My Honda Transalp XL700 10 years on 

Yes they are amazing bikes. Change the oil each year and they will go forever. If you are doing long distance touring there is one little improvement you can do and that is to fit a 1 tooth larger front sprocket. On the Pan American trip it was so much better on fuel and would easily cruise at faster speeds without thrashing the engine. On return I fitted the original and found no difference in power but fuel consumption got worse. I then went and re-fitted the larger one again and its been like that all the years

Stevie D, Yes, this great bike must be the most reliable machine I have ever owned. In all the miles its covered it has never failed to start ever. I simply love her to bits but now her wheels are a bit too rusty so I retired her and bought a CB500X which I have to say I really love to bits also. However give me the Transalp for ultra comfort. Its the most comfortable seat I know from any bike I have ever had. She now sits polished up inside my house. I tend to start her about once every 6 months or so and even at that she fires up virtually instantly and i'm sure would take me around the world without any problem once again. It truly is one of the best motorcycles ever built. She will be with me forever. I might even find some new wheels and get her back on the road again

​@@Adventurescot cool!

That Transalp has virtually never needed any parts in all its ten years. Apart from general parts such as tyres, chains etc I have only replaced the rear shock, front springs, plug caps and that is about it. At 67 000 while in Turkey her fuel pump started making a screaming noise but she still continued all the way home. Back in Scotland I went to Honda and the mechanic said he had never heard one do that before. Anyway at £600+ I was not prepared to pay all that money and Honda then gave me one free of charge in exchange for photos of this bike all around the world. A few weeks ago I was scratching the rust off under the engine and sadly burst a water pipe. That meant replacing the water pump cover which only cost £90 and that is about all she has ever needed. She still goes like new. After that useless GS I tried to run across Africa and let me down big style I bought this great Transalp at half the price and have never looked back. Ultra reliable is an understatement

Oh yes loads of it is in Switzerland. Grindelwald is one shot with the great peaks in the background

Is it the 650 you have bought?? They are just as reliable and will easily do 100 000 miles. Just change the oil and filter each year or more. If its a carb model add some two stroke oil to the fuel now and again just to keep it well lubed and she will last forever. The 650 is even better off road than the 700

Adventurescot Hi, it’s the 700 model like yours - the size fits me well - I have done a bit of gravel on it already but mainly roads as I get used to riding it as it is the largest bike I have had, love the sound it makes and handles nice. Have you any maintenance tips for me on this model?

@@partridgehayden I have always changed the oil once every year. I use Iridium spark plugs which seem to last forever. You might want to get a new set of plug caps after 40 000miles or so as they are one of the poorer parts of the Transalp. When I first bought the bike I shipped her to Ushuaia in Argentina and started my Pan American trip. I fitted her with a one tooth larger front sprocket for fuel saving and sure enough it worked. On return I put the original smaller sprocket back but never noticed any change in performance but she used more fuel. I swapped the soft Honda front suspension springs for Hyperflow springs which made the front end so much better and slightly harder. As like most bikes I always spray spray-grease or some water repellant into the swingarm from the rear adjusters. That will stop it rusting inside.I have had the tappet covers off twice in 100 000 miles and only had to adjust two valves in all its life. I replaced the rear shock at about 60k also. My fuel pump started making a terrible noise when i was coming back from Turkey but kept going. Thankfully Honda were good to me and gave me another which stopped the noise. Never did find out what the noise was but it still worked. Watch out when you adjust the chain. The Transalp has a tendency to pull the chain very tight when one sits on the bike. It may seem loose while on the centre stand but when you sit on it on the wheels the angle of the swingarm pulls it well tight. I have come away from dealers and heard the chain screaming at me cos its way too tight. Sit on bike and check it then. Other than that this bike has been truly amazing, especially when one considers I use it all year in the Scottish salt roads etc. I have not even had to replace a single light bulb in all the years. Keep an eye on your wheels and spokes. Mine are now needing replaced. I painted them with Hammerite paint at about 70 000miles and they lasted well but now showing age. Other than general tyres, chains, brakes etc she has never given me a single problem. Most bikes I find the brakes jam on due to Scottish weather but on this great beast the brakes have been great. I replaced the seals at about 95 000miles. Look after yours and she will look after you. Oh, the exhaust silencer will rust away also and need replaced

Adventurescot - thanks for the advice it is much appreciated - stay safe

@@Adventurescot you might be interested. The lengths of the suspension moves for 700 and 650 Transalps are the same. Do not look at the technical characteristics of 650, they are not correct.analyzed and compared live, 700 rod longer by 25 mm, due to the smaller diameter of the wheel. TransAlp 700 is my future favorite. With respect from Russia.

