getting the 2015 xt660z tenere...
 

Well, I was debating between new Africa Twin and F800GS as you can see few posts below but in the end I have ordered the old good small tenere, non ABS version. Africa is too heavy for my type of riding and F800GS too complicated to be 100% reliable in the desert. Both bikes also are too expensive for throwing around in dirt.

I hope it's not mistake as xt660z is quite old in technology used but maybe this is her charm and its advantage. Probably soon in Europe it will not be available with no ABS, even today I had some trouble to get one. The tenere is really good looking bike IMO, probably as good as new Africa and it has checked all the boxes: reliable, simple, good tank range, good suspension and ground clearance, crash resistant, comfortable. Anybody here got or is going to get new xt660z as well?

The XT660Z Tenere isnt exactly a light bike either and have many a points where a overlander would be very happy to have it upgraded... Look here:

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...rlanding-83304

I always liked the 660 Tenere' ... never ridden one or even seen one in person here in the USA. Many dual sport riders here hoped Yamaha would import the bike, they never have. :thumbdown:

IMHO, it's the coolest looking single dual sport out there.

But once I started looking at specs closely and reading long term ride reports I realized maybe it wasn't really the best bike for me. It's quite heavy and a bit tall ... and like ALL bikes, needs a few things to be it's best for travel.

The good news is there are lots of Tenere owners out there, lots of knowledge regards fixes & upgrades.

For me, having just a 29" inseam at 5'7", means the weight may be hard to handle once the Tenere is loaded up.

I have a hard enough time with weight wrestling my DR650 about. The DR is also an old design ... but a good one ... and 38 kgs. lighter weight than a Tenere'.

Hope you get on well with the new bike. bier

Many predict Yamaha will soon release an Adventure version of the FZ-07 twin. (* it's an MT-07 or something in the UK) Probably will be lighter than any BMW or Honda twin, maybe even matching KTM?

I also like Jenny's CB500X Rally Raid kit bike. :scooter:

thanks for link, good reading. I wonder if some of the typical problems of tenere like weak cush rubber drives or notchy fuelling are fixed in newer bikes?

If you get into any bike there's pros and cons, ktm fuel pump problems bmw with transponder problems, but value for money tenere stands out, yes change the plastic sump guard, put engine guards on, replace with lowering links to drop the height by 30-40mm, replace screen, put had guards on, heated grips, still going to be cheaper than bmw, ktm,

If you get on the XT660.com forum you will get all the knowledge that exists about the Xt660 models.

I am not a bike mechanic at all but for the jerky and lumpy engine characteristics the best solution is a powercommander. Its of course a bit costy... The second best is probably the so called Kev mods and change the airfilter and open up the airfilterbox.

The cush rubber drive has been tried cured by packing it with inner tubes which makes them last a little longer. I have tried to cut out small metal spacers and placed them between the rubber "bricks" and the metal counterparts in the hub. It worked well and the first time as I got 40 k kms out of one set of cush rubbers. The scond time I hardly got more out of it than without the metal spacers. There has also been people who made cush rubber drives of an alternative material. I cannot exactly remember which material and how the results were but its all on the XT660.com. Others have also rebuild the whole hubb.

I'm curious what result or downside of the worn Cush Drive rubber bushings is on the 660 Tenere'.

The Suzuki DR650 has a similar problem. The Cush rubbers harden within about 7 to 8000 miles. The result is a "rough" feel through the pegs and bars, sort of like the feeling a worn clutch basket gives.

I've replaced my rubber bushings 3 times in 65,000 miles, but the last time I simply inserted bits of inner tube, which was quite effective! Hadn't thought of using metal bits but I can see that it would work. :thumbup1:

With fresh Cush rubbers in place the DR650 is MUCH smoother on the road, especially under acceleration or when lugging it a bit with full load. Riders (and some mechanics) often mis-diagnose this issue, claiming bad chain/sprockets,
bad clutch basket, bad transmission bearing and more.

It's a simple and cheap fix for the DR650. Although Cush rubbers are now about $60 usd for the set.

Do worn Cush rubbers affect the 660 Tenere' in a similar way?
bier

I guess a worn cush rubber drive would have the same effect on a Dr650 as on a 660Tenere. There is a surging problem on the XT660 models and a worn cush rubber drive makes this even worse. And of course unsmooth and lumpy too especially at low revs.

