Congratulations on the video. In the last twenty years, I have had three BMW GS and three Ducati Multistrada, but I got tired of the weight and the lack of maneuverability, so this video greatly influenced me in my decision to buy the CRF 1100L DCT. I'm 50 years old, 177 cm and 79 kg. I use the motorcycle almost daily to go to work and go for a walk. In November I took a 2400 km trip with my Africa twin and it was fantastic to have such an easy and fun bike. Here in Brazil there are very beautiful places in the mountains, beaches and parks. However, sometimes the roads suffer from poor maintenance and are almost off roads, which is delightful in an Africa Twin. Thank you very much.
I'm very much looking forward to my Dave Thorpe off road adventure course at the end of this month. I'm gonna learn how to handle the DCT bike off road & them when I come home I'm going to have the confidence and ability to just get on mine & ride it. That's not to say I'm not touching mine till then, but I feel like I'm going to get so much benefit riding off road round Exmoor that I can apply to my horrifically potholed & gravelly drive & be able to get past all my neighbours' BMWs without crashing into them! After that I'm going to do an advanced motorist's course to get my road skills back before setting off round Ireland in the summer. It's an amazing bike, and I'm gonna have a blast.
@@TheGirlOnABike just ordered some Outback Motortek crash bars yesterday, the max protection package, so I'll be happier risking dropping it. Just gotta figure out where the fog lights are gonna go.
Returning to this review after watching an atrocious "review" elsewhere where a normally well informed and thorough reviewer just came at it from the POV of not reading the manual, not finding out how to use it, & just shrugging and saying they didn't know why anyone would want DCT - and then refusing to read the answers to his questions. This is the way, this is how to do a meaningful review - you rode this bike extensively over a number of days and went in depth with it.
So many A.D.V Bikes on the market but if ever indoubt in choosing 1 the Africa twin is a good choice will do every thing you ask of it reliable & capable of carrying luggage for around the world tours There's a new concept in the pipe line for the 2024 model Which is very interesting 💭
@@TheGirlOnABike Thanks it is Devastating. Having the manual version with the Quickshifter works a treat by the way, i would recommend it ti anyone getting this bike.
One comment about the self-cancelling indicators: They cancel themselves after 150 meters - which is too soon for me. So you can switch off the self cancelling in the main configuration menu, which I did. Another comment about the heated grips: At least in Germany they are factory standard for the bigger AT Adventure Sports. You can get them as an option for the normal Africa Twin, which I did. The advantage of the original Honda heated grips over some aftermarket parts: the Honda grip integrate into the bike's electronic and can be controlled with the bike's controls. You do not need extra buttons installed at your handbar.
I got the DCT (not the Adventure Sport Model) and I do like it, alot. Commuting in the city it is practical and the shifting is smooth. I've owned it a couple of years already and haven't really taken it off road because I wanted to pay it off first before adding the crash bars. I should have them on in a couple of weeks. Don't get me wrong, I miss shifting but I'm over 50 now so it's about the comfort for me
After 35k km I can say the DCT is the best on this bike. Compare to the other bigger ADVs(BMW,KTM,Ducati,Triumph) I've tried them, this gives the biggest place for you and your passenger, and the smoothest gear changes. So some way is the best, it just need around +30bhp. :). ...and can stall :)
I have 21k on my 2020 ATAS and lovee DCT. Never thought a big scooter could be so great even off road. I had a few issues with mine stalling but it was tank magnesium weld flake clogging fuel filter. Installed Guglatech Mazinga kit and Bob's your uncle :-) Cheers, ehh, great bikes!
I think the answer to that is very personal based on the sort of riding that you want to do and how your body feels. But for me I would sway to the 900 largely because of the confidence the reduce weight gives me, but yet you still have all the power and electrical comforts.
@@TheGirlOnABike Ok thank you for that answer. Actually THAT is exactly why I just bought the 2023 Tiger Rally Pro, myself. Headed across to Baja next week to test out my Mosko Moto bags and gear and new crash bars too of course as I'm an adventurous newbie! Great vids and thank you!
I'm impressed by your riding and how quickly you learn and improve your skills. This bike is a beast of adventure bike and if you can handle it, anyone can 🤩even me.
Great series with Honda in Iceland. Well done for keeping it shiny side up because some of that terrain did not look easy, not to mention those river crossings. Alan.
Hi Vanessa, I've been watching your channel for a long time, and only today I found out how tall you are😆😆. In the videos, you look like a tall woman, 180 cm tall. You surprised me with this information😁. If you don't have a problem with this bike at your height then neither will I, I'm 171cm tall Greetings from Norway
Oh thank you! Yeah people often think I am taller than I am. I guess I focus on the balance, clutch and throttle control so the reaching the ground is less important. hehe thanks for saying hi
Too many people drop the Africa Twin (and other bikes) because they aren't tall enough, or strong enough, or tall AND strong enough. I'm 6'3", 230lbs and much stronger than average...so I never have any issue with drops. FAR too many people are overbiked. A 525lb, tall'ish adventure bike is not proper for someone 5'10" and under, IMHO.
no I totally disagree, us smaller people can defo ride the bigger bikes, we just need a little more still to make up for the strength / size. On that trip of 32 ATs in Iceland myself and 1 other were the only 2 in the group not to drop it. I was the smallest there but didn't drop it ;-)
I disagree with you on that one. I'm 5'9" , 160lbs and I have a 23 Africa Twin AS and do just fine with it, I do have long legs though. A friend of mine has the 2022 AT1100 standard and she's only about 5'6" and she does well. She's an experienced rider and rode motocross.
