New 700 Transalp
 

here it is , due to be officialy shown for the first time at this weekend,s paris bike show . it look,s to me as if honda has targeted the wee strom , and i think a lot of people will maybe choose this over the strom . thank god they have kept the wire wheels .

Interesting: it does not show up on the Honda UK webpage which still shows the XL650 (although H UK are not claiming in there to be telling anyone what they are doing for 2008)-

Honda Adventure Motorcycles

I suppose it had to happen because it is following the example of the Deauville which went from 650 to 700cc.

So, you will bring some pics back from the show of the real thing?

Cheers,

what about technical info??

The engine will be the same as this I would think:-

Honda Motorcycles Models

Around 65HP then with FI.

And that Deauville is retailed at £6300.

Hopefully the new TA will weigh a bit less than the Deau!!

i will be at the shows opening day this coming saturday, so i will get the full technical details and more pics then . i asked my local honda dealer just last weekend about a new transalp, he said he knew nothing about it !
dealers are sometimes the last to know .
do not forget that the deauville has a big heavy, power sapping shaft drive to deal with , so the 700 engine in the new alp should certainly feel a good bit more powerful than the much heavier deauville .

They would say that
 

Those dealers always say that; take a look at the rumours on the which bike forum -- the latest about BMW and related to what the dealers "don't know".

Anyway, don't forget to find out the price for the TA and have a good visit in "Gay Paris".

Hey!
This is the Africa Twin replacement!!

So, where is the pic from Mr Moto? - pics on the web have a habit of being a tad wrong when the real thing arrives.

Caminando,
It has been the replacement for the AT ever since the AT disappeared from the market place, or one had to go to another marque.

it was taken from a spanish ? moto magazine , and posted over on the adv rider site in the beasts section, in the thread ...honda making new alp/africa twin replacement . also in that thread there is a link to a scandinavian honda dealer who is running a countdown clock to the first day of the paris show, along with a pic of an older/current 650 alp almost hidden under a tarp .

That round headlight looks very old fashioned.

Oh well, lets see what your pics look like!

As a Weestrom owner, and previously had a few AT´s as well, Im NOT sold by that picture... the Strom may not be the prettiest bike on the market, but Im hoping this one´s actually Photoshopped. Boy, it is ugly! When it looks ugly, and old, after the 1st look, Im afraid it wont grow on you, either...

And that plastic thing underneath the engine looks very lame and unfunctional as well. Hope they get some more power from the engine, as the XL650 is so far behind the DL its unbelievable.

Unless they really come up with something surprising this time, it seems like Honda are lacking balls to build a ROUGH, powerful, 900/1000cc, true adventure/offroad-bike, really like a new version of the AT, to take the fight to the GS1200 and KTM950.

...........Am I just seeing things, or is that a 19 inch front?

The pic looks very much like a Raptors & Rockets

Reality check is needed
 

Got to agree about that picture, but I could not be bothered to type all this in my last post, so thanks Pecha (and that swinging arm is also out of the Ark).

It's up to you now Mr Moto, to bring back the real pics & factual data and educate us; no pressure then!!:rolleyes2:

Ugly
 

My mother in law said she would dance on my grave ,

" Good !" I said , "I'll be buried at sea then !"

[ Les Dawson ]

You're new here aren't you Martin?
 

Careful, the mods around here may try to ban you for hurting the feelings of other members and their bikes!

Good point about the spoked wheels - theyre not maintenance-free. And these days there are also cast wheels, that can survive several hits. And you can destroy a spoked wheel, too, especially if you havent regularly checked and adjusted the spokes. Once youve really bent it out of shape, will be hard to fix it on the road.

I really dont know, but maybe a spoked wheel is only better for serious offroad, motocross, etc (when you can, and will do regular maintenance for the wheels)........ and a (tough) cast-wheel is all-in-all actually better for RTW travel?

Just my $100 worth

Question about SLIME...
 

sorry for sounding like the novice that I probably am, and this goes a bit off-topic, too.. but can this SLIME be used in a tubeless wheel??

