These five mods or upgrades make the Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports an even better bike!

The last five months with Honda’s enormous adventure tourer have been a real joy. Few bikes I’ve ridden over the years have clicked with me like the Africa Twin. Wonderful engine, classy styling, commanding stance, excellent handling… there’s so much to like.

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• Update one: A camping trip on the ATAS
• Update two: Aftermarket luggage for the ATAS
• Update three: Honda Adventure Centre off-road course
• Update five: 445 miles for cauliflower…

Compared it to its rivals, its OTR price is appealingly cheaper (Ducati’s Multi V4 S is £21,495, BMW’s R1300GS TE is £19,145) – but I’d swap Android Auto for a quickshifter any day. Here are my top five recommendations for making the ATAS as good as it can be.

Quickshifter

Noticeably missing on a flagship big adventure bike – and once fitted, it is so good and makes riding the Africa Twin so much more pleasant that it feels like it really should just come with one installed already.

Sensitivity can be adjusted via a sub-menu on the dash, it works for both up and down-changes (with auto blip for smoothness), and changes feel positive with a sturdy, mechanical snick. Do you need it? Not really, but it’s definitely worth fitting.

Aluminium topbox

Whether carrying gym kit, shopping or just having somewhere to stash your lid so you don’t have to carry it around, I love a topbox and almost always fit one to whatever I’m riding. This 42-litre aluminium Honda box is strong, totally waterproof and has an ignition-matched barrel so you only need one key.

It’s not cheap compared to some aftermarket options but suits the bike’s style and works perfectly. It even has a back cushion for pillion comfort. A must-have.

Centrestand

There’s no easy way to clean, lube or adjust the chain on the ATAS without the centrestand fitted. On a bike this heavy a few extra kilos for the ease of maintenance is totally worth it. Ground clearance isn’t an issue, and it’s not as difficult to lift onto it as you might think, given the Africa Twin’s heft and size.

It also makes cleaning those glorious gold wheels and getting between the spokes so much easier and faster.

Dunlop Trailmax Raid tyres

OE Bridgestone A41s were superb and if I only used it on the road I’d have no hesitation replacing like for like. But I do like to wander off onto a trail now and again, and the 50/50 adventure touring Dunlop Trailmax – fitted to all of Honda’s off-road school bikes – are superb.

There’s a loud Tie Fighter sounding whine from the front, and the first 10 miles or so were like riding on greased ice. But once scrubbed they’re excellent, and open up the opportunity to explore further.

Android dongle

Well known to Africa Twin, NT1100 and Gold Wing owners, the Android Auto system on the Honda is a bit temperamental. The wired connection is poor, giving an intermittent signal, causing all sorts of frustration with the screen and menus.

There are loads of dongles on the market and they fix the problem instantly. Your phone connects to it via Bluetooth and it works perfectly all the time. You’ll lose your USB socket though. Please Honda, just make it wireless in the first place.