Finding 2023's toughest adventure bike | Ducati v KTM v Yamaha v Triumph v Husqvarna on/off-road MCN
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
- #adventure #Motorbike #test
#Ducati #KTM #Yamaha
We spent a few days in Sicily testing the best hardcore adventure bikes on- and off-road to find the 2023 winner. Watch the film now, and read each individual review below.
Ducati Desert X: www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-r...
Yamaha Ténéré 700 World Raid: www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-r...
KTM 890 Adventure R: www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-r...
Triumph Tiger 900 Rally Pro: www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-r...
Husqvarna Norden 901 Expedition: www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-r...
Insurance quotes based on a 51-year-old male engineer, married, licence held for 9 years, 8 years NCB, no claims or convictions, for social, domestic and pleasure use. Bike is garaged with postcode WA14 4FB and annual mileage of 5000 miles
We'd love to hear your views so get them down in the comment section!
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I’m a ktm man but that Ducati is making my wallet twitch. Great video 🏁
Nice!!
I went from an 890 ADV R to a Desert X. Zero regrets!
Of course the Desert X is better on the road because its suspension are suited for road use but they are horrible off-road especially the rear shock. On the other hand KTM suspensions are amazing off-road but not horrible on road.
Ducati has a metal tank, really top heavy, impossible to get to the air filter without spending 1h30mins on the bike. Finally KTM is cheaper...so yeah KTM should have been 1st. unless you spend 80 to 90% on the road and therefore a Multistrada or BMW would be a better choice.
@@mototrailz You are talking BS, to be brutally honest my friend. But I can feel your frustration as a KTM owner.
@@mototrailz Your point on air filter is a 100% correct and a deal breaker if you ride proper dirt.
Aprilia Tuareg 660 is missing...i would have loved it in this comparison as T7 is here so why not tuareg?
Hippo Drones has loads of videos on the Tuareg 660
V strom
@@cliff1551 😂 no
They are pretty flimsy, saw video of one dropped once and steering all wonky, another video of the whole tower broken off from a simple drop. Something like Yamaha you can drop all day and just scratch the paint.
I abuse mine and have over 15 drops at multiple speeds and even fractured my ankle on a steep technical rocky climb. My crash guards are fully scratched and the tube is even dented but never broke anything on the bike itself. It gets up and shakes it off.
Four Italian test riders, testing adventure bikes in Sicily, choose the Ducati - What a surprise!😆
Don t be ENVY tom
Shocked you placed the triumph above the Husky
Sounded like the Triumph should have been fifth?
Why?
Yup I agree. His feedback on the triumph didn’t line up with 3rd at all
felt like decently heavily road biased testing to me... but then again for me even 50/50 would be too road biased
Triumph always gets the Brit bump.
This presenter is useless.
Ranked in order of advertising $$ and contributions made to MCN in 2023:
1 Ducati
2 KDM
3 Triumph
4 Husqvarna
5 Yamaha
Sadly you are probably probably right, this is what CZcams has turned Into no doubt!
Nice to see the simple drz400 come out on top yet again.
Fully agree. The Desert X is very capable off and onroad. I may tell this after 18 months on the beauty and much of it on the pegs...
Regarding maintenance: Ducati has the longest intervals of them all (!) and is unexpectedly inexpensive. Air filter is simply never a problem IF you do not use it Down Under 🤠
The weight, at the same fuel level, is not much more than the T7, which I also move quite often.
IMO: T7 slightly better performing on hardcore trails but a disaster on the road. Duc is a powerfull dream came true ❤
I purchased the Norden this year, having a blast off and on road
Another great review guys, mid ADV bikes are my passion! As an owner of a standard but modified T7 I'm biased but would only take this through the Australian Outback out of the lot - the same reason why Landcruisers are used here, reliability and survivability are key factors over performance... having said that I do like the Desert X and KTM 890
I have T7 modified with Ohlins, etc, and just bought myself a DesertX. And I prefer T7 off-road much more.
I’m just gonna leave this here. Ducati DX across Australia.
czcams.com/video/xm_kgRz6kRs/video.htmlsi=CTwWWmk3G7HjFNYi
Why is the Aprilia Taureg 660 missing!!!!
