6 Best Small Adventure Bikes

[Music] okay so adventure motorcycles are red hot and when they first became red hot in the early 2000s it was all about the giant gs's these super big comfy and expensive sofas on wheels are ready for that around the world trip as long as around the world doesn't involve too much gnarly off-road however lately it's been the middleweight bikes taking center stage with the tanner rays and the 7 and 890s dominating the headlines because of their ability to munch miles and also be capable off-road they're selling faster than condoms at freshman orientation and getting a lot of press but there is another class of adventure motorcycle that often gets overlooked and all this hype these are the smaller bikes and they really are the rodney dangerfield of the adv world the funny thing is everywhere but europe and north america these are the go-to bikes for heading off on your adventure they dominate adventure motorcycle sales in some of the biggest markets around the world but here in the west they're often dismissed as being underpowered beginner bikes and overshadowed by the 800cc class which admittedly has superior highway performance however let's not be so dismissive here because these are wonderful motorcycles for several reasons the biggest being their price tags which hover around one third of the price of the 1200cc class and about half of the typical 800. you could buy two of these bikes accessorize them to the hilt and pay around the same as you would for an f850 gs that's great value second these bikes have way more of something that makes motorcycles especially off-road ones very desirable indeed lightness most of them weigh in under 400 pounds and one that i'll mention comes in under 340. next is their friendly demeanor if you're a beginner if you're a bit shorter or smaller and you'd struggle with the weight of a 1200 or the height of an 800 because those middleweight bikes are actually taller then these are the bikes for you light friendly with manageable power especially off pavement these are the bikes that will fill you with confidence so a couple of caveats i'm keeping this category under 500cc arbitrary i know but a line had to be drawn somewhere and that's where it got drawn so the klrs and the v strom 650s definitely fall into the middleweight category also i didn't include the suzuki v-strom 250 or any chinese-made bikes in this comparison because they're not imported to canada and i've never even seen them nor will ever get a chance to buy them so they're off my radar i'm also not mentioning prices here because they vary from country to country and the least expensive bike in canada may not be the least expensive in your neck of the woods finally i know that some of the viewers of this channel are avid off-roaders and will suggest the drz-400 or klx fitted with a big gas tank as an option and they are viable options but those bikes are dual sports and will run tall seats and require modifications for adventure duties so i'll just stick to bikes that are outfitted with fairings and larger gas tanks from the manufacturers if you want more serious off-road performance there will be one option on this list that may tickle your fancy but we'll get there soon enough so i'll give you the choices in this class their strengths and weaknesses and then give you my favorites don't forget to subscribe and let's jump into it [Music] first on the list is the kawasaki vs x a 296 cc liquid cooled flat wind powered adv bike for the rider who enjoys sporty performance at a very reasonable price this bike puts out 40 horsepower enough to cruise the highway ride two up or rip around on a twisty road it's got a 17 liter tank for good range is decently light coming in at 386 pounds full of fuel and can be accessorized to the hilt the seat height is 32 inches but seems higher because the seat is wide and cuts into your thighs when your legs are down the small versus has the engine from the last generation kawasaki ninja 300 and has a reputation for bulletproof reliability weaknesses this bike hasn't been updated since it was released in 2017 and is beginning to show its age the most common complaint i hear from riders is that kawasaki hasn't launched a versus 400 powered by the latest ninja motor which has been out since 2018. another drawback is the 5.1 inches of front and 5.8 inches of rear suspension travel good for bumpy pavement but definitely not enough for serious off-road fun the last complaint is the peaky power delivery the engine is powerful but is also high strung requiring serious revs to get the bike going quickly great for pavement but lacking the low end torque that makes a bike predictable off-road the versus makes a peak 19-pound feet which arrives at 10 000 rpm wow so this is a good choice for the rider who will primarily ride on pavement with the odd gravel or dirt road in the mix nothing too gnarly though due to the limited suspension travel and road friendly 19 and 17 inch wheels next on the list is the exact opposite of the versus the royal enfield himalayan this one has a larger one cylinder motor which displaces 411 cc and makes it feel very different from the verses where the versus hits hard at high revs the himalayan doesn't do high revs his