Comments on: 2011 Yamaha Super Ténéré: MD First Ride (Bike Reports) (News) http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/ Motorcycle News, Editorials, Product Reviews and Bike Reviews Tue, 21 May 2013 14:53:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 By: Jon O. http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/comment-page-1/#comment-420 Jon O. Wed, 09 Jun 2010 16:18:02 +0000 #comment-420 Yamaha won't bring it over, and with good reason. There aren't enough motorcyclists here. Oh, there are plenty of people with motorcycles; just go for a ride on a Sunday if you want to see. We buy cruisers and crotch rockets, and a look at Honda and Yamaha's U.S. lineup shows they understand this better than anyone. My local Triumph dealer is still trying to move a 2008 Tiger at a pretty significant discount. No trouble selling Rockets, though. A toast to Kawasaki and Suzuki for managing a more or less full range, but coloring outside the lines is risky, as any number of failed motorcycle launches can tell you. Yamaha won’t bring it over, and with good reason. There aren’t enough motorcyclists here. Oh, there are plenty of people with motorcycles; just go for a ride on a Sunday if you want to see. We buy cruisers and crotch rockets, and a look at Honda and Yamaha’s U.S. lineup shows they understand this better than anyone. My local Triumph dealer is still trying to move a 2008 Tiger at a pretty significant discount. No trouble selling Rockets, though. A toast to Kawasaki and Suzuki for managing a more or less full range, but coloring outside the lines is risky, as any number of failed motorcycle launches can tell you.

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]]> By: jdfsau http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/comment-page-1/#comment-253 jdfsau Sat, 05 Jun 2010 14:58:25 +0000 #comment-253 Japanese motorcycle manufacturers have been repeatedly burned by Americans who demand certain types of motorcycles be developed or imported. These same people are then also notorious for buying them once they become available. (Examples: Suzuki SV1000, Honda Transalp, ad infinitum). The Suzuki Vstrom 1000 (not the Vstrom "AKA Wee strom" 650) gives us a good fairly recent example of of this sort of reluctance. People said they wanted a big adventure touring bike of the type sold in Europe so Suzuki brought in the Vstrom 1000 which had originally been designed specifically for the European market. BIG mistake. Suddenly "the cold feet phenomenon" showed its ugly head once again. These perfectly good, practical bikes then languished in dealerships for a long time until the introduction of the very popular Vstrom 650 model somehow (surprisingly) rekindled interest in the larger bikes and the many 1000cc leftovers were then finally sold. The same thing might well happen if the Super Tenere is introduced here. If history is any example, once this bike make an appearance here these faux potential purchasers will then bemoan the fact that the bike is either too big or too heavy or not powerful enough or too ugly or too expensive for a Japanese bike. The excuses for not purchasing them, if history gives us any example, will be endless. The motorcycle magazines might well again assist in this debacle by letting a moto cross rider test the bike and give it a thumbs down because it doesn't handle like a CRF250 or let it be tested by a road race rider who deems it a street slug. If you think this idea is wildly far fetched, think again. This is exactly what happened in the case of the late lamented Honda Transalp, a very practical, extremely reliable, very cheap adventure tourer which was almost universally slammed at the time because of either its purely dirt or road unworthiness by American magazine reviewers. (If memory serves me right, an perfect example of this general clueless attitude was exhibited by street testers of the bike who complained about the "vague feeling" of the its front end, seemingly oblivious to the fact that this same sort of road "vagueness" was common among dirt bikes because they, like the Transalp, sported more dirt capable 21 inch front wheels. The Transalp never found its niche and its importation to here was discontinued after only a few years because of poor sales. It has continued being popular in Europe and elsewhere where the overall practicality of the bike has always been more appreciated. It's overall practicality has has make it a consistent seller overseas for many years. Honda had enough faith in its future to deem worthy of a significant model makeover just a few years ago. The only hope for those of us who might actually buy a bike like this is to contact Yamaha at (800) 962-7926 and request that the bikes be built to order only after a good faith monetary deposit has been put down by potential purchasers. This is the same system that was used to introduced by the wary people at Yamaha to decide if there was a market over here for the Euro designed FJR1300s. Only the use of this sort of system will weed out the serial flakes among our brethren. Japanese motorcycle manufacturers have been repeatedly burned by Americans who demand certain types of motorcycles be developed or imported. These same people are then also notorious for buying them once they become available. (Examples: Suzuki SV1000, Honda Transalp, ad infinitum).