Just what I thinking as well.
Probably due to advertising spend with MCN, who are an ad space after all. Aprilia don’t seem to have a big marketing budget so they probably get overlooked. I’d be interested to hear from MCN why they missed it out.
Yamaha T7 is the bike I'd take on long adventure trails.
Several reasons, but no silly electronics is up there on top.
The old electronics thing 🤣🤣🤣 it's 2023 not the year 2010 🤣🤣
Desert x,my next bike ❤
@@Rust_valley_racing I am a mechatronics engineer...I design things like this.
But after work I like to ride my bikes not my computers...
@@TriAngles3D you clearly need to get a better paying job to buy a desert x 🤣🤣 I repair bikes , the t7 build quality is like a Fisher price children's toy ,,,,,, garbage . I'll put my old honda xr650r against the t7 any day of week and it will run circles around one on road and offroad and 10 times more reliable than a t7 or any bike built in last 20 plus years , my old xr600r and tt600r will wipe the floor with a t7 for reliability and offroad performance 🤣 on the desert x you press 1 button and all the electronics are turned off , if electronics so bad why is next years T7 getting a quick shifter and a few more electronic tweaks 🤣 you clearly butt hurt the T7 come in last 🤣🤣🤣
Said it was a test of the toughest bike. Hmm, try dropping the bike in 1m of water then clear out the water from the engine and keep riding, ride it off the edge of the road at speed, ride it across the desert in 50 degrees c in Morocco, and through muddy trails in Thailand. Then come back and tell me the T7 came last.
I was missing the Aprilia Tuareg 660 and the new Suzuki 800 DE in this test!!
Not sure when a 500lbs plus ADV became a middle weight ! The Tuareg 660 and the standard T7 are the class of the "middle weight" class.
KTM 890 R is lighter than a T7 ...
@@mototrailz Standard T7 is 450lbs or 204kg KTM 890 is 478lbs 216kg Small difference but noteable. KTM carries more fuel thus heavier.
Having owned 790,890 and t7, I’ll tell you Offroad the t7 feels like a fraction of the size. The ktms feel like a big whale in a China shop.
Well, yes, it is true the Ktm has better suspension, more power, and better brakes, and more comfortable on the highway, the T7 is much more confident inspiring and easier to manage when you need to manhandle a bike through technical terrain.
Most people measure the Ktm in a straight line through bumpy rocks and think it’s better because the suspension is better in a straight line. But try getting off the gravel road and going slow speed and maneuvering through creek, beds, and canyons on real life adventures. Turning those ktm bikes In real life terrain, the Ktm it’s like trying to handle a bull in a China shop.
T7 much more nimble and able to finesse in 1-3 gear trails. Ktm only really good if you’re going faster through technical terrain like 3-5 gear.
I on the other hand have also had the standard T7, 701 and now 901 Expedition and the 901 is by far better balanced and easier to handle than the T7. The T7 just wanted to tip over all the time and felt overall just cheap in comparison.@@readytoriderentals6597
@@readytoriderentals6597 well i did the lockhart bassin with a T7 and a ktm 890 and yes the geometry of the bike of the T7 is good in the tight stuff but the suspension are so terrible to the point that i broke the kickstand switch (thank god easy fix). On the other hand the 890 gave me better confidence and it never bottomed out and it's not top heavy like the T7. Once you go pass a certain angle on the T7 it's game over. The ktm 890 is the only big bike that does not intimidate you when you go into a gnarly trail like the lockhart bassin.
czcams.com/video/8bMhgrKvTVM/video.html
Have now 6k km on my DDX. Cannot find anything wrong with it. Loving this bike. Using it 50/50.
I put on semi rigid rear luggage, crash bars, skid plate, double take mirrors and bark buster hand guards. Now almost bulletproof. Not afraid to take it off road. Love the handling on road.
I've put 8k miles on my 2023 DesertX in 8 months, absolutely stellar motorcycle. Around 2k miles have been off-road.
