This is a precious video for them because on test drives you don't get to find these types of problems. It would be good if they got in touch with you to adress those problems specially the ones that are simple like the exhaust and bashplate in order to further develop the machine.
Johannes, great video useful feedback on this remarkable bike. Re the rear brake, you will be able to adjust it quite a bit on that Rose joint ( be careful not to screw it out too far though so it pops out! ) but how about braided steel hoses throughout? I have found they make a big difference in decreasing sponginess.
Nice to see this bike getting some good press. Well sorted dual sports are expensive to build so it's great to see a company get it right from the factory.
Great review at this point (4000ish KM) Johannes. I agree on all the above even with only 1500 KM on my new PR7. Skid plate issue...its a crap way to mount something that is meant to absorb the whole weight of the bike in a big smack. One 10mm bolt in front and a tab in rear. The plate itself looks good, just needs some brackets welded to it where it can clamp to frame. I'm already looking at solutions to this problem. Tires; took off the original Michelins and put Heidenau K60 Rangers on for now. Original tire is only good for off road...its a mild Enduro tire, but still totally off road focused and horrible of course on the road. The rear brakes are strong and I was always on the edge of lockup in town in Italy especially when those tires where new. Totally able to control but in an emergency stop you'd be screwed on the road. Again, not the bike or tires fault. I think they put those on because they look cool from new and most owners burn through them in a few weeks and replace with a more practical ADV tire solution. Had a few loose bolts; checked with rubber hammer every day after riding for loose bolts. No issue with brake or exhaust fitment on mine....yet. Headlights are total crap like you said. Why not add a set of good LED lights and raise price a bit???? I'll be changing those out. I had to follow my friend on a Yamaha XSR125 that has a great stock LED headlight because I couldn't see anything one night in Italy. Fuel filler issue, yes I had other riders laughing at me saying, "Jack, we'll go next door and get a coffee and ice cream while you fill up". I will add the raised filler like you have. No way to fix this issue but at least with an aftermarket screw on filler you don't have the fight with the stock one. Having to pry off a filler cap is just dumb on a bike like this and such an easy fix from the factory!! Other than those issues I love the bike. I haven't had a big thumper in years and going from all my mid to large ADV bikes to this is a revelation. So easy to move around and I'm back to attacking stuff I gave up on years ago with the bigger bikes. Yes, miss the 2 cylinder engines, but otherwise I'm really enjoying this bike so far and everywhere I stop people are taking pictures and asking questions. I'm taking it to the Touratech Active Adventure in September and the Enduro Action Team race in October so we will see how she does at those events. Also taking her to the MX track this weekend for some training and fun on her. Overall I think I will use this bike for daily commute, rally events and some shorter travel and use the bigger bikes for big travel and more road focused stuff. Cheers and have a good vacation after the vacation. GSJack
ADV ENG in Australia do a great radiator brace / guard for the AJP. Also have other great products. Not sure if they ship OS. There is an adjustment bolt under the rear brake pedal pivot point where you can change the pedal height. Don't need to adjust at master cylinder.
Hej Johannes, Another great video. For what is worth, I have added radiator guards on my AJP as well as hard plastic engine guards. I have crashed several times on my local enduro track. So far the bike has has held up great, minor breaks on the plastics excluded. I also faced the same issue on the rear brake. I have the doma exhaust. It was quite the shock, because I suddenly didn’t have a rear brake and I only found out when I really needed it. Anyways, it is a very easy fix of adjusting the brake needle. As the brake pads wear out, the brake lever has to travel a greater distance. Now I do this adjustment every time I go over the chain, every ca 300km. I hope you enjoyed your vacation in my old home country!
Great recap! I'm still pending to watch the full Balkans video. Looking forward to it! FYI - The Doma exhaust by itself does very little to address the swingarm rub issue. If you remember mine, it had eaten up the swingarm quite severely in a short amount of time. Perhaps with the spacer it'll be better. In any case, the swingarm cleaned up very nicely with little sanding and polishing compound. Enjoy Greece!
