Used Motorcycle

The 2012 Yamaha Super Tenere is an all-new entry in the adventure genre that was kick started by the venerable BMW GS-series bikes thirty years ago. Going up against the mighty BMW— as well as newer adversaries like the KTM 990 Adventure, Triumph Tiger 1050, and Ducati Multistrada 1200— is no small feat.

How does this lower-priced newbie from Japan take on the European competition? I spent two days in Arizona riding the Yamaha Super Tenere across trails and highways to see if this $13,900 adventure bike lives up to its superlative name.

In keeping with the oversized proportions of the adventure touring bike genre, the Super Tenere exudes a rather towering stance. Propping it up onto the center stand requires a considerable shove, and standing on the foot lever with my 185 pound mass alone wouldnt do it; I had to roll it backwards while jumping on the lever to get 575 pounds of bike up on the stand.

Fire up the big parallel-twin powerplant, and it comes to life with a mellow bass note. The clutch requires moderate lever pressure while the shifter engages with a solid, but easy-to-engage click.
"2012 Yamaha Super Tenere"

The Super Tenere is made to ride on the road, as well as dirt trails like this one in Arizona.
Photo © Brian J. Nelson
In motion, the first thing youll notice about the Super Teneres power delivery is its flatness, which can come across as either predictable or lazy, depending on your outlook; like the R1, the Super Teneres actual speed is usually faster than the seat of your pants might suggest. It should be noted that the elevation of my ride surpassed 7,000 feet in some areas, which has the effect of diminishing engine power. Regardless, the engine rpms never sound quite as high as they actually are, and glancing down at the digital speedometer invariably reveals that youre going faster than you think; there were numerous moments on the interstate when illegal velocities crept up quicker than expected, and triple-digit speeds were attained with ease. A tall sixth gear ran the engine at a lazy 3,500 rpm at 70 mph.

"Sport" on the right handgrip-controlled throttle mode selector offers a relatively crisp response to throttle twists, while "Touring" is predictably milder and smoother, especially on the low end. Though not as punchy as the mills found in the BMW GS or Ducati Multistrada, the Super Teneres crossplane crankshaft lends it a mild "pulsing" quality that keeps it from suffering terminal blandness.