My dealer called me and said that my Africa Twin Adventure Sports DCT 2023 will come in like 15-20days… i have put all honda eq on her and i rly cant wait to test it… im jumping from nc750xd to this beauty
It is not the ADV for me, mostly because I like changing gears. I do have friend that has one and he goes on some very rough rides. I have a Pan Am, I'm also 183cm, 115kg, big strong 61 year old. I did a lot of motocross and enduro in the late 80's and early 90's on a vintage motocross bike. I'm also some what broken from crashing 30+ years ago a few times. I think if you treat the big ADV's like a truck on two wheels, you can ride them off road, just don't be silly. Then I didn't get the Pan Am for dirt riding, I use it as a commuter in the city of Melbourne Australia, an all roads sports tourer and a very occasional off road track with 50/50 tires, although 95% of it's riding is with the 80/20 tires. Recently my knees have become bone on bone, no cartridge or meniscus remaining and I need some knee replacements, so no dirt riding for 12 months, with 6 months for each knee reconstruction. That will not stop me from riding!
That looked cold. Thanks for the views on this bike. I fear it's a bit heavy for me. I'm about the same height as you but probably don't have the same level of experience and skill
Great video, I’m trying to decide if I should get the new AS with the 19” front wheel and large capacity fuel tank, or the standard version with a 21” wheel but a smaller tank. I live in Iceland an here you can opt both version with ES and DCT. I will use the bike as a commuter and for adventure riding. Which one do you think I should buy?
Very good review, you inspired me to pop by the Honda dealer today and look over the AT. This DCT terrorizes me, I want it but I'm afraid I might hate it. LOL. I think for the type of riding (realistically) that I will be doing, the Africa Twin is the right choice though. Thanks for posting this review !
You are welcome, i am glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. Goodluck with your new bike whichever one you choose, enjoy!
The honda DCT is a great option. You learn to use it and makes driving much more relaxed. no other manufacturer has anything close to it, plus it is very modern.
I have a Goldwing DCT and was wondering the same thing, what if I don't like it, honestly, I love it! And I'm pretty sure I will add a DCT Africa twin to the stable also.
For what it's worth, I have the Aprilia Mana 850 and it's an automatic cvt transmission. I don't miss the gears much at all. I wonder if the DCT has manual override like my bike does. It's nice to slap the gear lever to downshift for engine braking (though thats also automatic too) so there's no true 'coasting' with this set up. Once you roll off, it starts to downshift. I wonder if the DCT is any different.
Is it like my Tiger 900 gt pro, quick click for three flashes and flick the switch and gold for a fraction of a second and it self cancels after the turn!!!!
So much to customise on the tft! I watched a vid about it, quite amazing! A few have had issues where the tft screen crashed/froze!? I wonder how much to replace when out of warranty? Still getting one thou! So much more comfortable than my gixxer 1100h!
Good video as usual Vanessa🙂 I have had my Africa Twin AS for just over a year now, brand new in 2023. I have put 26000km on it and it is the best bike I have ever had in my 40 years of riding. I have zero interest in ever having a DCT though, I spent 20 years on the road with my truck and most of it was with an 18 speed transmission so shifting a 6 speed is child's play and I want all the control. If I get so lazy that I don't want to shift a silky smooth 6 speed it is time I quit riding. The self cancelling turn signals are useless on it though so shut that feature off very soon after I got it. The seat I found to be the most uncomfortable damn thing ever put on a motorcycle if its a bike you spend hours sitting on, I cured that issue over the winter and redone the foam on the front and rear to flatten out the seating platform and recovered them both. The wind protection on this bike is far better than my Heritage Softail and more comfortable to ride in general really. I took a holiday last summer and rode up past the arctic circle, heavily loaded and the bike was flawless in the way it performed for the just over 8000km (5000 miles) of the trip.
Love it! Thanks so much for sharing! The Arctic Circle sounds like it would be an ace time, I hope you enjoyed, keep having fun out there and ride safe, wooo!
You are 169cm or 5'6" and you say you can get your feet comfortably on ground? I am 5'7" and looking at many adventure bikes. I sat on a 2019 African Twin Adv and it was too high with stock seat and supension. Anything over 31.5" starts to not be comfortable. the 2022 African Twin seat height Standard position 34.3 inches/Low position 33.5 inches. A lower seat cuts 1.18" which gets you to 32.3". I would need to cut the seat down orlower suspension or get custom lower seat (and may be very uncomfortable).. Sure I could ride it at 33.5 inches, but not desirable for me.
I grew up on a Honda, so I'm a big fan. But I think I'll like an AT without all that electronics more though. But that said, I haven't ridden any bike with electronics yet. Last bike I owned was a thumper 600cc and the last I've ridden was a 650 thumper, so I guess I am old school.
most important.. what is your bank account?? If you have an endless supply of money, then you can buy whatever you want and then buy something else. My first view for me to you. RU-vid told me. Nice explanation. Better than my 94 goldwing 1500 for off road. ALL motorcycle riding is adventure riding. Street or trail. thanks. 🙂
I need a bike for city and highway commutes here in Texas. I don't foresee myself going on rough terrains, so I was thinking of buying the Honda Rebel 1100 DCT. But, after examining the Africa Twin on RU-vid, I have now decided to buy the Twin. I think the Twin is a safer ride in heavy rain, and it has more pleasant aesthetics than the Rebel. I think the Twin will do fine for city rides at 30 mph as well as 85 mph on the highway. Please let me know if you think I am wrong and that I should get the Rebel 1100 instead.
@@TheGirlOnABike Thank you for confirming my personal research findings over the past two months that the Africa Twin is indeed a fantastic adventure bike. I am going to purchase one very soon (and I let you know when I do). I do not have your level of skills and so I am going to be extra slow and stay within the city limits for the first 6 months before going on the highway. I am also planning on taking training classes for beginners as well as moving on to more advanced classes. You actually inspired me to buy the Africa Twin.
