VOLUME 57 ISSUE 49 DECEMBER 8, 2020 P95
List Price: $349.00
Website: https://touratech-usa.com/
S TANDOUT FEATURE
Lower seat height for short riders
RIDER AN ALYSIS
Installation of the parts was pretty
easy, and it took us about an hour
and a half. If you rode and worked
on dirt bikes in the mid '80s thru the
'90s all the fork operations should be
familiar to you. At the rear, you only
need to touch two bolts to swap out
the link rods and the bump-stop shim
just slips into place under the stop.
We had access to a motorcycle lift,
which helped make things easy. (A
note to all 2021 Ténéré 700 owners,
there appears to be little to no grease
on any of the rear linkage pivot points
from the factory so these should be
serviced whether you upgrade your
rear suspension or not.) Touratech's
instructions recommend shortening
the side stand 20mm; you may need
to find a local shop or welder for this
procedure. After installation it was
immediately easier to maneuver the
motorcycle around the workshop.
The lower center of gravity made gas
station/parking lot maneuvering much
easier.
Of course, the next thing you will
want to do is sit on the motorcycle.
Our 5'5" test rider could just touch
one-foot tiptoe on the ground while
astride the Yamaha with standard
suspension. With the Touratech kit in-
LOWDOWN
stalled our test rider could touch one
foot flat on the ground or both feet tip
toe on the ground. A measurement
was taken from the ground to the top
of the footpeg: standard height was
14.25 inches. With the kit installed,
the new measurement was 13 inches,
a reduction of 1.25 inches (31.75mm).
Test riding the Yamaha with the
kit installed revealed a noticeable
improvement in right/left "flick-ability"
and an improvement in cornering
turn in. A 150-mile back country ride
revealed no negative effect when
encountering normal road/dirt road
bumps, cattle guards, washboard
surfaces. Our test rider's confidence
was improved tremendously in all
riding situations and terrain. If you
are using your Yamaha Ténéré 700
as a full-on dirt bike this is not the
kit for you due to the loss of ground
clearance. (Touratech does offer an
improved front and rear spring kit
for full-length suspension for you
•GENERIC INSTRUCTIONS ARE
NOT MODEL SPECIFIC
•SIDE STAND WILL NEED
SHORTING
•LOWER SEAT HEIGHT WITHOUT
REDUCING THE SEAT PADDING
•GOOD QUALITY COMPONENTS
•RELATIVELY EASY
INSTALLATION
TENERE
LOWERING KIT
Peterhansel-types.) But if lowering your
Ténéré 700 is important, then this kit will
get you that result with minimal change
to the suspension ride quality and there
is still some padding on your seat.
Lori and Ray Conway
Proof is in the pudding: Our 5'5" tester on the stock Tenere 700 (left)
and on the modified Tenere (right).