See, Im starting off in less than 2 weeks, to go from Finland to India (with my better half aboard!) on a DL650. Tyres is one thing that wont be widely available on our route, if at all. So Im carrying tyre irons (as well as an extra set of tyres mounted on a little modified crashbars - and Im not kidding!!), and tubeless repair plugs, I even have a small compressor to run from the battery to fill them up, plus some air cartridges. I´ll probably take inner tubes, too, just in case...

But Im still wondering, if theres any way to make the probability of a flat a little less. And also, to minimise the risk of a sudden total loss of air which, especially with the front, and on such a heavy load, could be quite disastrous.

So, does this stuff work on tubeless, too? And have you had good experiences with it... the inner side of the tyre must be a mess each time you have to take it off? And what is the manufacturer of this stuff, so I could try and find out if its available around here?

Edit: Do you know, if SLIME may affect your ability to put a tubeless repair plug into the tyre? I would need to be able to fix them while on the road, and of course preferably not having to take the tyre off the rim.

Answers should be in here
 

Sold in many countries:-
SLIME - Smart Solutions for Flat Tire Prevention & Repair!

There are quite a few others on the market:-
Flat Free Tyre Sealant

Seal-a-Wheel

Ultraseal Tire Sealant

etc etc

plugged tires all the way until the cord is showing. (Don't do this:oops2: )

Have a safe trip!

Disapointing bike
 

If this is the replacement of the Africa twin.........looks more like the powerranger bikes.
Please give us something with less plastic!
I am just wondering how much BMW bikes will pass this year before we see a new transalp on the ripio.
Yamaha has done the mayor step so long with the new Teneré.Please Honda follow too!!!!!!
No more of that......(i am sick of waiting hahaha)
KH
please forgive my bad humor today

Rules!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

That bike rules , hope I can get one !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ricardo

ok, thanks Patrick for that very comprehensive info!

I am taking extra tyres, because there are no such tyre sizes available for several thousand kms on our route (especially Iran, Pakistan, maybe also India), and if we´d get a big cut or other unrepairable hole in them, then we´d be screwed.. sure you can order them by DHL or TNT anywhere, but you may hit some very hefty import taxes in that case (500% or so).

And a full set of tools to change tyres anywhere, because there are some desert areas where theres no service available. Need to be able to do it anywhere... but sure as my own experience says, too, flats with tubeless are not very common.

But enough thread-hijacking already!! Thanks once again.

The same pic has turned up in the UKs weekly paper, MCN. It is described as having the same Deauville engine i.e. the 3 valve 65 HP with FI, displacing 680cc.

IMO, the pic looks even worse in large print - same drab colours and the old-fashioned plastics with round headlight seem very prominent.
The square swinging arm is totally unattractive; I am not saying that these things are the top priority, but it has to compete with new products from Yam etc, never mind existing bikes such as the DL650 and whatever else is announced in the next few months.

Xl700v
 

Getting bored with the UK website infatuation with sports bike reporting, I have done a search for this new bike; yep, there it is, written up by a French website (which makes sense because the bike is at the Paris bike show right now!!):-

Nouveau Honda XL700V Transalp 2008 - emoto

Looks like that pic is "correct" then (or they have stolen it from elsewhere and have not been to their own show :rolleyes2: ).

Now my French is rubbish, but I can tell from this report that you do get a choice of colours, so the buying public is not stuck with that metallic brown - how about metallic yellow, red, grey or blue?

Seems that it may have 17"/19" wheels, weighs in at 214 Kg, the seat height is 841 mm and it carries 17.5 litres of fuel.

I wonder if that figure is
accurate?

214 Kg
 

Hi Mollydog,

It could be my translation skills, lack of that is, but that's what I make of the French website; there are some figures in there for the front/back wheel weight distribution and they add up OK!
Your right - it seems to be heavy! Maybe the figures are wet rather than dry?!

But, it is a 19" front wheel --

Paris Show '07: 2008 Honda Transalp official launch news and pictures - Motorcycle News - MCN
and, inevitably, a catalytic converter.

My initial impression is that Honda have done with this bike as Triumph did with the Tiger; they are now aiming it at the road riding public with little pretence to a capability for riding on anything but the black stuff.

Time will tell, but it is not a replacement for the AT :rolleyes2: :rolleyes2: in standard trim.