Had a set of Pirelli Scorpion Trail II tires installed when the STRs wore out. I'm now riding the DDX 'supermoto' style on the street. Backing it into turns, powersliding out, sometimes lifting the front wheel just for the fun of it.
Ducati has worked its magic in developing the DesertX. No other motorcycle comes close to its mind warping capabilities.
That’s tantalising to hear. May I know where you’re coming from bike wise ? I have a Ninja 1000sx and a Hypermotard 950SP for fun use (and an electric Supermoto for everyday duties) and am thinking about downsizing to just one fun bike and the DDX is the only one that really speaks to me (apart from the Multi V4 but that’s just too bulky for me). Is it really that fun on the street ?
If you put T7 in this comparision, you should have added Tuareg as well. and what about Transalp and Vstrom ?
ja genau, die fehlen alle - warum wohl?!
Great test, thanks guys
Great video, surprised the Desert X won over the KTM. There is a KTM 890 R RALLY though,the R is 2nd from top. And I’d want a Tuareg in this test also.
Strange, isn't it? Especially as advertised as HARDCORE test. Ducati, sure, will perform better on pavement but is not even close to Norden in the off - let alone the KTM.
I compared the Tuareg to the Desert X and chose it even though it has less power.
What an amazing showdown! Thanks for sharing!
liked even before watching thank you great content.
The only one I see in rally competitions is the T7
Im very interested in seeing where the F900GS is going to end up on next years list.
Thanks for the review 🍻
Great review. I'll be honest I didn't expect you to pick the Ducati, but it fits with what I'm hearing. Thanks.
Tuareg 660?
So the Italian bike won in Italy, previously the KTM 690 Enduro won when the test was at the KTM off road centre in Wales.
Great video but becoming a little predictable
Any reason why the Tuareg 660 was left out?
Did you go through suspension set up? Makes a big difference with the Tiger.
The Rally & Rally Pro has a specific off-road preload setup front and rear to rake it out and steady the front end. Did you adjust the adjustable suspension when using it off road as Triumph suggest in the user manual?
As ever, I suspect this is yet another review of the RP where it wasn’t actually set up for off road as per the manual, then the reviewer suggests that it didn’t feel right off road.
Nice test, thank you, still would love to see Aprilia Tuareg 660, since it ranks really high in other tests for Off-road. I believe you can trou out Triumph it is not resonating with me. :)
Ducati and Husqvarna are the two competing for my garage. Nice Review.
These bikes are still too big to be hard core off road bikes. Too expensive as well.
Love the "tell it like it is" reviews. Great work.
The 890 and the norden have the exact same brakes and abs system, same calipers brake lines rotors and pads.
Basically the same tank and center of gravity as well.
Thank you, interesting review. Pity that you could not include the Aprilia 660 Tuareg, which appears to be getting very good reviews.
What a fantastic age we live in. You can't go wrong with any of these 5 or the Aprilia. I have one of the 5 but would be stoked with any of them. 😊❤
thanks mate- great video. from what I see, most adventure riders don't ride beyond white trails and the majority stays on road. From those who do ride "real of-road", there is a tiny small percentage who ride at the level of the professionals in the video. This means that the differences between the bikes for the average adventure rider will be quite minor if at all. *and a side note- as a KTM adv rider I really can't understand why the wind shields on their adventures old and new are so poor.
Great review!
Whats the reason there is no Aprilia Tuareg 660 in this test? Did no got it? Cos that thing would spark up that company 🙂
It broke down on the way to the test 😂😂😂
I thought the same thing. They never seem to include it in these tests. Seems like the perfect balance to me
I just finished my Romanian Trans Euro Trail on my Tuareg. Baby head sharp rocks on steep hills, huge washouts, really rough riding there. She hadled like a star. Just broke side stand sensor on rocks. But same thing on my mates Africa Twin.. just connected wires and off we were. Fantastic bike!
i wish there was an Aprillia dealer near me id have for sure at least looked at that bike but sadly the nearest dealer is 3 hours and 2 mt passes away from me so thats a deal killer @@raivisverdins5091
@@Rust_valley_racing cheap joke, superficial person
I find your lack of Tuareg 660 disturbing.
they stay in bright side🙃
Why no Aprilia Tuareg 660?
