and follow it without question. In a Christian organisation when a Vicar makes bold and dangerous statements they are verbally shot down and no one takes them seriously. This Christian V's Muslim conflict has far too much history, since the Bible was first assembled after Constantine renounced Paganism. The big problem is nothing that is written in the Bible, or whatever other name you wish to call it can be proven, it's just stories passed down from father to son. The world would be a more peafull place without it.

It's all over, well it is now! The Home Secretary has signed an order to outlaw Islam4UK and a number of 'AKA's' under anti terror law. Now, although the outcome in this case is favourable to normal decent British subjects (as well as many others), the fact that the Government can outlaw a group on little more than public outrage is a worry. If this were a political party then what? It is a very dangerous road to set off down. We've seen Local Councils using anti-terror legislation to determin whether school children realy live within catchment areas so misuse of power is real. Freedom of Speech is a tough right, you have to use it with responsibility and you will not always like what you hear. But to erode one point of view because of public will (especially as an election must be announced in the next 18 weeks) just cannot be justified. These people have now been forced underground, they cannot march and show thier distastfull opinions for what they are, so what will they do ? Has the Government just created another internal terrorist group, ready to carry out atrocities ?

The TT225 is most commonly known a a Serow. Lois Pryce (The goddess of overland travel) rode one from Alaska down to Chile, then back up to Brazil, a couple of years ago. A very underestimated bike.

What about the wind up kind ?? Car or Stereo, either would work well.......

Steve, Is the engine in a Swift up to running a Stereo ? Well there's a shock...... Jesting apart, remember : P=IV is always a good one to remember, where P= Power in amps, I= Current, in Amps V= Voltage, in, not suprisingly, Volts So, to work out the power consumption, in the situation where it's not listed and you don't have a clamp or ammeter, simply insert the fuse value into the equation and you'll get a reading for the power consumtion - it will be over rated, but it is a guide in the lack of any other information. So to back-work what the Sub-Woofer is saying; P=IV, thus 500=I x 12, or 500/12 = I (divide both sides of the equation by 12, this cancels out the I x 12) Therefore you would expect the subwoofer to draw around 41amps, if the sub-woofer has a 10amp fuse in it then you'll need to work out the correct power consuption based on that; P=IV, thus P=10 x 12 Therefore P = 120w.... As Speedshop has said, these are going to be overrated......

Wayhey... Speed and Database errors all appear to be sorted out now.

Naw,,, That's a GS Adventurer, the rope is to hold it together......

Well, as you can't get out on it, get yourself down to the Bookshop and purchase a copy of Roadcraft - The Police Rider Handbook: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Motorcycle-Roadcraft-Police-Handbook-Motorcycling/dp/011341143X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262939585&sr=8-1 Read it, and belive it - it will save you and your bike from something nasty. Next, get onto the BikeSafe website, find your closest constabulary (not all do it) and book yourself on the next course. You will be told by imeasurably superior riders to anyone here, what you are doing wrong, and how to correct it - and stay alive! Then, once you've got the basics about real riding, you get to choose a route to enlightement THere is the IAM -> http://www.iam.org.uk/do_you_want_to_be_a_better_rider_/doyouwanttobeabetterrider.html or, RoSPA -> http://www.roadar.org/riders/index.htm Both are as good as each other, although you need to re-test every 3 years with RoSPA, and the pass is graded. YOu'll also find more IAM groups around the country than RoSPA Riders. Then, once you've done all this you'll be on the way to being a good rider. However, if you can't get past chapter one in Roadcraft (mostly about attitude - and changing it for the better), you will never be a good rider, and statistically you will be on the coundown to a serious accident. Stay safe.