too, with lots of clearance and grippy
tyres, noticeably unlike the 350.
Fun for sure, but better watch it. Lost
points are lost points these days, even
when you lose them in Tasmania.
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lot of engineering input from England
including the completely new frame and
suspension. Even riding down to the
ferry at Port Melbourne demonstrated
the effect of the changes. The bike
rode comfortably over tram lines and
chopped-up tar, and then the steel
bridge leading to the ferry’s belly.
Once we’d rolled off the ferry at the
other end, we took the highway to
Launceston and, after checking out
the National Motor Museum (we were
researching for a story on Tasmanian
motorcycle museums, to be published
here soon) over to the coast and then
down to Hobart. A combination of
tar and gravel followed, across the top
and down to Queenstown, Strahan and
Burnie before returning to Devonport.
Rob and I shared duties on the
Himalayan and an MV Agusta Turismo
(you’ll read a review of that here soon,
too) but I managed to put in plenty of
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quite a bit of gravel. It wasn’t all high-
pressure fun like my dice with the
Holden out of Queenstown. But I’m
sure I didn’t have to make allowances
for the bike’s limited capacity and
power very often. The Himalayan
responds sweetly to the throttle and
the more than adequate supply of
torque means that you are rarely if ever
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For a so-called adventure bike, the
Himalayan is remarkably versatile.
That’s helped by the reasonably low
seat, which makes it accessible to a
wide variety of riders, and the low
weight. The 15-litre tank contributes to
that – it’s big enough to give a decent
range without adding in too much
weight. The fuel gauge is a little erratic,
but I imagine you would learn to cope
with that. The frame has provision for
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and well-balanced, making it potentially
just right for commuting. A useful rack
with effective bungee points is standard,
as are the crash bars on either side of
TOUR TEST