+ Click to Enlarge ADVENTURE TOURER: The styling of the new Honda's bodywork owes more to the VL1000 Varadero than to the late lamented Africa Twin.

February 26, 2004
By Graeme Hosken

Honda's original TransAlp, introduced in 1987, was a 583cc middleweight trail bike built in Italy and beloved of British dispatch riders for its quick handling and unburstable V-twin motor. The third generation of this very European dual-purpose machine, launched in South Africa this week, steps up to join the adventure tourers, courtesy of a boost in engine capacity to 647cc and some wind-cheating bodywork.

It's not meant to replace the iconic Africa Twin, says Honda SA divisional manager for motorcycles, Basil Forssman, but rather to compete directly with BMW's Rotax-powered F650GS single, the biggest-selling over-500cc motorcycle in SA – and it has been priced accordingly.

The 52-degree, liquid-cooled twin has been bored and stroked to 79x66mm and Honda claims 39kW, two more than the F650GS, , but at a buzzy 7500rpm, while maximum torque is 55Nm (compared to the Beem's 60) - also at a high 5500rpm.

The result is that, while the bike is content to rumble along at 4000rpm, to get strong acceleration for overtaking purposes you need to go down at least one gear and twist its tail.

The launch was held at altitude in the Bushveld of North-West Province; at sea level the bike's mid-range will be noticeably stronger but it probably still won't match the lugging ability of the long-stroke Rotax single.

Nevertheless, thanks to its balancers, the TransAlp runs very smoothly for a V-twin though with just a little high-frequency vibration above 5000rpm, and the motor seems willing to rev well beyond the 8250rpm red line (sorry Basil – it only happened once!).

The launch bikes were straight out of the crate and set up for sea level so ran a little rich on overrun and occasionally stumbled heavily on pick-up. However, a little re-jetting will soon clear that – which is one of the nicer results of this bike still having carbs rather than the fashionable spritzers; you can re-jet it.

I'm not a Luddite but fuel-injection systems can be very tricky to tune.

The motor is a fully stressed member of a rectangular steel tube frame, one of the reasons why the TransAlp is a little mass-challenged at 191kg. You can see by the slightly blobby welding that it's not built in Japan (the TransAlp is made by Montesa Honda in Spain) but it's built like a bridge and will certainly be as durable as its forebears.

The rear wheel is cradled in an equally sturdy rectangular-section steel swing-arm with monoshock adjustable for both preload and compression, while the activities of the front wheel are monitored by a pair of 41mm leading-link conventional forks with 200mm of rather squidgy travel – you can induce extravagant amounts of front-end dive under heavy braking.

This is provided by discs at each end, in particular 256mm platters in front with Nissin twin-piston floating callipers that don't give you as much feel as the latest opposed-piston tackle but certainly get the job done, and a remarkably well-modulated single piston calliper on a 240mm disc at the back.

It was used to good effect on muddy gravel downslopes during the launch ride.

The design language of the bodywork owes more to the (mainly on-road) VL1000 Varadero than to the late lamented Africa Twin; this bike is plainly intended as an adventure tourer rather than a bundu-basher.

This makes it surprisingly comfortable on the open road with the wide, flat dual seat being good for well over two hours before the onset of the dreaded Numb Bum Syndrome, while the wide-shouldered but compact fairing keeps most of the wind off you.

There's also a taller screen available as an accessory for the basketball players among us.

Honda's launch route took us to Mabalingwe game reserve in North-West where we took the bikes on a 40km "game ride" (which included a very close encounter with a giraffe!) over what had been well-graded gravel roads when Forssman did his recce two weeks earlier.

However, by the time we got there, these had been reduced in places to waterlogged Jeep tracks by a week of unrelenting rain with river crossings up to a half-metre deep.

Forssman admitted that it was a stiffer test of the bike than he had intended but the TransAlp handled it with aplomb (other than the standard-issue trials universal tyres that clogged easily in the muddy conditions and became little better than slicks, giving the riders a selection of lurid slides.

(We stopped for a break at an oddly familiar bush pub that turned out to be where the Castrol "Can of the Best" ads were shot.)

The TransAlp lacks the machismo of the brawny Africa Twin and it's a little down on its primary rival in terms of sheer grunt – but it scores on comfort (impressive), fuel economy (6.68 litres/100km over 425km of rough dirt and hard-running open roads) and controllability.

The unfashionably narrow tyres tracked well, even in thick sand, and the wide handlebars give plenty of leverage.

Whether Honda can successfully challenge the dual-purpose market leader only time will tell but the TransAlp might just be the bike to do it.

Specifications:

Motor: Liquid-cooled four-stroke V-Twin.
Capacity: 647cc.
Bore x stroke: 79 x 66mm
Valve gear: Pushrod with two overhead valves per cylinder.
Compression ratio: 9.2:1.
Power: 39kW at 7500rpm.
Torque: 55Nm at 5500rpm.
Induction: Two slanted CV carburettors.
Ignition: Digital transistorised with electronic advance.
Starting: Electric.
Clutch: Cable-operated, wet multiplate clutch.
Transmission: Five-speed, constant-mesh gearbox with chain final drive.
Suspension: 41mm leading-link conventional cartridge forks at front, Pro-Link monoshock adjustable for preload and compression damping at rear.
Brakes: Twin 256mm discs with twin-piston floating callipers at front, single 240mm disc with single-piston floating calliper at rear.
Tyres: Front: 90/90 - 21. Rear: 120/90 - 17.
Wheelbase: 1505mm.
Seat height: 843mm.
Dry weight: 191kg.
Fuel capacity: 19 litres.
Price: R63 700.

Click here to use motoring.co.za's repayments calculator.