Also a very worn cush rubber drive makes the whole part with the rear sprocket that one "insert" into the hubb quite loose and together with a worn/stretched and unadjusted chain it makes it easier for the chain to jump off the rear sprocket. This happend to me several times the first month I had the bike as I was totally unaware of the problem. It was probably more a stretched and unadjusted chain problem but I think the worn cush rubbers played a part in that too....

I have read the jerkiness of engine was fixed on latest models

YAMAHA XT660Z TENERE (2008-on) Review | MCN

I have a 2009 Tenere and not found cush rubbers a problem, they are consumables just like brake pads are, and I think they've been replaced once in 25,000 miles.

I have learnt my lesson, I will never buy a bike in it's first year of production, so I wouldn't consider the AT. The Tenere isn't perfect but it's better off tarmac than the F800GS.

However none of the three are light bikes for desert riding.

From what I've read on the 660 Tenere', opening up the air box and fitting a more free flowing exhaust will help surging. Also, F.I. re-maps can also help. The OEM's always have new "tunes" to load into the computer ... can really help performance overall.

Worn cush rubbers may loosen up but the Hubb cannot not loosen up enough to be the cause of chain de-railing. This providing your axle nut is TIGHT.

But ... the inner Hubb bearing can fail ... then things will loosen up. In fact the entire inner wheel can collapse. (rare)

Other things that "feel" like the Cush rubbers are worn can be:
Worn front sprocket or worn out chain can cause a rough feel.
A loose or worn chain can cause big problems if you let it go too far. YES ... that would be the reason for chain derailing. This is VERY bad as chain can wrap up around the countershaft and BREAK OPEN the engine case.

I don't know what size chain the 660 uses but I'd recommend a DID 525 X Ring chain of best quality. Will last past 20K miles if cared for. On the DR650 most owners change out their front sprocket every 6 to 8000 miles. Really helps keep things smooth and extends chain life considerably.
bier

About the unsmoothness of the XT660 engine I can say that stock it didnt pull clean in fifth gear until I passed the 3000 rpm mark. And passed beyond 5000 rpm it wasnt much to get either. So it a very narrow usable rev range on that bike original. I have had a Honda Dominator NX 650 who was much more old fashioned with carburator only and air/oil cooled - not liquid cooled as the XT660s and that Honda was waaay smoother, had a much longer usable rev range and pulled way much better than the stock Tenere
But I have changed gearing from 15/45 to 15/48 and for the moment I run 15/47 (about to enter Australia a so I that it was a better alternative)
Opend up the airbox, added Kevs fuel mod and Kevs O2 mod and after this mods the bike have become reasonably better. But still its quite unsmooth and lumpy for a big single. I am sorry if my english skills arent good enough to describe the bikes engines nature...

About the chain and cush rubbers, originally its only 520 chain/sprockets on this bike. For me it feels a little underdimenshoned for such a heavy bike. And yeas I have changed to 525 DID X ring chain and ditto sprockets. It feels more secure and I get around 30 k kms out of a set with a loaded up bike. And I dont have any automatic chain luber neither am I the one that cleans and lube the chain at every possible occation. I am rather relaxed about that....

Snakeboy, which year your xt660z tenere was?
In about two weeks I'll get mine so I'll report here about that smoothness of the engine as for 2015. I would think it would be silly from yamaha not to correct this in latest models.

Have you sat on one?
I'm 5'10 , 31" inseam. With both feet down I was on tip toes on flat showroom floor!
I think you will definitely have to get it lowered or you might find yourself falling over when you stop.
Best Regards,
Dave.

Mine is a 2011 model.

I think much of the unsmoothness, surging problems and lumpyness is because of the emission standards in Europe. The engine is set to run lean and there lies much of the problem. The engine for the XT660 models have been produced since 2004 relatively unchanged and it hasnt become any different as far as I know. But if the 2015 models are better when coming to unsmoothness etc it would be a good thing of course.

From a post of mine on another forum, "I've always rated the XT660Z as the closest out of the box of a true dual sport adventure bike, able at one extreme to tackle cruising across Europe on motorways with weather protection, and at the other extreme to be useful on dirt roads. I gained a lot of confidence with mine (which I still have) and learnt that the way out of most off-tarmac problems is to open the throttle.

Despite only having a five speed box, the gears cover a very wide range of ratios. Yes, it could be lighter, yes the exhaust running up the side broils your left leg, yes the deep rims makes roadside puncture repair impossible for many, however what really lets it down big time is the intractable engine, and that's despite installing a stage 2 air box, the 'Kev' fuel mod and opening up the exhaust to remove the cat."

