It was GP time again, and our long-term Transalp was nominated for the trip. It would be interesting as back in 1981, I owned the Transalp’s great grandfather, the XLV750. It was a great bike, way ahead of its time, only spoilt by an easily damaged and expensive fuel tank. I was keen to see if the Transalp was true to its ancestry.
In Australia, there’s no better way to assess local condition suitability than a Phillip Island run from northern NSW. Over 10 days the bike was exposed to the full spectrum of conditions, from traversing the Harbour Bridge to backroads, flat boring stretches and mountain fire roads. There was even urban congestion in the mix. After all that, we think we’ve got this bike worked out.
Before the trip, we approached Honda for a set of genuine panniers as we know they are good, but they couldn’t help. Supply is currently limited and customers are the priority. Fair enough. Motorrad Garage came to the rescue with a fitting kit fora pair of SW Motech SYS bags we’d evaluated previously. Problem sorted.
Honda advertising suggests this is a bike for all occasions, so we thought we’d break that down and comment on its functionality in each riding scenario.
IN THE CITY
In the realm of traffic lights, congestion and stop signs, the Transalp makes more sense than most other 21/18in-wheel bikes. With 50/50 road tyres fitted (we had Metzler Karoos), the XL750 makes sense as a commuter during the week and explorer on the weekends.
For urban assault work,
