FZ-07 Powered Yamaha Super Ténéré Spotted

It looks like Yamaha is getting ready to bring an updated Tiny Ténéré to market (photos here), giving ADV riders a new middleweight option in the Yamaha lineup. This is because spy photos from Europe show what looks like a adventure-tourer, powered by the 689cc FZ-07 parallel-twin engine.

If we do see a Yamaha XT700ZE enter the market, it would be a welcomed compliment to the 1200cc Yamaha Super Ténéré, and help the Japanese brand compete in the increasingly competitive ADV market, especially against brands that already have a ~800cc adventure model available.

While the past decade or so has seen the rise of 1,000cc+ machines in the ADV category, 2016 is marking a point in time where OEMs finally listen to the call from adventure riders for smaller machines.

Already we have seen Big Red gearing up to release its Honda CRF250 Rally, with a 450cc model based on the Dakar Rally racer expected as well.

Other rumors also suggest that Honda is working on a middleweight ADV bike, to compliment the Honda Africa Twin, which could bring back the Dominator name to off-road riding.

Thanks to the versatility in Yamaha’s FZ/MT line, we are seeing a variety of bikes emerging from the Iwata brand, all of which use the same power plant, but in very different model segments.

This FZ-07 powered machines looks a little too raw to be a 2017 model, but we would expect it to drop in time for the 2018 model year, perhaps in mid-2017. Stay tuned.