HONDA CRF1000L DCT AFRICA TWIN

If your aim is to ride like an expert, the Honda Africa Twin DCT will definitely get you close to that goal. There are many aspects of this motorcycle that is innovative. To start I would say let’s look at the comfort and ride-ability

On first glance it may seem big and heavy for some riders. But it’s surprisingly not. The different seat height settings suit short and tall riders comfortably.  The weight of the Africa Twin is incredibly well balanced. This allows for predictable, slow riding weight distribution for controlled turning

Seat height (mm)	870/850mm (STD position / Low position)
Claimed KERB weight (kg)	242

The styling really caught my attention.  Although it’s hugely modernised with metallics and non-metallics to choose form, Honda managed to keep some original style features that reminds us of the past. Overall your choice is either majority red, or majority white with some blue, black and gold touches. The dual headlights on the Honda Africa Twin is also stunning and extremely efficient.

Frame material

Steel semi-double cradle type with high-tensile strength steel rear sub frame

One key feature that everyone is talking about is the DCT.  This stands for Duel Clutch Transmission.  How it works in short, is basically the same as an automatic car.  On a motorcycle it’s a little more difficult when you realise there is no clutch to use or gear lever to shift up and down. But once you understand how it works, its great fun.  The clutch itself is actually two separate clutches. The one clutch will be engaging while the other one is disengaging.  This is helpful for smooth gear changing.  Part of this is all the different modes you get to choose from.  There is the D mode and three different S modes.  D mode is basically for in town casual riding.  The different S modes allow for the type of riding that suits you.  The higher you choose to go into the S modes the more aggressive the gear changing will become.  There is one special feature that I call the ‘thumb changer’.  This is the button on the left handle bar that allows you to manually change a gear up or down even while you are in one of the modes.  This is great because it allows for more control. If you are the type of rider who prefer full control, then there is the ‘manual’ option that allows you to change up and down with your left hand for your own comfort at any time

Drive	O-ring sealed chain
Gearbox	6-Speed DCT
Capacity (cc)	998cm3
Power (KW)	70 @ 7,500rpm
Torque (NM)	98 @ 6,000rpm

It’s important to understand that the DCT responds to RPM.  This means that you will have to be braking or accelerating before it will start shifting gears.  If you generally prefer to gear down before you brake, you may need to do it manually because there is no way the system will know to do this without RPM dropping.   In the case that you want to do more technical off-road riding.  You may also experience a challenge with the upshifting when it comes to getting the front-end light for climbing over obstacles.  You may be riding slowly and getting ready to climb a curb or something, but instead the DCT may shift a gear up.  This will stop your momentum and ultimately keep the weight on the front wheel when you really want the opposite.  The plus side to this however is that you can at any time shift manually when needed.  Because the gear shifting is so smooth you will find that it does not upset the handling (chassis) at all.

Tyres (f)	90/90-R21 tube type
Tyres (r)	150/70-R18 tube type
Wheels	Front: 21 x 2.15 wire spoke with aluminium rim. Rear: 19 x MT4.00 wire spoke with aluminium rim
WheelBase (mm)	1,575mm

Another amazing feature is the tilt sensor.  This detects the angle that you are riding in, for example it detects if you are going up or down a hill.  If you are going uphill the DCT will hold the gear longer allowing you to use the torque. If you are descending, it will allow for more engine braking.  Then lastly we have to mention the ‘G’ mode.  This is fantastic and for maximum traction on the gravel.  This is most welcome when you have the all-new 4-stroke 1000cc parallel twin engine with 98Nm of torque to enjoy

Engine configuration	Liquid-cooled 4-stroke 8-valve Parallel Twin with 270° crank and uni-cam
Capacity (cc)	998cm3
Tank capacity (l)	18.8 litres
Service intervals	12000km

The Honda CRF 1000L DCT Africa Twin DCT price is R 189,999 currently in South Arica with a 2 Year warranty

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