Nice video, and commendable that MCN used a control tyre. Something other videos often miss. IMO we could have done with more action from the actual riding. Also how does the Norden fall below the Tiger given your criticisms of the Tiger were plenty and the Noreen's only criticism was that it wasn't the KTM. Also a bit strange that you're in Italy and completely ignored the Aprilia. The title of the video is "2023's toughest adventure bike" and whilst I don't doubt the Desertx is the most fun, it's far from the most toughest. Drop it a few times and you'll find the KTM is much tougher.
Awesome video under proper circumstances
No Honda? If the T7 WR and Norden 901 are there, the Transalp or (base) AT deserve to be there too imho.
Transalp is more asphalt-oriented. But base Africa Twin should be included.
Hi, we have another video for the road-biased middleweight adventure options. You can watch it here: czcams.com/video/l-mAvBfD1ps/video.html
Doesn’t the Tiger have the top-spec Brembos too? How are the Duc’s brakes so much better? Just curious.
whats up with leavin out aprillia toureg. whats goin on.
Ducati is excellent on off road and with some easy adjustments to the suspension (at not cost)can jump and trail smother than the KTM and reliability is good also, with a good Ducati dealership costs are also manageable. Got rid of my race bike and my KTM Enduro and now have the best of both😅
Why is the Taureg 660 missing? And in Italy?!
I still like the pre facelift africa twin adventure aport, but then again if the new 1100 is forgotten, what xhamce has the 1000 got
I own a DX..bought it on the spot..they’re incredible bikes..so far reliability is good. Only gripe is wind noise..it’s a pain in the ass on freeway, but I didn’t buy it to be a tourer. It does what it’s meant for damn well, and it’s damn good looking. Like everyone else says though, if I’m in Africa relying on a bike to get me home, I’m taking the T7.
Great review. Which one would you pick if money wasn't endless?
Is the Tenere Extreme Edition not a thing outside Germany? Uprated suspension of the world raid without the added heft and ergonomic drawbacks of the huge tank. Seems to me to be the more extreme offroad adventure version of the bike.
Great comparison. From the first moment I saw the Desert X being released I knew it was something special. Coming from DH bikes, I can't help noticing a lot of similarities with what you look for in the perfect bike, slim, agility, strength, powerful brakes, responsiveness... This bike just on its own looks like a gazelle thats been trained by some advanced alien civilization ready to win the Olympics, and with the other 4 bikes next to it it just looks like they dont even have a chance. Its just slick. And come on, its a Ducati, if you ever watch how they design, test and perfect their bikes, you will understand what's in the heart and core of these bikes. Just watch the documentary on the Multistrada. It'd be great if you could make a similar test with the 300cc offer. Im guessing the Honda CRF300Rally would win that one. Cheers from Argentina.
Finally a mtb ❤
This is funny that you mention the “Documentary of Multistrada” all the big brands spend millions of dollars to make impressive marketing video’s to deceive us buyers. I just watch them the have a nice feeling, but you can’t trust them hahahaha I’t is full of bullshit like how much hart the engineers and designers and workers have for Ducati, or any other Brand. I worked for 40 years in al kind off Engineering companies and Automotive companies and the truth is that only the management earns top dollar and they rest is just payed mediocre and there is nothing to be proud of to work in an assembly line, although every Managment is playing the “Proud of our Product” Joker. It is the biggest lie in our productive environment.
!000cc bike is a middleweight now?
As a 99% road guy, Triumph for me.
Genuine question here, not trolling - but if you are a 99% road guy, why would you consider any of these bikes? They are all quite compromised in order to provide some level of off-road ability. I would have thought there were lots of bikes that are far better for the road that any of these?
Great to see all of these bikes together. Great review. I'd reverse first and second, personal opinion, having ridden both. Desert X suspension needs a lot of money thrown at it to come close to the 890 off road.