Hi Johannes, nice update. My 2023 doesn't have the exhaust issue tho I did put the power up on after 1k kms.. I looked into crash bars and all the Oz guys said the aluminum ones bend easy and all you need are the ADV Eng radiator guards - so I got them. Really really impressed - solid lightweight protection and can highly recommend as the solution. My rear brake locks up fine from that height - likely needs a good bleeding 😊
Thanks for the update Johannes. My AJP had the same issue with the rubbing of the swingarm. I am in the process of claiming warranty on it, but the response time is very slow. They told me from the importer here in my country to prepare for a denial on my warranty claim from the factory in Portugal, because it was probably my fault, since I must have taken a hard fall or had another big impact on it. This is not true! My local dealer, from which I purchased the AJP, has been great about it. He had a spare header unit + muffler lying around, as another customer did the exhaust upgrade from Doma. Problem solved immediately. So there must be some faulty header systems being placed from factory, that are just not aligned right. Concerning the weak headlights: I bought the LED unit from Adventure Men Cave, very easy to install. Great solution for better visibility.
Nice stuff Johannes. This radiators are just crying out for a home brewed solution, as is the bash plate. Kindly ship the bike to Australia and I’ll take care of these upgrades while you are in Crete. 😊
Crashbars: crosspro manufacture one for the PR7, it is aluminum, so its light. However it won't fit on the standard version because the lambda sensor is in the way. (Fits on the extreme one though) Lights: I installed LSK lights, they are bright, very good (and expensive), but there are cheaper led solutions there.
Nice early review Johannes, interesting. We experienced the rear brake pedal issue as well on the 4 day test ride this summer as well. It got as bad that we had remove the rear wheel and motion the caliper pistons as well. We tried to adjust the the pedal travel, but there wasn't enough adjustability. But after the caliper motion it got function as new again. Good to know aboutvthe radiator as well, the 690 had the same issue as well with a very exposed radiator and as well a cooling fan that famaged the radiator (could be fixed with distance washers). Happy Trails man. What endurobrace did You do?
If my memory serves me correctly, and just check the forums, but maybe braided brake hoses and race brake fluid. Rear brake is tricky to adjust. I think Adv Man Cave (as well as Thork of course) sell replacement light kits.
The concern of radiator protection is valid. However, increasing the bike's weight by mounting metal crash bars is not necessary. If you are concerned regarding the weight gain, radiator guards made of carbon fibre are the best option (Oakleaf Engineering, Bielefeld, Germany).
Interesting finding... Can you get aluminum radiator braces/guards? Then you won't need heavy steel tubing which besides adding weight may not even protect the radiators...
My friend who sells motorbikes sold me the AJP PR 7 first and I was happy after changing some parts and doing some work on it. Same colleague also represents KOVE and he recommended me that I must try the KOVE 450 Rally and I did. And I immediately sold the AJP PR 7 and bought a KOVE 450 Rally and to be honest it surprised me and for me personally it is much better for off road compared to the AJP PR 7. I have no problems with it. And fortunately, all the modification parts that are available are very affordable. I also had the seat improved, which is otherwise (after 3 to 4 hours) as hard as a wooden board.
@@miro_s Known Issues: • Too much pressure is building up in the fuel tanks o Doing the fuel cap modification should alleviate this. • Posts in airbox air filter frame can break free from the plate causing them to spin freely. o JB Weld applied at the base of the post where it meets the plate should fix this. • Coolant Overflow reservoir cap • Wheel/Tire Balance o Front tire comes horribly unbalanced • Inaccurate fuel gauge o The consensus so far has been that doing the cannister delete and venting the fuel caps mostly resolve the issue. • Non-Pro model front turn signals interfere with removing the front fairing quickly. o Remove and install waterproof connectors • Oil cooler upper right banjo leaking o Check that it is tight when assembling the bike • There is no sight glass to check oil level
That is very interesting, thanks for sharing and the informative comment regarding the Kove below. I haven't had the chance to ride the Kove yet, but if it is as good as you say I can't wait! I'm having a blast on the PR7 and it honestly feels like a heavy dirt bike, so if the Kove is significantly better, I'm excited!
