CYCLE Torque has previously tested the Tiger 800XC and its slightly 'softer' sibling, the Tiger 800 before.
We think they are both great bikes and when the chance came up to take an 800XC on our adventure trip we jumped at it.

If you want to read the full tests of either bike check out the April and May editions of Cycle Torque.

The guts
What makes the guts of a good adventure bike?
We reckon a torquey engine, good ground clearance, not too much weight, capable suspension and decent luggage capacity.
Of course there's much more to it but the Tiger 800XC has been a great first time effort for the English company, and all the above bases have been covered well enough.

Our test bike came with all the fruit. You don't normally get that when you buy a Tiger but you can spec it up to a full tilt adventure tourer before you leave the dealership if you so wish.

Because it's a new machine on the market it will take some time for the aftermarket adventure touring companies to offer products but it's already happening.
Two of Cycle Torque's advertisers are working on it already. Rideworx has Barkbusters and Storm hand guards (check them out on our Bike Stuff pages this issue), and Adventure Moto is working hard on a range of gear also.

Genuine accessories
Standard the XC retails at: $16,290 + ORC and the gear it came with adds just over $1600 to the price. For what you get the accessory prices are very reasonable.
Panniers: $1195
Tail pack seat bag: $234
Tank bag: $198
Tank bag harness: $95.99
Sump guard: $234
Headlight protector: $71.98
Dry roll bag: $126

All the luggage accessories are waterproof (some with plastic covers), and offer some decent carrying capacity. The seat bag offers 50 litres, the panniers 62 litres combined, the tank bag 20 litres, and the waterproof roll bag a massive 40 litres. You can also get pannier inner bags so you can leave the panniers on the bike and just carry the inner bags to your room, or tent. As you can see, fully kitted out the 800XC had some serious luggage capacity.

There's no doubt Triumph has priced the 800XC sharply to compete with more established adventure bikes. All up, the bike we tested with the accessories would cost you around $20,750 ride away brand new.

Before the trip
The team at Brisans in Newcastle had prepared our Tiger for the trip, and also fitted it with Metzeler Karoo dual sport tyres. The Karoos looked aggressive but we had reservations on how long they would last trying to harness the 800XC's torque on the tar. While these tyres are primarily designed to cope best in the dirt they still work well on the road. Of course if you are pushing hard the tyres will 'walk' on its knobs a bit.

After he left 'Brisans' in Newcastle, our tester Ron Young did a few extra miles on the way home to get used to the bike.
He rang later to inform us he liked the bike but thought the extra weight of the gear made the handling a bit iffy, and the tyres could grip better on the road. He also spent some time playing with the mounting of some of the luggage just to get them to his liking for the big trip.

That's what you get with an ex-road racer who works on bikes for a living.
The seat is adjustable for height: 845 or 865mm. Ron had it at the lowest setting to suit his stumpy legs.
Later we would have to just about hit him over the head to pry him off his 'beloved' Tiger.
Don't worry, we thought about it a few times.

Part 2 August 2011 Issue

AS AN all-round bike the Triumph Tiger 800XC is one of the best on the market. Its 800cc three cylinder engine isn't a powerhouse, but it doesn't have to be, it has one of the most comfortable seats around, and the suspension is designed to cope with our crap roads. On top of that you can explore our country's nether regions where most bikes would fear to tread.
When compared to the other bikes on the tour, the Tiger was probably the second most road oriented bike, behind the Moto Guzzi. In this field the bike is a real pearler. Not only can it cruise easily at well over the national speed limit, the rider does it in comfort.

Combined with the genuine touring accessories that came with our test bike, the Tiger 800 is a real all-roads tour de force.
Where shorter riders will be wary of the tall seat heights on many of the adventure bikes around, the Tiger combats that with a seat height that's adjustable. It's not that high in the tallest position (865mm) anyway.
Fitted with aggressive Metzeler Karoo tyres the bike handled better than most expected on the dirt. I had already attended the Tiger 800XC and Tiger 800 launches and knew well what the bike could do, so I wasn't surprised. Even the standard 800 with its cast alloy 19"/17" wheel combo works well in the dirt, so the XC with its 21" front wheel (both are spoked) can only be better.

With the alloy panniers, seat bag, roll bag and tank bag all full the bike knew it was carrying it. Any difference in power wasn't really noticeable but you could notice the difference on the dirt.
In the first instalment of the story we mentioned one of the guys on the trip would earmark the bike as his own during the trip. Ron reluctantly handed over the keys at times but generally it was his bum on the seat. The funny thing is, he wasn't that keen on the bike after his first day on it. As the trip wore on he became much more at home on the bike and when he did try others he couldn't wait to get back on the Tiger. He is usually a very harsh judge of bike character but fell in love with the Tiger.

By the time we had done a few thousand kilometres the rear Karoo was all but stuffed. It would last the trip but the last couple of days had us expecting a puncture. On the run into Hill End along the Bridle Track, Ron showed us all a clean pair of heels. He's not an experienced adventure rider as such, and it highlighted perfectly how good the suspension is on the XC, and how the friendly nature of the engine allows riders to crack along at a deceptively quick pace.

On the final sprint home, Ron gave the bike its head on a country road he calls his 'test track', commenting it was one of the best bikes he's ever ridden along there.
Everyone on the trip who rode the XC gave the bike a big rap. On the road and on dirt roads it performed very well. When the tracks get narrower, get big rocks or deep sand you'll have to be a good rider to get the best out of the Tiger 800 because realistically it's starting to get out of its element in such conditions. You could say the same about pretty much any big capacity adventure tourer though because of the sheer size of such machines. Inexperienced adventure riders aren't meant to be taking these types of bikes into really tough conditions.

For Triumph's first serious attempt at a proper adventure bike it's a top effort.