New XL750 Transalp - Smart or lazy? 

Considering that both bikes can be had for the same price in the UK, the Aprilia is a no brainer. Top shelf suspensions, tubeless wheels, cruise control, better geometry. I wouldn't even look at the Transalp if I was in the market for a new bike

Even though I've no interest in the Transalp, always watch your videos... clearly a lot of time and effort involved in this, good work.

Thus far, only glowing reviews of the Transalp. Your points are well founded and present another perspective. Most appreciated. I guess it's a Tuareg or the Suzy 800 then. You do us a service with your reviews. Thanks.

I love the front end of the Tuareg! And I like these longer videos! Also,Honda “protecting” the Africa Twin by dialing back the off road cred of the Transalp is just a horrendous mistake in my opinion.

This has long been one of my favourite bike channels . . . excellent production value, and superb humour! Oh, and some nice bikes too. Keep ‘em coming!

Love what you do! Informative and very entertaining. Please, keep them coming!!

Rapidly becoming my favourite channel, great reviews

Not tiered of your voice at all! And easy to follow and understand for all of us that are not native English speakers. Love your persona and videos! Cheers!

Love your calmness.Great work as always.

You are the first to point out that bizarre looking oil sump. Wonder why they put a 21 inch front here since it's not even geared for offroad. a 19/17 set up would have been better.

Not sick of your voice at all, sir! Extremely informative jocular demeanour. That sump: ye gods!

Really great, entertaining and professionally put together review. Quite funny is well, great personality for these vids!

I'm pleased for your sake that you didn't end up regretting your recent purchase 😀 .. very enjoyable vid ..

I’m interested in buying a New Transalp & currently checking out as many reviews as possible in you tube land, I guess that’s how I’ve come to your door. Your review is by far the best viewed so far, I found it very interesting & love your honest approach to the pros & cons with owning this motorcycle. I am a road only man & my rides consist of fun day rides & trips away exploring parts of the UK. You have certainly persuaded me to book a test ride & I Thank you for your excellent review.

First time I am watching your video - you are very entertaining! Really enjoyed it 👍🏼 thanks

Honest review. I like that. Maybe you could consider review the Suzuki V-Strom 800 and/or the AJP PR7.

Great review with very interesting points. Keep up the great work

Such a superb channel!!

That was a nice honest review, devoid (thank goodness) of endless ramblings over the minute details of a spec sheet that I am more than capable of reading for myself thank you. I do have to question why manufacturers like Honda and Suzuki (I ride a VStrom) are releasing bikes with tubed 21" front wheels.. Australia? America? Both have tens of thousands of miles of gravel roads... but that sump! WOW! Thanks for the video.

Great attention to detail! Well done! Thank You!

Your review was the one I’ve been waiting for . Thank you .

Living in Germany, there are rarely any opportunities to find anything more offroad than a short gravel road. Even those gravel roads are mainly forbidden to ride with any vehicle with motor. Thats why we take E bikes. Actually in my homecountry I think the transalp is perfect for my needs! 95 percent tarmac 5 percent gravel. The transalp is a SUV equivalent!

The most relaxing moto videos on RU-vid. Also miss the little rally

I had a deposit down on a Transalp hoping it would be a reasonable off roader. That sump is a deal breaker for me. Thanks for the insight. It seems every pic of the bike you look at is from the other side with the exhaust hiding the sump.

Thanks for your video. Like a russian guy in germany, you're one of the first "private" guys (means not working as a reporter or freelancer for a motorbike magazin) testing the TA - and seems like you two are the only guys not being on hondas payroll. Seeing all the videos on youtube, it's obvious, that the TA does not feel good offroad. You see the soft chassis on every meter they ride. But you two guys are the first who have the balls to talk about the negative aspects of the TA. Thank you very much for that. And...you are the first who does not say sth. like it must be a perfect bike just because of it's big and famous name... 👍👍👍

Glad I watched and learnt something. Had quite a few demo rides and bought one, but did not realise that you can change the modes whilst riding. Makes sense when trying different settings to find out which you prefer for different situations. Also, good that it remembers the settings when turned off/on. I prefer tubed tyres and am not interested in cruise control.

you make great videos, thank you from france !

Great Review! Subscribed!

Spot on as usual!! Keep it coming!!

Great video! Dry easy farm tracks is as off-road as I go! :D

Nicely done bud 👍

We love your voice and your jolly good video. Take care...

Thanks for a great, fun and honest review.

pleasant narration, calm and informative but definitely not boring - balance pretty hard to hit

The original transalp wasn’t off-road biased. It was a inexpensive touring bike. This new one it’s a tod more adventure focused but it’s still for touring and easy gravel road’s. And to be honest how many drag their new bike out in the deepest mud? If people want to drive off-road by a KTM or a Husky 701

Great analysis and yeah would love an extra 10 ponies on the Tuareg however the Hondas potential off road credentials and much softer look, over the Tuareg would alway swing me in the direction of the Italian.. you got reasonably lucky with that excess Dave 😉👍

Honda reliability is a major consideration for many as well as the excellent dealers network Honda has.