Thanks! Looking at this bike here in the States and really appreciate these perspectives. I must admit that I'm surprised by the exhaust interference with the swing arm and the brake pedal? Also, was that 2 point bash plate stock? Cheers from the mountains and canyons of Utah!
can someone who owns pr7 tell me how it is looking in terms of getting OEM parts? e.g. IF I destroy radiator, do I have to order it from Portugal and wait 1 month or more for dlivery or how it is looking
Hey Johannes! Hope you’re ok. Wanted to ask, do you miss a twin bike in your garage? At the moment I’m rethinking my garage, sold everything but a 701, will soon buy an enduro (prob husqvarna TE), and find myself considering whether on not I want a twin adventure bike…
Hey man! Good question, and from time to time I do. A garage with multiple bikes is "the best way", but at the same time we can only take one bike at a time. I find myself looking at more street oriented bikes instead of an adv twin. I too will get a proper enduro bike sooner or later. I have an old HD that I take out on sunny sundays just for the fun of it, and I find that covers most local tarmac jobs, for the the rest a 701/PR7 is currently enough. Keep in mind that I've started to trailer my bike to the trails now, and the need for street comfort is out of the picture.
This is a question I probably should make a video about. To be honest these two bikes are so similar that either one would work great, but I enjoy the PR7 more than the 701 - mostly geometry, nicer seat and better suspension.
@@JohannesDalen many thanks to you! I have followed your steps. First T7 now the 701. 701 is a great bike but I it is very difficult to access and fuel pump (requires dumping fuel) and engine is very hard to get to. I like the easy access of the pr7 motor, airbox location for water crossing, longer suspension, no electronics to go wrong abs/traction and it comes out of the box cheaper than everything required to build the 701. Would be great to hear your thoughts on this too
The PR7 is simpler in every way, no doubt about it. It's made to be worked on. However, you need to understand what you're getting into when buying a PR7. You're pretty much on your own if anything happens, and it is known to having some issues here and there (all bikes are though, and nothing major that comes to mind). Can you test ride one?
A mojito in your hand? Don’t you mean Coca Cola Zero? 😂 For a guy that claims you can drink a Dane under the table you don’t practice enough 😂 Great little status update on the PR7. I can reveal that I rode Johannes’ PR7 for a full day in Slovenia, it was like using cheat codes compared to my T7 when the stuff got rough. An amazing bike, and I actually gained a lot of confidence in my riding skills that I could apply once I got back in my T7. Thank you again for an amazing trip to the Balkans, enjoy Crete and your Coca Cola Zero 🥳😂❤️
@@JohannesDalen you are too professional an athlete to indulge yourself in Mojitos, no shame in that, maybe I should take a page from your book, it might help me on the climbs and when I have to lift my bike on my own 😂
That's why I chose powerlifting, we can be fat and strong at the same time! On our next trip you'll be on an exc 500, so you don't need any help. You heard it here first!
just get some radiator braces and be done - rads are not cheap but braces are and will also mean you don't need heavy bars - as for these stupid build failures, i cannot believe after so many years they are still selling these bikes with such idiosyncracies... they are losing sales because of this ignorance to fails that they have known about since before the 1st bike was sold
This is a precious video for them because on test drives you don't get to find these types of problems. It would be good if they got in touch with you to adress those problems specially the ones that are simple like the exhaust and bashplate in order to further develop the machine.
Johannes, great video useful feedback on this remarkable bike. Re the rear brake, you will be able to adjust it quite a bit on that Rose joint ( be careful not to screw it out too far though so it pops out! ) but how about braided steel hoses throughout? I have found they make a big difference in decreasing sponginess.
Nice to see this bike getting some good press. Well sorted dual sports are expensive to build so it's great to see a company get it right from the factory.