Hey Buddy, I lived in SA for many years. I had a Honda CB900F in Kimberley which I used all across the Karoo and never missed a single beat. The 650 and 700 Transalps are both amazing bikes. THe 650s are better for off road and are easier to maintain. The 700 is a big heavy bike but like most Honda's are ultra reliable. Greetings from Scotland

@@Adventurescot Thank you for the response :) There will be many occasions where my wife joins me for trips, so I'm leaning towards the 700. It's great that you spent some time here, we have a beautiful country, sure there are negative aspects such as the crime rate but I have hope for the future regardless of being into emergency preparedness. Lovely to have met you and I'm looking forward to the Transalp! Very excited.

@@Adventurescot Heya, its me again, just watched the vid again, one year later and I have to say this bike is a masterpiece, made a couple of moto vlogs with her already, feel free to take a look if ya like :D Anyways, ride safe!

I have a transalp. Doing adventure riding in KZN

Murlin, that great Transalp is for sure the most reliable motorcycle I have ever owned. She has been standing in my garage out of use now for about 10 months. Her wheels are now too rusty from the road salt in Scotland and so I decided to retire her. Today I went out to her and switched on the ignition. All lit up and I hit the start button and she fired into life instantly. I then took her for a quick spin. The brakes were poor from all those months of standing but the engine was sound. Not bad at all for a bike that has way over 100 000 miles on her clock and has been ridden in salt, ice and all. She is still the most comfortable bike of all my fleet. You wont be sorry you bought one as they are great. One little idea is to put a 1 tooth larger front sprocket onto it for better fuel economy and slightly faster cruising. I did not notice any difference in power drop from original

​@@Adventurescothi there, did you also adjust the chain length or didn't have to ? Cheers

@@alexpopa8558 no never had to adjust the chain length. Enough adjustment in the swingarm adjusters. Just don't tighten it too tight as the Transalp pulls that chain tight as soon as one sits on the bike. Sit on bike and make sure its still got enough slack before riding

I sure am still in Edinburgh and so is my wonderful Transalp. You can contact me via messenger on Facebook under Adventurescot and then we can chat. Will be good to meet

@@Adventurescot I've looked for you on FB and messenger, but nothings coming up! Damned thing! See if you can find me would you? Names Joe Hall. There's a pic of me in a blue cord suit in a sauna ! Would be great to chat.

Believe it or not I have only once slipped off a bike in the snow and that was when I fell down a mountain on my Royal Enfield. One just has to keep the power very low and try to keep the bike up straight as much as possible. Do not lean the bike over. I travel thousands of miles in snow each year

@@Adventurescot Thanx, this seems possible to do so!

Hi Periklis, I have to be honest I have never had any of the above problems with this bike. The rectifier is the original and has never been even looked at or disconnected in all its life. I do find the bike sometimes starts a wobble when the tyres are very worn down but so do many other bikes. I have never had any wobble problems with this one. One thing I do find with the Transalp 700 is that the engine gets very hot when going slow through towns etc. At about 103 Celsius the fan cuts in and sure enough it brings the temp down to about 95 and then stops. Once back on the open road it falls to about 75 again. I have to say this bike really has been ultra reliable and has never in all its 10 years of riding ever let me down. I love her to bits

@@Adventurescot hello sir, Thank you for your immediate response and you useful information. This bike is one of my favourite, I hope one day I purchase it. I like that it doesn't have so many electronics and maps and options, traction control blah blah blah. I think that bikes have to be made simple and reliable.

@@periklis1994ify That is exactly what I love about it. Its simple and solid build. When I crossed Russia in -40 the only problem was her front fork oil froze up and suspension stopped working. If it was like a modern bike with all the electronics it would have failed. My cameras and all gave up from the cold but the good old Transalp just kept going

@@Adventurescot and what did you do? Did you put some special oil instead?

@@periklis1994ify there was no oil up there in the freezing ice. I just had to continue. Everything was frozen. The suspension sunk and so i opened up the tops of the forks and put some coins on top of the springs to lift the bike higher. I never really needed the suspension as I was going so slow. It was -40 and it took me 6 days to do 80km. I never saw a single person the whole 6 days. It was a close to death experience

I have the best job on the planet ;-) I test motorcycles for Honda LOL

@@Adventurescot 👏👏👏 I dig it!!!