Since Nick Sander's record-setting ride from Deadhorse, Alaska to Ushuaia Argentina and back in 46 days on his Yamaha Super Tenere, we knew this was going to be one bulletproof platform. Never leaving well enough alone, ADVMoto turned our project lens on this formidable mount to notch up its comfort, performance, safety and looks.

Power Performance and Protection

ACD Skid Plate

Perhaps the first bit of kit added to any adventure tourer is the skid plate. With a plethora of options out there for the& Super Tenere, we honed in on ACD, who offers a model with a great collection of features.

The all-aluminum design is tough as nails with beautiful welds, and protection extends all the way to under the rear lower shock linkage. Moreover, requiring only four bolts makes it easy to install and doesn’t interfere with the Touratech crash bars.

The only thing we would have changed is to provide a little more cutout near the right brake lever. Folks with large boots may find their shoes hitting skid plate before any meaningful braking can take place. It’s not a major issue and a simple fix with a little bending or grinding.

Pyramid Plastics’ long-standing name in weather protection adds a nice touch to the Super Ten. We’re happy to see Pyramid now uses both strong two-sided tape and plastic rivets to attach the fender extender instead of self-tapping screws which sometime rust or vibrate against the fender pieces. The rear hugger still works, even with the& Metzeler Karoo 3’s deep lugs, and keeps the underside less crudded up.

Touratech Body Armor

Touratech’s efficiently designed engine guards do the job without adding too much weight and provide serious tip-over safety to some sensitive internals since Yamaha designed the radiator and now& Shorai battery under the left and right side fairings. Mated with Touratech’s removable headlight and final drive guards, with the foot stand pad, this Super took a bump in convenience and protection with minimal hassle or weight addition. They’ve got your electronics covered too, with a very secure and lockable GPS mount made for the Garmin Zumo 660.

Yoshimura Signature Series Slip-on

What can we say about stock exhausts that hasn’t already been said about boat anchors? They’re big, heavy and slow you down. With plenty of power on tap, the& Super Tenere only needed to free up some weight and gain a little bit of torque.

Although not widely announced, Yoshimura makes a lightweight, throaty sounding slip-on that meets EPA sound level restrictions of 80-dBA—a noticeable benefit. Being super easy to install and supplied with top notch fitting hardware, it’s definitely worth looking at if you’re in the market.

Metzeler Karoo 3

Tire choice is probably one of the hottest topics of the big-bore adventure world. It used to be dirt-oriented tires were only available in 21” and 18” sizes, but over the past few years we’ve seen a change of scene. Out to rival already popular tires like the Continental TKC80 and Heidenau Scout K60, Metzeler just introduced the new Karoo 3 40/60 off-road tire for big bikes. Looking at the tread, we expected this tractor-like tread design to ride like cruising railroad ties, but it was surprisingly smooth and turned in like a normal street tire.

High speed whine is noticeable approaching 50–60 mph, but in dirt or sand they hook up right away and make off-roading crazy fun when combined with the& Super Tenere’s excellent traction control. So far we’ve gotten 2,000 miles on the rear tire with just a bit of wear left, while the front tire could easily go through two or three rears. Our overall experience was very favorable compared to its popular counterparts, especially considering the size and power of the bike.

Luggage & Lighting

Baja Designs OnX & Touratech LED Auxiliary Lights

You know you’ve got bright lights when people see them for the first time and exclaim, “Oh shit!” Baja Designs put together a killer light bar to fill& the void under the& Super Tenere’s stock lights.

We strongly advise against looking straight into these LEDs as they crank out a toasty 4,300 lumens. There’s no doubt you’ll be able to see deer down the road. At two and a half pounds, they are easy to install with high quality hardware, and come with a plastic snap-on cover since they’re not street legal.

Following the “too much is never enough” philosophy, we also wanted to add some street-legal lighting. Touratech’s LED system not only has plenty of power, but the left and right lamps are actually completely different.

While both lamps are lensed 13-watt LEDs, the right unit has two brows which flatten the beam’s projection, reducing scatter and making it much friendlier to oncoming traffic. They are a bit pricey, but come with “drop-ship”-styled Super Tenere-specific mounts.

The supplied hardware is high-quality and comprehensive but the LED control units are not built into the lamp itself so figuring out the optimal wire routing may take a little longer. At the end of the day, we can ride confidently knowing we’re covered for any type of riding, day or night, in almost any condition.

Givi Trekker Outback Frame & Cases

This was perhaps one of the more anticipated mods of the project. GIVI’s name is legendary in motorcycle luggage systems and we were eager to get our hands on the new Outback series side cases.

