Xt Vs. Tengai: Evolution of the Dual-Purpose Bike

XT vs. Tengai: Evolution of the Dual-Purpose Bike

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UNTIL RECENTLY, DUAL-PURpose motorcycles occupied a quiet corner of motorcycling. But there’s a quickening evolution going on with those bikes that is likely to have a significant impact on the dual-purpose bikes of the future.

Right now, the change is being signaled between traditionally styled dual-purpose bikes, led by Yamaha, with its updated and restyled XT600, and the Paris-to-Dakar replica machines championed most recently by Kawasaki with its new Tengai (pronounced “Ten-guy”).

Yamaha’s approach is certainly more recognizable to American riders. The XT breaks no new ground stylistically, looking like a traditional dual-purpose machine. It retains a familiar enduro-bike look with its narrow fuel tank, thin seat and headlight/numberplate combination.

The Tengai, however, strikes out on a different path, and trades on the popularity of the Paris-to-Dakar styled machinery so liked in Europe, and recently seen in America in the forms of the Honda Transalp and NX series, and the BMW R 100GS. With a large, integrated fairing and molded-in turnsignals, the Tengai’s styling falls in line with the other Dakar-type machines. And while it looks as if it’s ready for a ride through the wilds of the Serengeti, like many Dakar-styled bikes, the Tengai is more at home on the street.

Beneath the obvious styling differences, the bikes have other differing features. For example, though both machines use electric-start, four-stroke, single-cylinder engines, the XTóOO’s 595cc powerplant is air-cooled, while the Tengai’s 65 lcc engine is liquid-cooled.

Both motorcycles are heavy when compared to real off-road machines. The Yamaha tips the scales at a claimed 342 pounds, 42 pounds more than the older XT. The Tengai is even heavier, with Kawasaki claiming its weight at 35 l pounds.

Dual-purpose bikes’ ever-increasing weight, and—in the case of bikes like the Tengai—more-crash-susceptible bodywork, is setting off alarm bells among true dual-purpose fans, those who spend at least half their riding time off-road. The manufacturers, on the other hand, are attempting to find a bigger audience for dual-purpose motorcycles, trying to make the bikes more convenient through electric starters, and more stylish through bodywork. If buyers opt for the Dakar replicas over traditionally styled bikes; if, indeed, the path to more sales is paved with street-oriented features, then expect the dual-purpose motorcycle of the future to be dual-purpose in name only. —Camron E. Bussard