Pity the poor Canadian adventure rider. After months of torment, as Euro riders got Yamaha’s new T7 long before we did, we now see a similar pattern emerging with the upgraded sub-models of the machine. The new Yamaha Tenere 700 World Rally is just the latest in a series of upgraded machines that Euro customers will get—but at this point, it seems nobody else is going to.
This machine was released as a celebration of Yamaha’s success in the world of rally raid racing. The T7 is not legal at FIM events regulated to 450cc singles (boooooo!). But the 690cc T7, with parallel twin engine borrowed from the FZ-07/XSR700/etc., has been instead tearing up other rally raid events such as the Africa ECO Race where the rules are more loose. It’s done very well in those races, with the team learning how to build a machine that can take a proper off-road flogging.
Those lessons are put to use in the Tenere 700 World Rally edition. First up, the split 23L fuel tank is re-shaped to move the gas lower, dropping your C of G for improved handling. There’s a new fork and shock; Yamaha doesn’t say much about them, but they’re sourced from KYB, their usual partners for this stuff. The 43mm fork is fully adjustable and has 9 inches of travel. The piggyback-style shock has 8.7 inches of travel, and is also adjustable. There’s also an Ohlins steering damper, with 18-position adjustability.
The CP2 engine is unchanged, but Yamaha did include an Akropovic muffler, which will reduce weight. No doubt many riders will also appreciate the change in exhaust note! Don’t expect any more power, though.
Because this bike is headed for the dirt, Yamaha included a three-way ABS system. You can opt for antilock brakes at both ends, or at the front only, or no interference at all.
There’s also a flatter rally-style seat, which will allow riders to move around in the saddle more easily.
But will it come to Canada? Uh… don’t get your hopes up. Yamaha builds these bikes in Europe, for the Euro market. Here in Canada, we get Japanese-built T7s instead—or at least, that’s the way it used to work. In our constantly-shifting world of supply chain dancing, anything can happen. However, while we might not get this, and we didn’t get previous special-edition T7s, we can see a pretty big market for these machines, a market that Yamaha is certainly aware of and will most likely fill in coming months with some up-spec’d model.