horsepower peaks at 24 but his 23.5 pound-feet of torque arrived just above 4000 rpm making it much better for trucking along off-road at 31.9 inches it has the lowest seat height among any of these bikes and has very friendly power delivery making it the best choice for beginners or small riders its wet weight is 428 pounds but that includes a bass plate and a metal rear rack on the back and tank guards on which you can mount bags on your around the world trip you'll need the bash plate because despite having 7.9 inches of front and 7.1 inches of rear suspension travel ground clearance is limited as i found out when i rode it on an obstacle course on demo day despite that this bike is surprisingly decent off-road with a 21 and 17-inch wheel combination it can go a fair ways on its 15.1 liter tank and has an air-cooled motor that is easy to work on reliability has been an issue in early model himalayans you can see a peg actually breaking off in their original intro video however word on the street is that the early issues have been resolved and since these bikes come with a two year warranty you should be covered for a while this is a choice for shorter riders who actually want to ride some off-road this is not the choice for riders who want to make a quick pass on the highway the biggest complaints about this bike are its lack of power and pavement and the crappy brakes if you can live with those this bike is a great value in an off-road capable package the next bike we'll look at here is the bmw g310 gs the smallest and by far least expensive of the gs family this bike is sort of a do-it-all option it's 313 cc single cylinder engine produces 34 horsepower and 21 pound-feet of torque enough ponies for the highway enough torque for chugging off-road it's 19 and 17-inch wheels and 7.1 inches of suspension travel at both ends can tackle some trails but it's not the most off-road worthy bike here the smallest gs is one of the lighter bikes in this class weighing 372 pounds wet which makes it approachable and it has a middle of the road 32.9 inch seat height its fit and finish is high quality and it looks like a gs so if you like the looks of its bigger siblings this is your ride it's not best at anything in this class but is also not bad at anything either the 11 liter fuel tank is a bit small for serious touring but it manages to do everything else well and even comes with a luggage rack standard the last three bikes in this class all stand out in one way or another and each will appeal to riders with different priorities for the adventure rider who will spend a lot of time off-road there's only one choice and that is the honda crf rally sure you could just buy a dual sport and dress it up for adventure but why bother when honda has already done it for you in fact this bike is a dual sport as it's basically a kitted out crf 300l with a fairing batch plate and larger tank this bike is brand new and is still not confirmed for north america but i'm keeping a positive outlook and looking forward to its arrival on our shores it replaces the old 250 model and comes with a single cylinder 286 cc motor sourced from the cbr300r in thailand honda claimed 31 horsepower in europe they're saying 27. maybe one is at the crank and the other at the rear wheel but either way this bike won't be lighting your hair on fire with acceleration on-road performance should be adequate but that's it but no one who buys this bike will care too much about its on-road performance because this one is for the dirt crowd as stated before this is a dual sport with a fairing and so it's clearly going to be the most capable machine once the pavement ends the wheels are the proper 21 and 18 inch combo for off-roading the suspension travel is a massive 10.2 inches on both ends and the bike is light 337 pounds wet for the european version the updated model has a 12.8 liter fuel tank for a decent range too so clearly if you're going to take on the road of bones on any adventure motorcycle this is the best choice it is the lightest mass-produced globally sold adventure bike and the most off-road worthy this bike can definitely go places no other adventure motorcycle can reach the drawbacks of this bike even with the extra displacement is still underpowered in this class it'll beat the royal enfield in a drag race but will get spanked by all of the others the long suspension also means a taller seat height at 35.2 inches you'd better have longer legs if you buy it everything is a compromise and you'll probably sacrifice some road performance for this bike's superior off-road ability you yourself have to decide if that's worth it so what if you want the sport bike of small adventure motorcycles well the ktm 390 adventure is the right bike for you with the 373 cc motor from the rc 390 it makes 44 horsepower and 23 pound-feet of torque and only weighs 387 pounds wet this is the hot rod of the group in a straight line or on a twisty road it's a ktm and after all ktm take their ready to race motto seriously this bike is stiff and sporty and made to rip around with throttle wide open the 390 is pretty good off-road as well although the cast wheels size 19 and 17 inches are not optimal for dirt ktm's high quality wp suspension is adjustable but only