Freddie the moto guzzi office is across the car park from the Ducati place in silverstone! Get yourself in there when you drop off the scrambler 👍🏻
What happened with the BMW 850 gs adventure that is a proper off-road machine too
whats the outro song please @ 14:23
No way. I've tested every one of these bikes and also the Harley Pan Am. Easily the Tiger Rally Pro 900 for me was the best. I enjoyed bits about each, however I can't agree with the reviews here based on the fact that you really need to set up the Tiger for off road and road when you go ride. Did you blokes use the manual at all, the Triumph settings affect the geometry for sure and off road performance? The comfort, quality, performance.....Tiger Rally Pro 900 for me.
Maybe you could also do a vid on the servicing costs, and ease of doing maintenance yourself as a comparison to give an idea of what they are all like to actually live with.
Agree.
I wonder if they changed the preload on the triumph 900 to the off road setting. Its a game changer, front fork angle increases 3 degrees. Its in the manual but no one ever reads the manual. The preload has on road and off road settings for the fork and shock. Not a fair test if they didn't put the suspension into the off road settings.
Alreday I completly disagree. For me Norden 901 Exp is number one out of this group. Can’t believe you would place that bike behind Triumph Tiger. Those 2 bikes are just not in the same league. Low centre of gravity doesn’t exist on the Triumph, there for it’s top heavy compared to the Norden. KTM is better off road but it’s not even close on road with all the comfort the Husky has got. So no, not good, not a fair test, repeat 😊. Do it all over again because you failed as bike testers.😊😊😅
Lovely comparison video there. But as an enthusiast who's also cautious on the wallet- it would be great if the overall cost of ownership could also be included say in a year's time. For me the toughest bikes are those which could bash all kinds of terrain and still get you home even when they're bruised, battered and broken to an extent. If I had to head out in the wilderness without a worry- a KLR or a DRZ would have been my choice.
That’s why the T7 is so popular.
Cost of the bike and ownership cost should be very high on the list as I don’t think many people would notice a huge difference in performance between all of these bikes…..
Kind of disagree. This is about the quality of these bikes and not about if one could afford it. If you looked at it that way, Porsches would always be the worst cars in a comparison😅
BTW Ducati service intervals are VERY good and prices for maintenance are quite fair, as I can tell from experience...
@@tinozampano Ducati also made this bike very hard to work on, even changing the air filter is a project they instruct the owner to have dealership do.
@@RoeyHavivchecked the air filter twice on my DX and can say it’s not an ordeal. Actually enjoy the process and it’s a small price to pay for such an awesome bike.
Just surprised a much capable on/off-road bike like Aprilia Tuareg isn't added in the test.
weil sie wahrscheinlich gewonnen hätte, was peinlich für Ducati un KTM wäre!
First thing that comes to mind without even having watch the video is, where is the Aprilia Tuareg 660?
you guys need to do an update and include the Tuareg and the new Vstrom ....
Where is the DE800?
Where is the Aprilia Tuareg? Why take the Nordern which just a KTM in a different clothes?
Where's the 800DE?!
I own a Rally Pro. Never noticed the gear lever problem. Went for the RP as the KTM was hard work over long distance. I just did not like the look of the Husky or the Ducati. Tenere is just over priced for a basic bike
Aprilia Tuareg 660??
Good review, but including the 700cc Yamaha and not the the crf1100L? How’s this possible? Never mind the control tyres? Like I said good review but it would have been much more interesting if you have included the Africa twin.
Curious what the running costs and reliability of the Ducati are... there's a reason so many would choose the Tenere, even if it did finish last.
The running costs (servicing) won't be much higher than on the Triumph and KTM and it has the longest warranty. The reliability is one of the best. The engine has been super reliable on all of its applications the last 10 years.
If you are curious: The beauty is very reliable with the Desmo engine on the market for many years plus the cost are quite okay IMO. Owning it for 18 months now and still fully in love🧚🏼
Thank you both for the reminder that this Desmo engine has been around for a decade. Makes it a very enticing proposition. It's been a good few years for the middleweight ADV bike market!
u involved triumph but no AT, cant take this seriously ;
Just what I thought!
Same here. But I’m guessing Honda is kinda in a group of its own or considering bike adv bike now being 1100cc yet similar power as some of these.