My French is pretty poor too, though I think the quoted weight is the kerb weight - which may mean:

all fluids except petrol;
all fluids including a half tank of petrol;
all fluids including a full tank of petrol.

Still high but not unforgivably high.

Paris Show Pic,s
 

i just got back and ,je suis tres knackered . ok the new alp , it is very comforable to sit on ,and it look,s far better in the flesh . firstly this bike is clearly designed as a do it all bike , ie commuter, tourer,NOT a dirt bike ! . it has a 19 inch front wheel which clearly shows it,s road bias , and the BIG catalytic converter is just asking to be holed,destroyed by ,road debris, never mind rock,s
and the bashplate is plastic ! . but, for those of us who spend 90% of our time on city streets , and motorway,s it,s a perfect do it all machine , and as such it will sell in big numbers . and if you really want to take it off road then it look,s well up to light dirt road,s and track,s . just do not expect to go crossing any deserts on it , they already have all the extras you need to turn it into a tourer, luggage,high screen, and fog light,s .also there will be the option of ABS brakes . and the headlight is more oval than it look,s in pic,s .just two pics as there are plenty all over the web now .

Hey mr moto,
Thanks for that; you must have had a good trip if you are knackered - the only way to be after being in Paris.
As you mention, the technical detail has been appearing on the internet over the weekend - I guess it is all accurate.

A couple of questions then:-

Any indication of a price on this beast?
Would you (are you going to) buy one?

Cheers,

in my bad french, i managed to find out that, at least in france it will cost a few hundred euros more than the current alp, and it will be available almost immediatley, as for buying one ? i will wait for the milan show to see what BMW come up with . i took load,s of pics , over 200 ! so if you want any detailed close up,s of any part of the bike , just say so .

with 6 US gallons of gas and my tank bag on. :Beach:

BMWs are often quoted at half dry weights (all fluids plus half tank of fuel) in UK bike mags. Presumably BMW supply the specs. Makes it difficult to make comparisons to dry weights of course.

All fluids except fuel should be the standard measure, IMO.

mr moto,

could you also send the front and rear look pics of Transalp 700 please?

thanks

"it looks far better in the flesh"

well I sure hope so!

And its a heavy lump, too.. disappointed that Honda havent found ways to take a significant amount of weight off, and its not like they didnt have time to do it.

Need to ride it of course, but on paper, in my view there really doesnt seem to be much that´d lure many DL650 owners to jump ship. Change a tiny bit ugly bike to a full butt-ugly bike... erm, no!

Agreed basically Pecha.

If I was in the market for one of these, I would look closely at the current model - it could be a bargain now that this bike is available almost immediately.
On price alone the DL650 will take some beating IMO; Honda may ask too much for the new TA if the 700cc Deauville price (£6300) is an indication.

Could it be that Honda have rushed this bike out to compete with the new Yam and BMW (not to mention others to arrive in 08), even though they have had a decade or more to do their research and development, opinion poll analysis and generally scratch their corporate heads?

hi ozhanu , sorry but it look,s like i have reached my limit for posting pics on this forum . it will not allow me to post any more pic,s . sorry .

no problems, thanks a lot anyway mr moto. they will be soon on the internet i guess.

For a few more visuals of the new Transalp, try the YouTube links below. I would like to see one in the flesh. I had one of the early models and it was a great bike - until some ratbag pinched it!

YouTube - Transalp - features - New Honda motorcycles for 2008

YouTube - Transalp - New Honda motorcycles for 2008

baswacky.

great videos.. thanks

2008 transalp pics
 

check out motorcycledaily.com for pix:cool4:

transalp weight
 

i hope you never drop this bike unless the govenor of california is passing in his hummer.:(

2008 transalp pix/some specs
 

found a bit more doble.co.uk:cool4:

ta 08 weight
 

the 2008 ta is 214 kg,with abs 219 kg,see the press release at doble.co.uk new bikes,transalp,press release.:eek3:

Priced at about £5400
 

From the MCN for this week, the TA will cost around £5400 here.
A tad more than the new Yam Tenere is expected to retail.

It has an enormous top box as an after market for about £250; nothing heard about panniers though.
MCN quote/summary: an all-rounder bike with a rather small fuel capacity.