What looks like most any other aluminum ammo can-type case actually takes a few departures from any GIVI system before it. Each case snaps on with a great deal of authority thanks to a new four-point mounting system with color indicators.

It works so well that when new they are a little stiff to take off. Like all other GIVI products, the fit and finish are excellent and now they’ve added a host of lashing points, a fully removable lid and a new cross bar-style locking system which secures both the case and lid with one key.

Although key actuation is a little stiff, it still feels more robust than many of its peers. The mounting frames are rock solid in a familiar& GIVI way and as soon as you get used to the new locking system they’re a strong adventure luggage option.

We were surprised to see a bit of top seal leaking at extended high-speed riding in torrential downpours since the top gaskets are deeply routed and made of quality rubber. Considering this is a first -year model, GIVI is off to a great start.

Wolfman Blackhawk Tank Bag

We contacted Eric Hougen of Wolfman Luggage who recently announced a bag that seems to be almost made for the Super Ten. Dirt-oriented riders often feel “big tank bags” are annoying to use while touring riders usually think the bigger, the better.

Unlike the more voluminous Rainier bags, the& Blackhawk fills that mid-sized void, providing enough room for larger gloves and other essentials, without being so bulky as to interfere with your standing riding. Built-in, or optional, side pockets would have been nice to keep small items like sunglasses and pocket knives out of the maincompartment, but their lack doesn’t detract much from this nicely sized bag.

Comfort & Style

Madstad Adjustable Bracket & Windscreen

Even the biggest adventure bikes have minimal wind protection when compared to their touring/sport-touring counterparts. Nobody understands the importance and craft of wind management more than Mark Stadnyk of Madstad Engineering.

Mark’s adjustable solution for the Super Tenere allows approximately three inches of height adjustment with 45 to 70 degrees of slant. We tested his 20” tall windscreen (stock is 16”) and felt it might be a little too large for brisk off-road riding where we’d rather have the visibility, but we were able to tilt the screen back far enough to give us good visibility and noticeably better wind protection at highway speeds.

While we wish the windscreen was sculpted a bit more to provide a sportier look and complement the bike’s inherent lines, there’s almost no better all-in-one solution for getting effective, adjustable wind management for your Super Ten.

RideOnAdv Custom Side-Panels & Folding Shifter Mod

If riding bikes is a statement, then we didn’t want this project to end without a bit of signature bling. RideOnAdv out of Texas will customize your side panel and rear exhaust cover with a slick looking carbon-fiber pattern that adds texture to the Super Ten’s rather flat looking facade.

They’re also one of the few places to get the European Yamaha World Crosser decal kit, shown on our project bike, and frame covers. The RideOnAdv guys aren’t purely cosmetic, though. Also available are their custom wide platform metal foot pegs, side stand feet, and the foldable shift lever seen here. Their commitment to bringing interesting and useful modifications to Super Tens makes them worth checking out if looking to spruce up your ride.

ROX Bar Risers

Just this year Yamaha released the Super Tenere “ES” which, among other things, includes higher handle bars, set slightly farther back. The previous model year’s stock standing geometry had some riders leaning a little too far forward, so we looked to ROX for their highly adjustable riser solution.

The 1-1/8" bar riser with fore/aft adjustability created more than just a better upright geometry. When mixed with the Yoshimura pipe, the& Super Ten’s personality was dramatically changed from mild-mannered adventure tourer to beastly adventure bruiser.

The only improvement we would suggest is knurling the lower knobs so less tension is required on the original bar clamps. Other than that small detail, the ROX risers make a valuable upgrade to the bike’s overall off-road comfort.

Sargent Cycle Saddle

After only 30-plus years of complaining about ass-busting stock saddles, I think it’s safe to say everyone’s backsides have appreciated the slightly more usable seats manufacturers have been providing on newer models. As good as the stock Super Ten saddle is, it could be better and in this case Sargent Cycle came to the table with the heated World Sport Performance Seat.

Aside from a more comfortable shape, more supportive pan, tougher fabrics, nifty red piping and better foam, we also got to test out their heated option in some sub-freezing Appalachian weather. Beware hot pants! Even on very cold days, we could hardly turn the digitally controlled heater up past half-power before getting too warm where the sun don’t shine.

Summary

There’s a lot to like about modern adventure bikes and the Super Tenere is no exception. We’re seeing better standard equipment and safety features off the showroom floor, but there’s always more that the aftermarket can add to not only customize the look of your bike but also to enhance its comfort, safety and performance.

Thanks to the partners who helped make this build possible, the ADVMoto project Super Ten became a headturning, no nonsense adventure freight train, capable of taking a rider through nearly any condition, day or night.

Custom: adventuremotorcycle

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