This must be one of the most anticipated motorcycles for 2016. With bringing out a new model carrying the same name as the legendary Africa Twin, there was a lot of pressure on Honda to get it right, and get it right they most certainly did. This bike is everything old Africa Twin riders would want from the new bike and more. This is the ultimate big Adventure bike if exploring on dirt is your priority. What it says on the packaging it most definitely is.
I was excited to hear about the new Africa Twin and hoped that Honda would do what Porsche has done with the 911. By this I mean that Honda would keep on working on the same model, just tweaking and adjusting it a little as the years roll by. The hassle for Honda is that many years have passed since the last Africa Twin rolled off the production line and there have been various incarnations of what the Adventure rider out there wants, or should I say what some design guys in the R&D department think the Adventure rider out there wants. Think of the Transalp 700 (in my opinion the most underrated adventure bike on the market) and the Crosstourer V4 which has battled to make its presence felt in the SA Adventure scene. I was immediately apprehensive when I heard Honda had moved away from the V-twin to a parallel twin because surely the V-twin is the essence of the Africa Twin and is the heart of the machine. Thank goodness my pre-determined negative assumption was cast aside the moment I started the new bike. Honda has put in a 270 degree crank and the new bike sounds and feels just like the old V-twin, just much, much better in every respect.
South Africa was the chosen destination for the international launch of this new model; fitting I thought as the name kind of dictates that. The Western Cape was chosen and the routes were very cleverly laid out by the SA ADA team. This bike has two very distinct personalities (road and dirt) and then sub-personalities (in the form of the DCT gearbox versus the manual one) and I thought they did a very good job in showcasing the Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde personalities. For instance when I did my first lap of the off-road loop I personally thought the ADA team had set the bar quite high for the average rider. The route was made up of many rocky climbs and loads of sand which are not normally a big, heavy Adventure bike’s friend. Afterwards I realised that the bike is in fact so capable of handling this kind of terrain that I needed to reprogram my mind’s perception of what I thought an Adventure bike was capable of. This is actually a heavy plastic (read Enduro) bike, much like the 990 KTM was.
The “go anywhere” approach starts with the engine which has to perform in off-road situations as well as on-road long range touring, and all areas in between. The CRF1000L Africa Twin’s 1000cc (998) parallel twin power plant draws heavily from Honda’s off-road race experience in the form of the CRF450R competition machine, and uses the same four-valve Unicam head design for compact overall dimensions. A lightweight cast camshaft - using the same materials as the CBR1000RR Fireblade - operates the valve train, and twin spark plugs fire the fuel/air mixture in each combustion chamber. Strong and linear power and torque deliver instant response anywhere in the rev-range - accompanied by a satisfying, characterful deep growl as the revs per minute rise. A 270° phased crankshaft gives the power delivery a distinct character as well as delivering excellent feel for rear wheel traction, while biaxial primary balance shafts cancel vibration. The claimed figure of 70kW (94hp) @ 7,500rpm and 98Nm @ 6,000 rpm does not sound as if they are going to set the world on fire but the tractability and smooth power delivery quickly makes you realise that chasing horsepower figures is actually not that important with this kind of bike, again my negative pre- assumption squashed! 
The engine’s short height contributes to the CRF1000L Africa Twin’s excellent ground clearance - another prerequisite for a true Adventure machine. It also uses clever packaging of componentry to both dynamic and aesthetic effect. The water pump is housed within the clutch casing, and the water and oil pumps are driven by a shared balancer shaft. Further reducing engine size is the lower crankcase design, which stores the oil and houses the pressure-fed pump. When riding the bike, especially in tight technical stuff, the weight centred between the two footrests with a narrow seat makes this bike incredibly rideable.