I'm 5'8" with a 30" inseam, and am OK with the bike at standard height. I bought a lowering link, tried it, got a lot of confidence compared with previous GS and GSA bikes, then decided I'd rather have the long travel suspension, so went back to standard height.

Edit to my previous post, the Tenere has now done 31,000 miles. The biggest problem remains the intractability of the engine, once above second gear it can't pull from below about 3,200 rpm due to hunting. I don't think there's anything else I can try.

I guess there must be something in this bike that you keep it for that long despite of few glitches. :thumbup1:

Question regarding plastic sum guard, I read it's tough enough as the side covers are. Do you think is really needed replacing with metal one?

I'm surprised a re-map would not help some with this. :innocent:
Sounds like a lean condition ... or maybe just the nature of the motor?

My DR650 and most singles CHUGG some at low revs (my 640 KTM's the worst by far in this regard. My DR CHUGGS some in steep terrain off road, this is helped by LOWER gearing and a Pumper Carb. (BIG PLUS!)

I think part of the problem is that F.I. is so efficient, runs lean to save fuel and comport with EU emmissions standards ... but does not take into account the characteristics of a BIG piston! Maybe it's a balance issue. Most modern singles have some sort of counter balancer to counteract this. DR has dual counter balancer. Dunno, just a thought.

With the KTM's (I had two 640's and tested two others ('98, '99, 2001) you quickly learned to keep the revs UP. No problem on road, but off road you'd get caught in too high a gear from time to time in steep terrain. CHUGG CHUGG CHUGG CHUGG

I wonder what El Forko (Horca moto Paul) would say about this. :innocent:
He covered a lot of miles on his Tenere', quite knowledgable.

Youre probably very correct when you say that this issue is about the bike running lean, EU emmision standards.
I have changed exhaust pipes to Leo Vince, changed airfilter and airfilter box to DNA (similar to KN I belive) and added different O2 sensor so that the ECU think thinks it is 10 degrees colder than it on reality is which makes the fuel mixture richer and added a different fuel sensor that makes the engine run better and smoother.
My bikes nows pull clean from around 2500 rpm in higher gears so its a reasonsble improvement. But compared to the Honda NX 650 Dominator I owned some years ago which was a carburated and oil/aircooled bike the Tenere is still less smooth and pulls weaker on low rpm.
So I guess its in the nature of this engine construction - as you also mention.


I have ridden around 80 k kms on mine, the last 70 on a long overland trip so I have done a few kms on it....

The plastic one can take some, but it doesn't protect the water pump. I had some impacts on my guard in that area (adv-spec). Depending on what you ride it might make sense to add protection there. But don't buy something with covers the tank, this is not neccesary.

thanks, planning to get sw-motech crash bars. They're not too high.

I have a Power Commander V (PCV), DNA filter and stage II and an Exan single can on my 2015 Tenere. It's been set up on a dyno and is much smoother and rideable below 3,000rpm, pulls from 2,500rpm with no surging.
I've added a second bearing to the sprocket carrier and packed out the failing cush drive rubbers...it's much smoother to ride and worth all the work.

I have a totally stock 2011 XT660Z and it's a great ride; no problems with surging or chugging at all; need to be in the right gear for the conditions, but that's about it. Not quite as smooth as my 2012 DL650, but still a great ride and a lot of fun. If I had to choose between them, it'd be a tough choice. Having done extended trips on each of them, I enjoyed them both for different reasons, but equally.

I'm glad that not everybody has problem with surging because I don't like heavily modify stock bikes. It's strange BTW why, is it differences in fuel quality or different tuning. I have read there is some tuneup setup in convig mode on this bikes, anybody used that?

I think a big thing is correct adjustment of the chain and good condition cush drive rubbers. Also, keeping the machine at the revs at which it is happy is important - that would be in first, any, in second about 3000 rpm min and above second about 3500 rpm min.

Docsherlock is right about the chain adjustment and the cush drive rubbers.
Keeping this things right will make the bike smoother for sure.

And one can of course say he is right about keeping the machine in the right rev area. The problem is to do this. Above 5000 rpm it isnt much to get and under 3500 the machine will not pull clean. So you gotta keep the bike within this very narrow rpm limits. And you have only 5 gears to use. It isnt very conveniant or smooth - as I see it and feel it. And I have almost 80 k kms on a Tenere.