offers 6.7 inches of travel in the front and 7 inches in the rear good for rough roads but don't take this bike on single track despite the drawbacks this bike is still better than the average adv bike off-road aside from its sportiness what makes this bike stand out are the electronics and features it has a tft color dash that pairs to your phone lean sensitive abs that can be turned off at the rear wheel and traction control there's also an optional quick shifter and all these things can be had for a price competitive with the other bikes in this group drawbacks wire wheels would be nice also a 21-inch front would make the bike better off-road but would also make the already tall 33.7 inch seat height higher which may discourage shorter riders from buying it ktm reliability has been a question in the past but i haven't heard too many negative things about this bike so this is a sporty option which gives you a lot of bike for your money the final bike in this group is also the biggest and here we go back to honda because where the crf 300l rally is the best off-road bike in this crowd the cb500x is the most capable pavement muncher if you're wanting to tour long distance or ride on the highway or with a passenger this is your ride honda's 471 cc parallel twin is the biggest motor of these small adventure bikes and the bike it's attached to is the heaviest of the group at 434 pounds wet with 47 horsepower and 32 pound-feet of torque this bike is the most relaxed at speed and its weight keeps it steady and buttoned down on the highway if you're going long on the interstate this is the best bike for that however i've ridden this thing fast and can confirm that can handle the bends pretty well too this bike is comfortable has a low-ish seat height at 32.7 inches a big 17.5 liter gas tank for the long haul looks good with typical honda fit and finish handles will and will probably last forever or at least close enough to forever that it won't make a difference its biggest shortcoming is the 5.3 inch front and 5.9 inch rear suspension travel and while it's fine on some gravel and dirt it ain't no enduro but if you're going to ride like that you'll get the 300l rally because everybody knows 10 inches is better than 5. oh and this is also the most expensive of these bikes at least here in canada so which bike is best as with all such comparisons it depends on the kind of riding you'll do if you're doing mostly rows then the versus n500x will do you the bmw and ktm are both good all-arounders and the crf and himalayan are best off-road if i had to add another bike to my current stable of the tener a700 and to roaster i choose the rally because of its off-road capability and the fact that my two current bikes are better on pavement anyways if i had to choose one of these to be my only motorcycle the cb500x would be in my garage i like that honda quality and reliability and it's the one that feels the most substantial i could spend all day on it and wouldn't hesitate to ride it across the continent now i can't end this video without starting at least one rumor so here goes some yamaha representatives have expressed interest in this segment and rumors of a tenerife 300 based on the r3 engine have circulated throughout 2020. i've reviewed that engine on this channel in the mt-03 and happened to think it would do quite well in that capacity would you be interested in a future t3 or one of these other bikes tickle your fancy instead drop a comment below with your favorite or with a suggestion of bikes that could be added to this class a drz-400 adventure anyone does anyone else think that such a bike would sell out faster than deep fried coke batter at a nascar race share your thoughts and ride safe if you're interested in any of the gear that brooke and i wear or use or the camera equipment we use to film this channel the links are below everything listed there was bought with our own money and we are not sponsored by any company however the links below are affiliate links and the channel is paid a small amount for referring you to shop at no additional cost to you we do not recommend any products that we are not satisfied with ourselves but we do strongly urge you to do your research and select the correct size for items like helmets and clothing as always thanks for watching your support is greatly appreciated please hit that subscribe button give the video a thumbs up and leave a comment below and whatever you ride enjoy it wave at other bikers no matter what they're riding we're all part of a brotherhood and sisterhood keep the rubber side down shiny side up and may the spokes be with [Music] you

Channel: Different Spokes TV

Views: 629,651

Rating: 4.8782525 out of 5

Keywords: Adventure Motorcycle, Motorcycle Review, Motorcycle Comparison, Yamaha Tenere 300, Yamaha T3, Royal Enfield Himalayan, Royal Enfield Himalayan 650, BMW G310GS, Honda CB500X, Honda CRF300L Rally, Kawasaki Versys X, Versys 300, KTM 390 Adventure, KTM 490 Adventure, Suzuki Vstrom 250, V Strom 250, BMW F850GS, BMW R1250GS, Tenere 700, KTM 790 Adventure, 890 Adventure, V85TT, Tiger 900, DRZ 400, KLX 300, CRF300L, WR300R, Versys 400

Id: Nm_ZLU8AYvI

Length: 14min 30sec (870 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 13 2020