Regarding your voice... Actually it is one of the things I personally like in your channel most. Sense of humour, attitude and many others also play a role. Keep up good work!

I love all kind of bikes, they're like puppies to me! :D Cool video!

2 weeks ago I have visited a Honda dealer. When we talked they just brought a new Transalp. With the nostagy colors. The live looks are much better than any picture. Engine sound was great. This bike made a positive impressions on me. Now, I am ATAS 2018 happy owner. Looking for something less of a girafe and lighter for offroad. After your review I know Transalp is not the one. Aprilia - looks to me like a bike waiting for the first face lifting where looks must be addressed. Conclusion: the search for holy grail is still going on. Maybe MV Agusta next year? Looks best of all 3. P.S. I will keep my ATAS - it is the most beautiful bike, in my eyes.

Excellent comparison, taking a look on most important details!... I ride XRV750 (decade9 and CRF1000 (several years) as ADV rider. Looking for smaller bike, finally choose Aprilia. Very happy with my choice for several month!

We are never sick of your voice! 😁 And thanks for another informative and funny video. The fart noises made my day.

Excellent honest review 👍

I've just bought a Transalp and I think your review is spot on. I bought it for comfort and touring and have no interest in taking it offroad (apart from the odd gravel drive). I've not tried the built-in in navigation yet but then I tend to use a dedicated app on my phone as I like to see a rolling map in front of me.

Owned a yamaha TDM850.Great handling and ahead of its time

Thanks for an honest review of the new Transalp and a comparison with something in the same price class, many reviewers compare to much pricier Africa Twin or cheaper Yamaha T7 but Aprilia Tuareg is more close the same price and purpose. I also think Honda could have made it more off-road capable and offer cruise control and tubeless tires as an option. The design is OK but a little boring, looks cheaper then CB500X but is not.

Great review, great bike not going to replace my tenere :D That tubed tire on road biased bike surprised me so did the oil sump omg.

That sump thingy plus the really low-looking exhaust headers don't look encouraging for off road ... Plus lack of cruise control is honestly a big no-no for me... Especially because the Tuareg exists! I can hardly find reasons to justify it over the Aprilia for example.

Great vid, sounds a fair appraisal. It would need that white paint job for me to walk into a Honda dealership to look ot over, although I'm not looking for a big(gish) trailie / tourer..

Thanks for the review. You proofed me, that I made a right choice 😉

Great review and story telling.

Well done Newcastle, motorcycles! It wouldn’t cost them that much more cost price for the guards. Great vid. Well done.

Brilliant review and info, subbed, have you tested the vstrom 800DE?

Thanks for this video confirms what me n my dad were thinking about it. On the hunt for a new bike for him. Couldnt understand them fitting tubed wheels. Gutter on the drop!

Would you check the CFmoto 800mt touring as a competitor for these bikes?

"Turn right in 114,8 feet" Gotta love the japanese. Great video, as always.

Seems like a perfect bike for those who think they need an offroad bike but never actually go beyond mild gravel. About the mode selection while riding, my Tiger does the same - release throttle to confirm mode switch. Can't do that when switching to offroad though, the bike must be at a standstill.

Que pensez vous de la Suzuki V-strom 800 DE ? What do you think of the Suzuki V-strom 800 DE ?

Just subscribed, great content, love the humor! As a fellow Tuareg owner, can you tell me where you got the windsceen sticker?

There is one good thing I like more about the Transalp: the original protection accessories and the way the bike was designed to fit them. The top front engine mount has something like a T profile - on one end of the T goes the bolt for the engine and on the other end of the T goes the crash guard. And my guess is that they would use separate bolts and so you don't have to unscrew the engine bolt in order to mount crash guards, which always seems to me like an opportunity to do something wrong. If this assumption is correct, that is briliant. Also, the back part of the lower crash guard has a dedicated hole in the same part on which the pegs are fitted, this is similar to the Tenere, Vstrom 800 de and I think acts almost like a bolton subframe. The lower crash guard also protects the engine cases. So I think the lower crash guard together with the skip plate offers a very solid protection to the engine. The Tuareg comes standard with a very thin skid plate and I don't think they offer lower crash guards. That being said, those would be good enough for 90% of the riders. So the bike that is better on road offers very strong skid plate and crash guards and the bike that is better offroad offers not so strong protection and pushes you to the aftermarket if you want more. I've only test ridden the Tuareg and it was an absolute pleasure! First thing I noticed after also testing a 400 cc scooter and owning a bike with wired throttle was the smoothness of the throttle. Very gentle on-off point that I was about to stall it. So very easy to ride in the city, I thought it was easier than the scooter I had previously ridden, except for wind protection as that one had a very tall windscreen. And that low tone noise the air box makes around 6000 rpm is intoxicating.

