Performance issues?

[Gordon T]

Been thinking about getting one for some time now but need to ask the question on performance or lack of it.
To cut it short, my son rides a Vstrom 650, his mates got a Versys 650 and his dad has a Super Tenere. The three of them went off for a ride yesterday and upon their return a few questions were being asked. Why cant the Super Tenere leave the others in its wake? The performance of the Tenere was such that the other two bikes were neck and neck with it up to about 90 where it just and I mean just started to pull away. Are they really that slow?
If they are, is there any really good performance upgrades to be done to it to make it go a bit better.
Before you all start spouting off, I do realise its a very heavy bike and had a large rider on board but is the performance really this bad?

 

[Mr K]

I would imagine if the rider of the SuperTen was giving it as much stick as the 650s he'd leave them for dead.

 

[Rasher]

I would imagine if the rider of the SuperTen was giving it as much stick as the 650s he'd leave them for dead.

Yep, back in the late 90's a mate of mine raced CB500s, he also did track day instruction on it and would often blow away R1 / Blade riders with ease, so working off the OP's above theory a 51BHP CB500 is faster than a 145BHP R1.


I own a Super Tenere and a V-Strom 650, generally I have to buzz my Strom a lot harder to make the same progress, the big Yamaha also has better suspension and the same tyres - but carries a bit more weight. As a mere mortal I corner at about the same speed on both bikes, which is what I find most people do.

A-B both get there in about the same time as in reality I do not go flat out everywhere on either bike, but if I was to go as fast as I possibly could the Yamaha would almost certainly win, but a well ridden V-Strom will easily beat a badly ridden Super Tenere (Or Panigale / S1000RR etc)

Back to back the V-Strom feels like a bloody moped after some time on the S10 as it needs so much more revving to get it moving, and going the other way after a week of commuting the S10 feels like a rocketship......

...but they are very different bikes.

In stock trim the S10 is pretty much the same as the last of the air cooled 1200 GS models for performance, and is pretty damn fast up to and beyond 100MPH.

For about £600 you can fit de-cat headers (Arrows) and get a remap that will give a stack more top end brining it a lot closer to the latest GS, but if you really want a speedy adventure bike you should be looking at the Multistrada or KTM 1190 / 1290.

 

[trainman]

without being too rude to the father I reckon bike and rider weight add another 100kg or close? even with 40 hp advantage you are going to be off the throttle much more than the smaller bike as you chuck out the anchors nice and early from any silly sort of speed!! I reckon the screen is a bit of an aero limiter too compared to smaller stuff?

 

[FatAl]

I've just got back from a 600 mile round trip to Scotland on my new Super Tenere. I have now finished the 'running in' period and have found the bike to be plenty fast enough, and It's still got a fair few miles to go before it loosens up properly. There is a big difference in the performance when in 'tour' mode compared to 'sport' mode. I think the performance is comparable to my old Stelvio NTX or GS1150.
Just how fast do you want to go on the road? or do you intend to do track days with it? Lets face it there's loads of super dooper fast sports bikes out there with riders who are unable to get the full potential from them on the road. When changing my Stelvio for the S10 I seriously considered the KTM 1190 and the new Multistrada, and apart from them being chain drive being a negative I also realised I didn't actually need 150bhp. Perhaps the guy with the S10 who couldn't get ahead of the 650 Stroms isn't a confident rider, maybe he just wasn't bothered to try. Either way the S10 has plenty of performance for my 'limited' ability and enough to get me banned.

 

[Gordon T]

Thanks for the input. Didnt mean to start a flame war. Only mentioned what was said after their ride. Its still top of my list of bikes that I would like next. Been reading up on it and the reliability side of it seems to be impressive, even if its not the quickest. Rashers reflash has been a good and informative read and may be on the list of to-do`s should I get one. Personally Im not a speed demon but did think (I still dont know why) The Super Tenere would be a more powerful machine. Hell my old KLV (Vstrom 1000) was a bit quicker than my two twin cam Gs`s Ive just parted with.