From any other videos I’ve seen they had the Ktm and Norden exp much closer in riding experience. Very similar bikes yet not i this shootout?
defo think the tiger needs to have more rake/trail to give that off road feel back but its how much cost to the road side think will be a hard to find the right setup for both . desert x is a nice looking bike and does feel nice when i got to sit on one at the nec
More off road, my choice would be KTM, Ducati, Yamaha, Triumph, Husganananana, More on Road, Ducati, Triumph, Hugaivananana, Yamaha, KTM. They are all great bikes with good and bad points.
👌
It's quite strange that we don't see the Aprilia Touareg and Suzuki 800DE in this video. They seems to be as a worthy contenders here.
Where would the Aprilia Tuareg fit in this shout-out , and why was it not included ?
If you include a 492 lbs Ducati , in the middle weight you should also include the CRF1100 standard at about the same weight .
How do a real review, which one would you take to the middle off nowhere unsupported,
I wonder why you excluded the Aprilia Tuareg 660.
I think we need a few more Metzler stickers, maybe some tattoos too
Disappointed to see essentially two KTMs in the lineup. Would have been cool to see the Transalp or Vstrom 800DE in there.
No honda transalp or africa twin ?
Where is Aprilia Tuareg?
I'm very surprised the tuareg 660 wasn't included in this comparison arguably the best mid weight adv currently out there
I al missing the Aprilia Tuareg here
Why no Tuareg?
Love what Ducati have done with this bike.
Great… now I need a new bike 😢 Great work guys. 👏🏻
Wait till next year there's a new rally version desert x 😅
@@Rust_valley_racing don’t tell me that.. I’d only just got my head around 15k for the standard bike 😂
I payed same price as a white 2022 bike for my dark grey 2023 bike in march this year as I payed straight up and they gave me good discount on the extras I bought with it aswel and the first service free, it Worked out I saved 2k total, grand off sale price and grand off the service and extras I ordered . Got 4000 odd miles on mine and been pretty good, handles like a big supermoto on road lol
@@Rust_valley_racing The Grey is stunning! That’s what I’d want. 👏🏻
How much off-roading will these bikes actually do.
I own a DDX and I love it. I've tested the 890 it is more agile, more aggressive. But the DDX feels more stable and comfortable. The position on the bike is more natural. On the road you forget it has a 21inch wheel.
The norden has better wind protection. The tiger has a better TFT display. KTM better suspension, the t7 is lighter. the Africa twin has a better sound. ( with the terminioni full system the DDX wins ) But even with those negatives I think the DDX was the best choice for me.
For on road comfort how would you compare the Ducati and the Norden? I'm in between the 2
The ducati starts with the advantage of an L shaped v-twin.. which is thin unlike the others which already makes it manageable in the saddle, and then it’s this perfect weight distribution with the front cylinder weight forward. very hard to do anything after that perfect core for other bikes to best it.
until you need to change your air filter on a trip situated under the tank right under the ECU. But it's ok most ducati rider will stay on the road away from the dust.
Control on google the conditions of nipples of wheels after a morning in off road 😂😂. The spoked wheels of ducati desert x looks those of child. In italy we say DUCATI SOLDI BUTTATI
I love my DesertX, such a phenomenal machine. Every ride it gets better and better. Very capable off road, but what surprised me more is how great it is on the road. It's not nearly as bonkers fast as my Monster 1200s, but I feel far more confident in every situation. The way it shrugs off any road irregularities and debris while being super quick through the twisties makes me laugh out loud with glee. And when that super fun road section ends at the dirt, there is still hours of exploration ahead. Only one area it has let me down, long distance high speed highway riding. That wind buffeting is unpleasant... Definitely planning some mods in that department, then it will be nearly perfect.
Not enough love for the Norden 😢
I have been waiting for a comparison of these bikes. You did not disappoint. If you want a pure off road bike, buy a dirt bike. Adventure bikes are not made to be primarily ridden off road in rough terrain. 14:49
NO Aprilia Tuareg 660 ? but the tenere ? well clearly you missed the bike of the year awards lmao
I wish this channel would include the Africa Twin is some of the comparisons.