I hope Honda make a road specific version of the Transalp.

the fart at the end had me in stitches 😆😂

It amazing the price difference between bike brands and countries , the cost of both bikes were very close to being the same yet in Australia there’s about 6 grand difference if what is reported to be the Transalp price haven’t got a firm price yet.

that oil sump!!! WTF!!

Love the chanel. Now let's see your review of a PR7

Nice review! I think for the TET this bike is just as bad as the T7. Both of them are big for the TET, and yes for off-road ride every bike needs a bash plate. I think with a good off-road tyre and protection the Transalp is capable of some mild off-road adventure.

Great and true evaluation! Thanks! (I owned both AT and Tuareg... and thinking of Transalp)... Every sentence is true. Totally agree that Tuareg is a saddly disconsidered dual sport (off-road) bike. Honda as brand is being at lest honest with tires choice and no off-road protection.... Greating to all ADV-s!

😔Well, another dream shattered. I tend to forget how many modification i made to my 2000 Transalp (i'm 1,92mtr). luckily it's a Honda, it will do another 100k😊 And a used 500x after that is no punishment either, or a vintage xr500 r on the side to satisfy the old hooligan tendencies. Thanks for the honest review, sugar coating is for Americans and children🇳🇱

hello how many km/miles have you already done with your Tuarec? And what about reliability?

Sounds great with the quickshifter

Brilliant as always. 😂

Other than the multiple repetitive parts of this video, great review

Picking one up tomorow and driving it across my country to get it home. Only thing is i cant download that app in my region for some reason... Norway. Only reason for getting the bike is reliability and it is closer to my cb500x that i really like but lacks that little extra grunt. I got to test a T7. I did not like the tenere what so ever. Had a WR version a whole weekend. I dont get the hype. And i dont get the value the T7 WR has. Also tried a friends rally version. Same feel. Not for me. I tested also the tuareg. Liked the bike allot. But i dont trust it. Heard stories about things that just sadly puts me off it. Getting stranded on my long trips is something i want to avoid. I do trips to other countries. Have also ordered full set of sw-motek crashbars and skidplate so that weird oilpan will be protected hehe.

thanks for the video, but how can the Transalp be a great road bike with a 21" wheel?

Transalp is good looking bike and the dealer’s support won’t be a problem, but it shouldn’t be compared with Tuareg (which isn’t a unicorn bike by the way). Honda just released another road bike with adventurous plastic. Not surprised.

You need the 2016 Aprilia caponord 1200 rally, job done roll back time.

Great comparison. Seems you are still a winner with your Aprilia Tuareg 660. And it is an Italian beauty, in my eye, contrary to what you say. Especially the front, on end angle you portray. When are you going to compare the Tuareg with the 2023 KTM 890 adventure, the standard one?? There is also the reborn, KTM 790 adventure, coming with a cheaper price tag, with exactly same features as the 890 less adjustable front suspension.

Eh bien non, moi j'ai beaucoup aimé votre voix claire et le débit parfait de votre parole pour être compris par les personnes qui parlent peu l'anglais. Merci bon test et très bien sont vos opinions sincères sur la Transalp ! Merci from Belgium !

Thanks for the review. Could you please tell me which one you'd pick out of the Transalp and the F750GS if you were going to do ZERO off-roading and be using it mostly on country roads which are not super smooth and 1st class with the occasional interstate highway road trip. Perhaps you can include your 2nd fave choice as a bonus. This is important for me becuase I'm having a super hard time deciding. Thanks a bunch.

Tube tyres....Motot Guzzi made the same mistake in the beginnings of the V85TT, but they corrected it.Maybe Honda will do the same for the 2024 model...🤣 Anyway, why was my mother-in-law "speaking" at 14:53 ??? 😂🤣

Did the dash-screen turn off on the Honda right there at 4:42? Is that a feature?

Liking the look of the aprilia

been waiting and waiting got sick so bought a new tiger XCX and I love it ,sorry Honda

Wow, prices are certainly different around the world. In Australia the Transalp is a$15,500 and the tuareg is a$22,500. That's a big difference.

Well done, sir. Thank you.

i own a 1260 multistrada enduro for the usa. i was thinking about something smaller or a transalp for my southern mexico rancho. no DCT and no cruise control is a deal breaker at that price. the cheaper hornet might work with quick shifter and after market cruise.

I can see that the Transalp has a lot of Body work at the gas tank level and above.. that it going to keep a lot of wind off from the rider. I like this feature. I really don't worry about looks .. I'll take function over form .

How did the bike fall over on its right side when the bike was leaning on its left on its sidestand?

