Honda has made changes to the newest Africa Twin Adventure Sports to enhance its cornering prowess

Honda’s Africa Twin has always been the most committed of big-bore Japanese adventure bikes. Blessed from its beginning in 2016 with a true dirt bike-like 21-inch front wheel and a vast suspension travel — not to mention almost comically soft springing — Honda’s big soft-roader focussed mostly on the adventure part of the ADV equation and a little less on the touring. 

And bona fide were its off-road credentials. I can remember jumping logs and busting berms on the first-gen AT and thinking that such silliness really shouldn’t be possible with something that — back in the day — boasted 998-cc.

Absent, however, was the sporty on-road handling so many expect from the adventure tourers these days. Its ultra-skinny 21-inch tire, so blessed off-road, really screws with the big Honda’s steering. Trail-braking into a corner, for instance, was a no-no. Its super-soft front suspension — again, so good off road — caused the front end to dive like a German U-boat spotting Johnny Walker (no, not the drink, but the most successful anti-submarine commander in the Battle of the Atlantic). 

And if that wasn’t enough, the big wheels and abundant travel raised the seat to BMW R-Series Adventure levels. A 2018 version of the Adventure Sports, then still running on the extended suspension and the 21-inch front wheel, stretched anywhere from 900 to 920-mm — depending on which seating option you chose — from tarmac to your gluteus medius. If your legs were not Daddy Long, you were on some serious tippy toes. 

Brought Down Closer to Earth

No more. Or at least no more if you opt for the revised-for-2024 Adventure Sports version of the Africa Twin. For one thing, the AS’s suspension travel has been reduced. What was once totally berm-busting — 230-mm up front and a nearly-as-substantial 220-mm in the back — has been reduced by 20-mm at both ends. Both reductions bring the seat — not to mention the centre of gravity — closer to terra firma.

And, for the first time, the AT, again in Adventure Sports guise, rides on more conventional rubber. Oh, the rear rim is a still a dirt-bike friendly 18-inches, but up front, there’s now a more street-oriented 19 incher. 

And, if that isn’t a big enough clue as to the new Africa Twin’s intent, Bridgestone’s latest Battlax tires — Adventure A41s — look like they’ll be a lot happier clipping an apex than berm. The Africa Twin, now approaching the ripe old age of 10, has finally gone mainstream. There have…