VOLUME 59 ISSUE 32 AUGUST 9, 2022 P105
The 660 provides plenty of power
for me to have fun on the road and is
very predictable. The different engine
modes help open it up a little, and
those of you that like to go fast on
the road will probably enjoy wringing
its neck a bit but may not be overly
impressed with the acceleration. It
felt a little more powerful
than my Tenere 700, but the
larger-displacement KTM 890
Adventure makes the Tuareg
feel slow by comparison, as it
should. The Tuareg has a claimed 80
horsepower versus 72 for the Tenere
and 100 for the KTM 890, and you can
feel that on the road. Since I prefer
to ride on the dirt, less power is not a
problem for me, but your priorities and
skill on the street may be different than
mine. Even at my mellow street pace, I
was missing the optional Aprilia Quick
Shift, a $249.95 upgrade I would pur-
chase as it ramps up the fun factor on
the road. Yamaha does not offer this on
the Tenere, but it is an available option
on the KTM 890 Adventure.
One other notable standard feature
on the Tuareg is cruise control. This is
not available for the Tenere, and I didn't
realize how much I wanted it
until I rode the Tuareg (cruise
control is standard on the KTM
890 Adventure models).
The seemingly endless dirt
roads in Northern Arizona are where we
really wanted to put the Tuareg to the
test, and that is where we spent most of
our riding time. The region has every-
thing from well-groomed dirt roads that
you can drive a car down to "roads"
and trails that most people don't want
to take an Adventure bike, and we rode
as much of it as possible.
Considering a
KTM 890 Adventure
R or Yamaha 700
Tenere? Don't
forget the Tuareg.
