I have had both, the yellow one and the black one - still got it, won't sell it because it just does. Fuel range is a myth, as Micky will testify going to Mongloia and not needing the spare 2 litres he carried. Road based tyres give a noticable extra fuel range over knobbly types. I had Anakee 3s on and got 130 - 135 miles, loaded, before the light came on, and there is 2 litres of reserve - plenty to find a garage. You have 2 trip meters as well, which it seems people don't use. Set the one for your trip, use the other for fuel range, reset just the one at fill up and know when you are going to have to start looking and plan ahead. It isn't difficult. TKC80s are HORRIBLE, they grip but it is like riding a pneumatic drill. Currently I am on MEFO Explorers, recommended to me by John Nicholson, who has built several very special X bikes and used them extensively. They are still 'rumbly' but they do the job. I will go for Conti Trail Attack 3 on replacement. The road tyres are much more comfortable and I do very little that requires the chunky tyres. Working as a photographer for magazines I was all over the country - Poole often! Riding down in the morning to be there for 08.00, doing a days work, then riding home again, round trip of nearly 500 miles was no problem. The thing being, I could be in N. Yorkshire, Cumbria or n. Wales the next day.... I had to go and come back each day, the X is perfectly capable of it.
I also had a specially built overlander built on the X Challenge with all sorts of special parts on it. I was going to do bits of TET, but being a complete high tech reject I never worked out how to navigate the website to find the route. I can't work electronics or even a mobile phone to the extent that you need - so I gave up and sold it.
Yellow one, loaded with camera gear (see Vincent for the job I was there for) and fishing gear for a couple of hours fishing before heading home, via Hardknott the other one that it joins up with Wrynose?
The black one, which I still have. 58,000 miles on her now. Note, still on alloy subframe. No issues.
Those HORRIBLE TKC80s!
And the special over lander... with Touratech 18 litre tank as well as the standard underseat tank. 1200GS light/screen, F800GS beak with jump start plug fitted to it. Schefflemier bash plate and oil cooler, stainless Scorpion exhaust again (very light and gives good torque). Si Pavey's Dakar Race spare wheels - Takasagi rims on custom spokes for his race bike, he only used them once for practice. I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time when they came available.