 

[leedude03]

12.96 seconds versys 650 standing quater.

11.85 sec. super 10 standing quarter

these are the book times for each bike, factor in a bigger heavier older rider on the super 10 who's reaction times maybe slower, and i think there would be little in it, last year i went away with a mate who has a 2009 versys 650 and the only place he found it lacking was on the motorway at 90mph plus, but at at 75-80 no problems and good mpg aswell. great bikes for not a lot of money.

 

[wessie]

Don't underestimate youthful exuberance.

I have a mate who rides a 1050 Tiger. On a recent ride from Stroud to Cheltenham via Slad, he was rather surprised to find his son's headlamp glowing in his mirrors for most of the journey home. His son is 17 and was riding a YBR125 a month after passing his CBT.

 

[Neil W]

Don't underestimate the way the bikes deliver their power, went out for a run in the summer with a mate on his 2010 dlv650 v strom , on the back roads its drive out of corners caught me out a more than a couple of times when it was leaving my 2011 gsa tc for dead.

If you're willing to rev the 650 and in the right gear the v twin can fly , I've ridden a couple of Super tens and in sport mode they would be comparable up to 70 or so

 

[trainman]

Don't underestimate the way the bikes deliver their power, went out for a run in the summer with a ma[SUB][/SUB]te on his 2010 dlv650 v strom , on the back roads its drive out of corners caught me out a more than a couple of times when it was leaving my 2011 gsa tc for dead.

If you're willing to rev the 650 and in the right gear the v twin can fly , I've ridden a couple of Super tens and in sport mode they would be comparable up to 70 or so

hasn't been mentioned but gearing will play a part, I have noticed smaller bikes nailing it from the lights as well as I can, for low speed stuff between corners they are going to be good, at higher speeds the S10 will win out on roll-ons,

maybe the shaft gives us a slight disadvantage over the bigger trail chain bikes (KTM) because the gearing has to be longer, anyone know?

 

[Ban_6]

Been thinking about getting one for some time now but need to ask the question on performance or lack of it.
To cut it short, my son rides a Vstrom 650, his mates got a Versys 650 and his dad has a Super Tenere. The three of them went off for a ride yesterday and upon their return a few questions were being asked. Why cant the Super Tenere leave the others in its wake? The performance of the Tenere was such that the other two bikes were neck and neck with it up to about 90 where it just and I mean just started to pull away. Are they really that slow?
If they are, is there any really good performance upgrades to be done to it to make it go a bit better.
Before you all start spouting off, I do realise its a very heavy bike and had a large rider on board but is the performance really this bad?

If you are asking that question above, you are clearly missing the point of the 1200 traillies , be it a Tenere or GS. If you want to buzz along on a 600 with the chassis made of cheese off you go. You cannot compare the 600's with the 1200's.

The 1200's are ok to about 90 / 100 mph, but this is not where they are designed to be. Its all about midrange, comfort, torque and purpose. I got mine reflalshed over here and it made good difference to the engine, it can now breathe the way its supposed to as opposed to choked ex factory.

I have a 1098s which i use on the road and track and I wouldnt call the Tenere slow - and i have a proper comparison there to make.

At the weekend i was out with a few guys on different and more faster road bikes across the mountains. I wasnt left behind in the dust, although i reached destination a few short secs later. They couldnt believe how well the bike handled and neither could I at a brisk pace on the roads we were on. Front and rear wheels spent a few occasions off the ground ( hilly and fast twisty roads ) and the bike was planted. Even landing the front down in top gear it shrugged from side to side a few times but i kept the power on as the bike was compliant.

Tenere slow, give me a break......

 

[Garry H]

If you are asking that question above, you are clearly missing the point of the 1200 traillies , be it a Tenere or GS.

Spot on ....Some people just don't get it

 

[Gordon T]

Spot on ....Some people just don't get it

So, what is it some people dont get about 1200 trailies?