Where do I even start with the gearbox? Firstly there is a standard 6-speed manual bike, for you guys who really want absolutely no frills and Honda will even sell you an Africa Twin with no ABS or any fancy traction controls so this will be the base model. This bike will find a place with riders who don’t care too much for the benefits of electronic technology and just want an old Africa Twin, but just a better one. And this bike is exactly that; it’s the old bike but better in every way. Let me try to explain what the DCT is like to ride: For the guys who were born in the dark ages, DCT stands for Dual Clutch Technology. It’s been around in the car world for quite some time now with brands like VW, BMW and Porsche to name a few but, more recently, it’s been in the biking world and Honda’s biking world more specifically for the last few years, albeit more in road biased bikes. Which makes you wonder if there is a place for an automatic bike in the off-road world? Before you answer this, think how good an automatic 4x4 vehicle is in mud and sand, fantastic hey? Well, again I was proved wrong with my pre-determined conclusions. On the loop that I mentioned earlier, I had my hands full selecting the correct gear when sand stretches surprised me or when climb gradients were steeper and more slippery than anticipated and I can honestly say it is good to have one less thing to think about. The advances in this technology are vast and this is definitely not the old DCT system. Also if you want a purely manual system to change gears only when you want to, you can switch it to manual and then toggle up and down the gearbox on the handlebar or opt for the additional foot selector lever (not advised). Alternatively, switch the gearbox to S (sport) and then select one of three settings depending on how quickly you want the gear changes to be executed. In addition to this you can select the G button on the dash. No one says what G stands for, or knows for that matter but the Japanese engineers hinted that the word gravel was used a lot while sorting out the functionality of this button. What it does is make the bite of the next gear happen suddenly so that if you are a sport rider you can get the rear to step out controllably, as you would on a manual gearbox. Additionally and refreshing is that in this world of complex on board computers, you can immediately select between three traction control settings or switch the system off by a flick of your index finger on the left. It’s so easy and you can do it on the fly so other manufacturers need to take note because this is what we want. In conclusion with this DCT gearbox, it makes riding off-road easier than the manual one because, as I said before, you have one less thing to think about. In automatic mode it learns the way you ride and adapts to you, should you want one lower gear approaching a corner you just pop it down with your thumb. This will make Adventure riding easier to access for people with limited skill; you basically do have a manual if you want, you just do not have a clutch. The only thing I had against it was that you most probably could not wheelie it when dropping the clutch like on a manual bike but I’m sure there will be guys out there that could, but that is the sum total of my list of gripes!
For off-road durability, the 2016 Africa Twin has good ground clearance, an aluminium skid plate, and a double-cradle frame made of high-tensile steel. With a minimum of parts that stick out, plus a relatively narrow cross-section, the Africa Twin has been designed with real-world dirt use in mind. There’s 231mm of front suspension travel, and 221mm in the rear. Compression and rebound are adjustable front and rear, and rear spring preload can be altered to accommodate changing loads. Seat height of the Africa Twin’s standard adjustable saddle is a lofty 87.1cm, but an accessory low version drops that level to 82cm and you get a higher option as well. All of these seats still have two height settings, so you can find a setting that matches your height exactly.
With the dirt in mind, Honda has equipped the 2016 CRF1000L Africa Twin with wire-spoke wheels and tube tyres, plus hollow aluminium axles, wave-style brake rotors, and rubber-mounted aluminium handlebars. Its inverted forks are adjustable and use dual radial-mount Nissin four-piston brake callipers and 310mm wave-style floating discs. The Showa rear shock has a hydraulic spring pre-load adjustment. Like the CRF450R Rally, Honda say the CRF1000L Africa Twin uses 21” front and 18” rear spoked rims shod with 90/90-21 and 150/70-18 tyres. The air filters can be accessed without removing the fuel tank. Lastly, that upright windscreen which is not adjustable in height is designed to minimise buffeting at highway speed and although it is fairly small it is very effective. I found it refreshing that it is rock solid even on off-road excursions. Up front you have bright LED headlights and a big Dakar-like electronic instrument cluster. I loved the cockpit seat and what was around me. Typical high end solid Honda and the bike just makes you feel like tackling some dunes.
"No fewer than 32 patents have been applied for on this innovative model, and its specifications surpass the competition in several important areas. We know our customers have been hungry for a no-compromise, do-it-all Adventure bike, and we’re confident that the Africa Twin fits the bill.” This was said by Mr Nakamura San head of Honda SA.
In conclusion, have Honda got it right? Is their bike too heavy and has it got too little power? Is there a place for an automatic adventure bike? The answer is a resounding yes and expect to see a lot of these bikes on the road or off the road soon. Prices are estimated around the base model at approximately R160k based on European pricing. I’d say that’s about bang on considering our failing rand value. Place your order now at a Honda dealer near you as I can see a long backorder list.
If Honda can do this with their Africa Twin, imagine what they could do with their old Blackbird! Imagine a 1200cc fire-breathing V4 or, better still, a V5. 
