VOL. 51 ISSUE 15 APRIL 15, 2014 P75
able to control your Jacuzzi tempera-
ture while riding. That might be on the
next one.
Most of the information you will
need on the new dash relates to the
traction control and other electronics.
One of those is the two-position D-
mode that's controlled by a switch on
the handlebar and allows for on-the-fly
changes to the engine character (S
mode for "sportier" ride and T mode
for "touring"). Yamaha has further re-
fined the settings of the D mode for
2014 with the differences between the
two settings larger and more notice-
able than on the previous model.
With many of its customers install-
ing aftermarket systems on their Su-
per Tenere, Yamaha opted to put their
own cruise control on the 2014 model.
The system works well and is easy to
use. Should be a bonus for long road
trips or droning along on the freeway.
The ES model gets even more info
on its dash as the bike features elec-
tronically controlled suspension and
heated grips. The grips can be con-
trolled via a switch with three settings
of heat that can be further customized:
if level 2 is too cold and level 3 is too
hot, you can make adjustments. On
a brisk morning heading back down
from Big Bear into Redlands, I found
myself alternating between 2 and 3 on
the grips. Making the change is easy
and I don't care what you say, heated
grips make sense (and, yes, they are
also available from Yamaha's acces-
sory catalog for use on the standard
model).
As for the suspension, the ES mod-
el gets 84 different settings. Yes, 84.
There are four levels of pre-load; three
levels of damping; and seven levels of
fine-tuning. Okay, I'm no accountant
so I will give them the benefit of the
doubt and say that it adds up to 84.
Maybe it's 7 x 4 x 3… maybe there's
some pi in there. Who knows? But Ya-
maha don't lie.
I'll be perfectly honest at this point
and tell you that I only rode the ES on
the street and I only made a few chang-
es. For the flog down the mountain, I
set the suspension as stiff as it would
go: Rider, fat passenger, tons of lug-
gage. And it worked just fine. In fact,
it was still plush and not overly harsh
even when hitting potholes. When we
get our hands on a long-term test unit
(hint, hint Yamaha), I'll give the other
82 settings a go.
The KYB-made suspension is con-
trolled via a switch on the left han-
dlebar (damping is controlled by a
stepping motor while the pre-load is
adjusted by a DC motor). You have to
be stopped to adjust pre-load, but the
rest can be done on the fly.
Yamaha says its research shows
that 88 percent of Super Tenere own-
ers use the bikes on the road while
only 12 percent venture off-road. I fall
smack dab in the minority then be-
cause I had roughly 76 percent more
fun on our rocky jeep trails than I did
on the paved mountain roads.
But let's be honest here: The Super
Tenere isn't exactly lithe. Okay, let's
be really brutally honest: It's the fat kid
from the third grade only it's not go-
ing to lean out with a bit of puberty.
And portly and off-road are always un-
likely dance partners. So a glance at
the Super Tenere and the thought of
riding it off road might keep you up at
night. But it shouldn't.
Stand up on the pegs (the rubber
The Super Tenere
is a comfortable
motorcycle to ride
for long distances,
yet it's no slouch in
the twisties.