The last bike I had before the Tenere pulled clean from 1200 rpm and 30 km/h in highest gear, the Tenere (stock) pulls clean from 3500 rpm and around 85 km/h in highest gear. Get the picture?

My Tenere with DNA stage airfilter, Leo Vince aftermarket exhaust, Kev O2 mod and Kev fuel mod pulls clean from approx 2500 rpm (if opening the throttle relatively gently) and with changed gearing from stock 15/45 to 15/48 it will pull clean from around 65-70 km/h in highest gear.

The best would be as someone mentioned before a Power commander. And if you buy an aftermarket exhaust - buy a single can and save weight.

...and got one today finally bier

nobody told me it shoots from the pipe :scooter:

just had a short ride and smile on my face is already :D

thanks for great advice. Very nimble machine despite its size, I felt like on dirt bike.

p.s.
this shooting from the pipe is normal? or just when it' cold?

Comgratulations with a new bike!

The shooting/popping from the exhaust can easily be eliminated. Its the AIS system who makes this noise when youre coming off the throttle. Cold air intake system. Look it up on XT660.com and get the details.

Yes, most singles tend to have "de-cell popping" when you shut throttle ... especially when brand new. Once the engine is broken in this popping should decrease some ... but will not go away completely until mods to AIS and other mods are made.

In DR650 world this is also a common issue and a good reason NOT to have a LOUD pipe. with the stock pipe you can live with it, with a loud pipe it's a bit annoying.

Best of luck with the new machine! Ride carefully until you get to know your new baby!

bier

I did few hundred km already on road, in town and off road and I don't have any problem with surging. Need only to adjust clutch cable cause doesn't disengage completely when the lever is not pulled all the way. Other then that great motor, great suspension for my weight (106 kg). As for now I don't feel I'd need any mods.

tenere
 

Glad you are enjoying the bike they get better/ smoother the more miles you put on them. Must have mods are Adventure spec bash plate (the best) and the kev 02 mod for more low rev flexibility. The fuel mod is more for if you fit a DNA filter which gives the bike a small increase in responsiveness I wiegh the same as you and have 29 inch legs, the seat will eventualy soften up and the reach to the floor will get shorter its fine without lowering the suspension once you get used to it. There are lots of little mods you can do to the bike
which combined change the bike from a very good bike to a great bike. XT660.com will give you all the info you need. You will be pleasantly surprised at the performance when the engine loosens up even though the hp figures are not that high.:thumbup1:

I'm pleased you've come to that conclusion Tremens - I've always said the 660 Tenere is probably the best RTW style bike right out of the showroom.

I bought one back in 2008, and rode it 23,000 miles all over the United States in bog standard form, and it never let me down (although the cush drive rubbers did wear after about 12,000 miles, as has already been mentioned).

http://i492.photobucket.com/albums/r...9/DSCF2447.jpg
March 2009

I then extensively modified the same bike - suspension, wheels and particularly the engine with a Power Commander, Single Ti race can and open air-box lid/DNA filter - and raced it from Paris to Dakar.

http://i492.photobucket.com/albums/r...09_423_2_2.jpg
October 2009

It was an awesome machine once modified, and certainly breathed a whole lot better and made much more power once it had been remapped with all the mods in place - but all that came at a significant cost of course - and not least a significant increase in fuel consumption.

While racing one was huge fun, it was a different kind of fun - and I honestly didn't find it any more rewarding than those initial few months of ownership travelling on the standard machine.

Enjoy your new bike, it's still one of the best looking adventure bikes out there ;o)

Jx

thanks! great pictures, were you racing on this Paris Dakar on tenere??? I wonder how was it on desert? no problems e.g. with clutch etc?

Hi Tremens - It was the Heroes-Legend rally in 2009, that followed the original route to Dakar through western Africa...

There was a brief thread about the campaign here on the HUBB, with links towards the end of that thread to the more detailed build story and event report on ADVrider and XT660.com

The bike was excellent throughout (the photo above is in the dunes in Mauritania), no mechanical issues at all. The support plate for my GPS broke half way though the second week, and the original Touratech road-book crapped-out on me, but I had a spare mounting plate and replaced the road-book with an MD one from my assistance crew.

Oh, and one night the refuel crew filled my bike with helicopter fuel rather than petrol. That was a fun hour or so stripping the tank off to empty it out.

