BORN FROM DAKAR SUCCESS

In the year 1983, the Dakar Rally was still in its infancy. However, its huge popularity and success had already been noticed by Yamaha and other manufacturers. It was time to introduce a new design of bike. One that would capture the adventurous spirit of offroad riding but also that of long distance touring. Hence the Yamaha XT600Z Tenere was born. This 600cc thumper would prove to be immensely reliable, simple to work on and capable off long distance adventure riding through any terrain. Over the next decade the XT600 Tenere would have four evolutions before finally being replaced by the 660 Tenere. However, these bikes remain popular and desirable across Europe with prices rising and numerous experts to service the large, devoted following. On this page you will find a history of the XT600Z, workshop manuals and downloads, FAQs and an extensive bank of knowledge.

 

FAQS AND POINTS OF INTEREST

REBUILD – RESTORE – MAINTAIN

(Coming Soon) Seen as I maintain around 5 XTs, I spend a lot of time tinkering in the garage. So I decided to write a number of articles showing specific restoration projects in a new section called “The Workshop”. There you will find a number of high quality walk through articles, step by step guides and videos of various maintenance, rebuild and restoration projects for my XT600Z builds and projects along with other bikes that I have a liking to, mainly Yamaha XTs. Follow the button below to check out what I am up to in the workshop.

MY YAMAHA XT600Z TENERE

I bought my first Yamaha XT600Z Tenere 3AJ after discussing my dream bikes during a successful client meeting at work. That evening I found one for sale on Ebay and bought it! It needed a complete cosmetic restoration as it had been tired for quite some time. However, it had a big bore XT600e 3Tb engine already completely rebuilt. I decided to restore the bike into the Chesterfield design as a replica of Ingo Lochert’s Dakar Rally replicas. Since then, I have become a little obsessed with the XT, purchasing two more Yamaha XT600Z Tenere and an XT600e. Do I have any plans to stop? No. I’ve barely started. Checkout my XT’s here for some inspiration for your own restoration project!

YAMAHA XT600 TENERE MANUALS & RESOURCES

GALLERY