Same happened to media Honda bike, it was parked on road and felt on right side. Side stand is too long.

I got a Tansalp to go with my 450 L and the 300,s in Australia we must have more dirt roads than anyone Its very good i have put up some vids have a look it might tell you if it can off road

Well done Fantastic reviews What was Honda thinking ?! tube and no cruise control 😮 Better off have a Yamaha T7 Or better yet Aprilia Tuareg 🎉

Nice informative write up. Would like opinions please. I currently have a Husky TE300 to ride off-road stuff. I have a Husky Terra 650 I picked up last year to ride more roads, service, gravel etc. I think I would like a more road worthy bike as most of the guys I ride with do a lot of service roads, packed trails, gravel and a lot of back twisty country roads. I have been looking hard at Transalp and Tuareg. I am 5’8’” with a 30” inseam and an average rider who rides fairly aggressive. Either bike I am going to tip toe on. I will certainly do more on road stuff than off with this bike. But I see BDR rides in the future. Which bike??

I use to own the original 1990 600L transalp, it was a bad ass bike. I could get it 10 feet in the air, out run and out ride all of the dirt bikes chasing me, on the street or the dirt, and it was comfortable to ride 400 miles in a setting. Its to bad this new one is like all the other garbage out there, I guess that's why I have an xr650l, I'm always disturbed to see that the best things are always destroyed by their own companies. And there's no one to fill the gap. Just a crap world of no reliability. Thanks for the video. 👍

Good comparison, I think the Transalp will be good for people like me where it will be 95+% on road with occasional light off road, the Tuareg would be overkill. Also its less confusing if you stick to pounds (£), not that it really matters on the insurance thing but im not sure now as a fellow brit if you really meant $10, or if you actually meant £10 but for some reason you just said it in Australian!

Very high on any list of requirements for a top shelf bike is geometry. The geometry on the T660 is OUTSTANDING. I have not ridden the Transalp but Dave has ridden both and made a comment about geometry being a bit off. The transalp oil sump is atrocious and one would not expect that from a normally excellent on all points Japanese design team. (I own, and have owned many, and love, Japanese bikes). Tubeless is an absolute no brainer. Simple screw puncture, use your repair kit done in 20 minutes. Anything more, same process as tubed, put in the tube that you are obviously carrying in your kit. Additionally: Dealer availability and service support. Here in Western US where a couple counties can be as big as a Euro country taking your ADV bike of any kind to a dealer can be a trek. I might add the irony that prior to the T660 threads bashing lack of support, that many of those same people would say "most dealers suck". Which they do. Example: My T660 was leaking fuel from the fuel pump gasket probably before it left the dealer but I noticed day 2. I called the dealer hoping for a repair walk through on the phone given how far away they are. . "Bring it in" they said. The service manager couldnt figure out what I was talking about even after sending photos. It's a fucking gasoline leak. I'm not going to ride it and they would not come get it. So I fixed it myself. In the meantime I talked to my local small town gear head repair guy who has worked on my KLR, XT500, XR 500, XL125, for years. I told him I bought an Aprilia and he was not worried about it. "its a bike. I fix bikes". I found an online shop in Texas that supports T660 parts. If they have the part (and if a dealer has it so will they) its in your mailbox in 2 days. If they dont. then your bike sits just as it would at the dealer until Italy can ship. Is it as easy as Japanese? No. But get self sufficient and be educated on the bike and prepared to deal with issues and dont just rely on others solving your problems and it will be fine. Build up an inventory of key parts. I am at 2600 miles on the T660 and zero issues since the fuel leak. I beginning to have complete confidence that the bike has as good a chance at completing any trip riding alongside a buddy on Japanese. And for sure any KTM. So, is it worth it? Yes. Its the first Italian bike I have had in my paddock. And the fact is, as much as I talked shite about Italian for years, it is just totally badass.

Have you got around to testing the Suzuki 800DE yet??

The pricing for both bikes differs between countries. The Tuareg costs usually more than Transalp, but ofc Aprilia is better suited for TET riders. Cheers from Poland.

Love & enjoy the way, you moderate the whole thing with such a good sense of humour & sarcasm without missing the point, thx 🙏🏻 for that ! 👍🏻 Bad the Transalp was moving, good: the way the dealer managed it ✨ seems to me, it rather would be the Tuareg, or maybe even more the V-Strom 800 DE 😬

I have a CB1300. Parked it on the drive, turned around to close the gate… bang. I also thought I’d left it in gear. Fortunately my car broke its fall!! 😐 could have been worse I suppose!

The tube tyres alone would make me pick the aprilia. I think Honda could have made some awsomeness out of this Transalp, somthing more like what you draw on your computer. Insted they made something posh, polished and quite boring. This could have been a t7 killer, but ended up like the grownup CB500X. Just my opinion.