Happy days...

If you're interested, do take a look at the links at the end of page two of that thread - the photos etc. still ought to be live on those respective sites.

Jx

very nice! had to be great adventure :)

tremens: not sure how much you've read elsewhere, but one really weak point on the Tenere used to be the rectifier connections. Maybe Yamaha has improved this, maybe not, and you should take a look. The problem is that the connections loosen and cause arcing, the rectifier stops working and your battery gets fried.

Here's a typical thread discussing the issue: Xtz 660 2010 Tenere Rectifier Problem, Strikes Again | Adventure Rider

My bike failed in Morocco but I managed to get it back to Algeciras in Spain where the dealer fitted a new wiring loom and rectifier under warranty. It seems to be a bad connection issue rather than water ingress as mine hadn't been near rain for months.

I believe the R-R issue was only on a few early models and as Cullis says was due to poor assembly rather than any inherent design fault.

Mine (2011 model) was tight when I inspected it and have had no problems with it.

It wasn't due to poor assembly, rather the excess current being dumped to earth so corroding, heating and disintegrating the earth pin. The loose connection and arcing which many people found seems to be as a result of the issue, rather than the cause.

XT660.com is a useful source: Electrical problems on XT660Z Tenere!! - .: XT660.com - The #1 XT660 Resource :.

In a quick look, the latest bike I can find affected is a 2012 so the problem *might* be fixed.

So the new looms and rectifiers fitted to affected bikes are in fact new parts?

Different part numbers?

Anyone know?

I have a 2011 model and have passed 100 k kms and havent had any problems with the rectifier But I know a german guy with a 2012 model who had rectifier problems on his bike and had done one repair and later had to replace the whole thing before he passed 50 k kms on his bike. So it "might" be as you say "cured" by now....

Sounds like an assembly issue rather than Cullis's electrical theory to me. If there were no new part numbers and the looms simply replaced the German guy likely got a Friday afternoon bike.

docsherlock: I've had the rectifier failure happen to me and I feel I have at least a little knowledge about the subject, so please don't be so disparaging. If it was an assembly problem it would have shown up thousands of km earlier.

Your persistence in not wanting to be wrong offers ill-advised comfort to tremens when in reality he should be checking the situation out.

Oh, and if you want to refer to me in a response use my login name, not my surname.

Yes, this is a problem not only on the xt but on HD's, dls and many more. the problem is in the single ground wire. if this becomes , lose, corroded or loses it complete connection, failure is beginning to take its toll, sometimes the whole electrical generation system needs replacing,stator to battery the VR has long given up. I clean n check the tightness, add star washers on all grounds, scrapped the paint off the VR case to better ground it that way, some have added additional ground connections( sportsters n buells) it is a costly repair even if you do it yourself,( $100+ battery, VR dont remember) glad i could do it myself including the testing as at $100 an hr that would get very big quickly.
On bike subject to vibrations( seems the brits sorted out theirs and now rather than frame mounted 650 verticals we have 650-690 singles to take their place.

thanks Tim for tip,
found this on tube:



I guess this is what are you talking about.
Definitely will check before longer trip.

Having something happening to you doesn't add anything with respect to causation, I'm afraid.

Not a case of not wanting to be wrong - I just don't think that if there are no new part numbers that this was a design fault, rather an assembly fault. If you know otherwise, do tell.

Your log in name IS Cullis, isn't it?

I've seen VISIBLY DIFFERENT NEW parts "slipstreamed" in WITHOUT a new part number, so you can never be sure.

Tim's login name is TIM Cullis, and we try to be on a first name friendly basis here - using last name is either very formal or not "nice", and clearly Tim would rather be called Tim than Cullis, so let's go with it :).

Hello


I had that failure on my 2008 model after 25000km and 6month in use.
Lucky me it happend on the ticlio (4,818 m) so I could just roll down the hill.
Bad contact, low or bad quality of the pin.
I cut the connector open and soldered the pins to the rectifier.
Sealed all with glue.
My advice to all owners of the XT660Z, solder it as a precaution.


The XT660Z is a great "can do all" bike, but no master in one discipline.
The plastik engine cover is very good, enough for travelling with luggage.

Mine enured 117'000km of heavy abuse till the clutch broke.
On the road still good for more travelling, but not for passing inspection for road worthiness in Switzerland.

Just got me another 2008 with 43000km for a good price.




sushi

Dude you know which bike you want lol