The Suzuki Vstrom 1000 (not the Vstrom “AKA Wee strom” 650) gives us a good fairly recent example of of this sort of reluctance. People said they wanted a big adventure touring bike of the type sold in Europe so Suzuki brought in the Vstrom 1000 which had originally been designed specifically for the European market. BIG mistake. Suddenly “the cold feet phenomenon” showed its ugly head once again. These perfectly good, practical bikes then languished in dealerships for a long time until the introduction of the very popular Vstrom 650 model somehow (surprisingly) rekindled interest in the larger bikes and the many 1000cc leftovers were then finally sold.

The same thing might well happen if the Super Tenere is introduced here. If history is any example, once this bike make an appearance here these faux potential purchasers will then bemoan the fact that the bike is either too big or too heavy or not powerful enough or too ugly or too expensive for a Japanese bike. The excuses for not purchasing them, if history gives us any example, will be endless.

The motorcycle magazines might well again assist in this debacle by letting a moto cross rider test the bike and give it a thumbs down because it doesn’t handle like a CRF250 or let it be tested by a road race rider who deems it a street slug. If you think this idea is wildly far fetched, think again. This is exactly what happened in the case of the late lamented Honda Transalp, a very practical, extremely reliable, very cheap adventure tourer which was almost universally slammed at the time because of either its purely dirt or road unworthiness by American magazine reviewers. (If memory serves me right, an perfect example of this general clueless attitude was exhibited by street testers of the bike who complained about the “vague feeling” of the its front end, seemingly oblivious to the fact that this same sort of road “vagueness” was common among dirt bikes because they, like the Transalp, sported more dirt capable 21 inch front wheels. The Transalp never found its niche and its importation to here was discontinued after only a few years because of poor sales. It has continued being popular in Europe and elsewhere where the overall practicality of the bike has always been more appreciated. It’s overall practicality has has make it a consistent seller overseas for many years. Honda had enough faith in its future to deem worthy of a significant model makeover just a few years ago.

The only hope for those of us who might actually buy a bike like this is to contact Yamaha at (800) 962-7926 and request that the bikes be built to order only after a good faith monetary deposit has been put down by potential purchasers. This is the same system that was used to introduced by the wary people at Yamaha to decide if there was a market over here for the Euro designed FJR1300s. Only the use of this sort of system will weed out the serial flakes among our brethren.

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]]> By: Mike http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/comment-page-1/#comment-156 Mike Thu, 03 Jun 2010 10:38:28 +0000 #comment-156 Our local Yamaha dealer said they were not bringing this bike to the states.(They were extremely frustrated) Hard to understand why they would not go after the US adventure touring market. Having owned a GS 1200 and now a KTM 990 Adventure, this would be a great addition to this market segment. Hope they see the light!!! Our local Yamaha dealer said they were not bringing this bike to the states.(They were extremely frustrated) Hard to understand why they would not go after the US adventure touring market. Having owned a GS 1200 and now a KTM 990 Adventure, this would be a great addition to this market segment. Hope they see the light!!!

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]]> By: Tim http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/comment-page-1/#comment-144 Tim Thu, 03 Jun 2010 02:34:31 +0000 #comment-144 I love this bike. Yamaha flat NEEDS to sell the Tenere here. My only question is price. I hope it will be much less than the new Multistrada 1200. Consumers need to call Yamaha and tell them to bring this bike stateside. The BMW GS's reign has finally come to an end! I love this bike. Yamaha flat NEEDS to sell the Tenere here. My only question is price. I hope it will be much less than the new Multistrada 1200. Consumers need to call Yamaha and tell them to bring this bike stateside. The BMW GS’s reign has finally come to an end!

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]]> By: James K. http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/comment-page-1/#comment-103 James K. Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:59:52 +0000 #comment-103 Really Yamaha, it's up to you...between this bike and the often imagined Off Road Tiger Cub that is always being hoped for... If any of these bikes come to our shores, I am buying the first one I find!! Really Yamaha, it’s up to you…between this bike and the often imagined Off Road Tiger Cub that is always being hoped for…

If any of these bikes come to our shores, I am buying the first one I find!!

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]]> By: Valk Ray http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2010/05/12may10yamaha2010supertenere/comment-page-1/#comment-22 Valk Ray Fri, 28 May 2010 17:15:50 +0000 #comment-22 Great bike,hope yamaha doesn't do what honda did with the varadero! Meaning not bring it to north america for years.I wanted a varadero but it was unavailable here so i bought a liter v-strom.I've been waiting for a 1200cc v-strom or varadero with no luck! Now yamaha has come out with a bike for me but not available! Too many models from Japan are not available here! Bad marketing i'd say! Great bike,hope yamaha doesn’t do what honda did with the varadero! Meaning not bring it to north america for years.I wanted a varadero but it was unavailable here so i bought a liter v-strom.I’ve been waiting for a 1200cc v-strom or varadero with no luck! Now yamaha has come out with a bike for me but not available! Too many models from Japan are not available here! Bad marketing i’d say!

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