The MCN Test - sub £10k globetrotters: Honda Transalp vs KTM 790 Adventure

Updated: 09 November 2023

Certain price bands have a mental barrier attached to them. That’s why £9999 sounds so much better than £10,000.

And that’s why it was so crucial for both Honda and KTM to keep their latest adventure offerings below £10k. And because they have managed to do this it makes Yamaha’s Ténéré 700 (£10,110), Suzuki’s V-Strom 800DE (£10,655), Aprilia’s Tuareg 660 (£10,450) and BMW’s F850GS (£10,750) seem expensive.

While it’s only a few hundred quid here and there, the 790 Adventure and Transalp feel like bargains. But have corners been cut to hit this price? Let’s find out…

By Jon Urry

MCN contributor, original 916 & R1-owner, human Labrador, thoroughly nice bloke. Working for over 20 years in the motorcycle industry, Jon not only has an encyclopaedic knowledge of bikes, but has also interviewed many key players in the motorcycle industry, including designers, factory bosses and legendary racers. Still a passionate motorcyclist with child-like enthusiasm for two-wheels, Jon has a collection of both modern and classic bikes that he maintains himself and he writes a weekly column in MCN (newspaper) about used bikes and the state of the motorcycle market.