At EICMA last year, Yamaha pulled the covers off a Ténéré 700 Raid Prototype. It looked as though before long there would be another Ténéré, and now there is. And it’s a proper one, with some real off-road tekkers. Say hello to the Yamaha Ténéré 700 World Raid.
The Yamaha Ténéré 700 World Raid is the third member of the Ténéré 700 family and is equipped, according to Yamaha, to go further than any other Ténéré. That might be a lot to do with the new 23-litre fuel tank. Or should I say fuel tanks. The side mounted fuel tanks, are estimated to give a range of up to 500km (310 miles), as well as keeping the centre of gravity nice and low, akin to that of the existing Ténéré 700. Nice.
It’s got a new seat too, which is flatter than before, giving the ‘World Raid’ an even more motocrossy feel. I think it gives the bike a more thoroughbred off-road look, too. And the new ergonomics are even more suited to stand-up-riding, as well as sitting down.
It might look a bit more gnarly than the Ténéré 700 but it’s still got that lovely little CP2 engine. The 689cc cross-plane crank twin has become one of Yamaha’s most legendary engines, with over 221,000 CP2-engined bikes sold since its introduction.
Specked up
But the Yamaha Ténéré 700 World Raid is not just an MX bike with a big engine, though. There’s a lot more spec to it than that. You get a five inch TFT dash with smartphone connectivity and three different screen layouts; Explorer, Street and Raid. You get a USB power socket (on the side of the dash) and three-mode ABS (including off-road).
For suspension, the Ténéré comes with a pair of 43mm KYB front forks that’ve got 230mm of travel. That’s an extra 20mm over the Ténéré 700. There’s an extra 20mm of travel in the rear shock too (220mm), which is fully adjustable for preload as well as compression and rebound damping. You get an Öhlins steering damper as well.
Yamaha are leaving us in no doubt that this Ténéré, is the most adventurous, and probably the most capable off-road yet. They’ve given it big rally style footrests, a tough looking three-piece aluminium engine guard and a new radiator grille. It’s definitely the kind of thing that would look just as good in a muddy field as it would a sandy desert; hence the name (Ténéré is a region of desert in Northern Africa).
The Yamaha Ténéré 700 World Raid will be in Yamaha dealers in May this year (2022) in blue or black. All you’ll need to buy one is £11,600. Yes, that’s a decent chunk of money, but you’d have to say that’s in the ball park when you consider one of its closest rivals is probably the KTM 890 Adventure R, which is £11,999 (at the time of writing).
I’ve got a feeling this new Ténéré is going to a be very, very good bike.