Great review at this point (4000ish KM) Johannes. I agree on all the above even with only 1500 KM on my new PR7. Skid plate issue...its a crap way to mount something that is meant to absorb the whole weight of the bike in a big smack. One 10mm bolt in front and a tab in rear. The plate itself looks good, just needs some brackets welded to it where it can clamp to frame. I'm already looking at solutions to this problem. Tires; took off the original Michelins and put Heidenau K60 Rangers on for now. Original tire is only good for off road...its a mild Enduro tire, but still totally off road focused and horrible of course on the road. The rear brakes are strong and I was always on the edge of lockup in town in Italy especially when those tires where new. Totally able to control but in an emergency stop you'd be screwed on the road. Again, not the bike or tires fault. I think they put those on because they look cool from new and most owners burn through them in a few weeks and replace with a more practical ADV tire solution. Had a few loose bolts; checked with rubber hammer every day after riding for loose bolts. No issue with brake or exhaust fitment on mine....yet. Headlights are total crap like you said. Why not add a set of good LED lights and raise price a bit???? I'll be changing those out. I had to follow my friend on a Yamaha XSR125 that has a great stock LED headlight because I couldn't see anything one night in Italy. Fuel filler issue, yes I had other riders laughing at me saying, "Jack, we'll go next door and get a coffee and ice cream while you fill up". I will add the raised filler like you have. No way to fix this issue but at least with an aftermarket screw on filler you don't have the fight with the stock one. Having to pry off a filler cap is just dumb on a bike like this and such an easy fix from the factory!! Other than those issues I love the bike. I haven't had a big thumper in years and going from all my mid to large ADV bikes to this is a revelation. So easy to move around and I'm back to attacking stuff I gave up on years ago with the bigger bikes. Yes, miss the 2 cylinder engines, but otherwise I'm really enjoying this bike so far and everywhere I stop people are taking pictures and asking questions. I'm taking it to the Touratech Active Adventure in September and the Enduro Action Team race in October so we will see how she does at those events. Also taking her to the MX track this weekend for some training and fun on her. Overall I think I will use this bike for daily commute, rally events and some shorter travel and use the bigger bikes for big travel and more road focused stuff. Cheers and have a good vacation after the vacation. GSJack
ADV ENG in Australia do a great radiator brace / guard for the AJP. Also have other great products. Not sure if they ship OS. There is an adjustment bolt under the rear brake pedal pivot point where you can change the pedal height. Don't need to adjust at master cylinder.
Hej Johannes,
Another great video. For what is worth, I have added radiator guards on my AJP as well as hard plastic engine guards. I have crashed several times on my local enduro track. So far the bike has has held up great, minor breaks on the plastics excluded.
I also faced the same issue on the rear brake. I have the doma exhaust. It was quite the shock, because I suddenly didn’t have a rear brake and I only found out when I really needed it. Anyways, it is a very easy fix of adjusting the brake needle. As the brake pads wear out, the brake lever has to travel a greater distance. Now I do this adjustment every time I go over the chain, every ca 300km.
I hope you enjoyed your vacation in my old home country!
Great recap! I'm still pending to watch the full Balkans video. Looking forward to it! FYI - The Doma exhaust by itself does very little to address the swingarm rub issue. If you remember mine, it had eaten up the swingarm quite severely in a short amount of time. Perhaps with the spacer it'll be better. In any case, the swingarm cleaned up very nicely with little sanding and polishing compound. Enjoy Greece!
Hi Johannes, nice update.
My 2023 doesn't have the exhaust issue tho I did put the power up on after 1k kms..
I looked into crash bars and all the Oz guys said the aluminum ones bend easy and all you need are the ADV Eng radiator guards - so I got them. Really really impressed - solid lightweight protection and can highly recommend as the solution.
My rear brake locks up fine from that height - likely needs a good bleeding 😊
Have the ADV ENG radiator brace guard myself. Great product. Also the rear linkage protector.
Thanks for the update Johannes. My AJP had the same issue with the rubbing of the swingarm. I am in the process of claiming warranty on it, but the response time is very slow. They told me from the importer here in my country to prepare for a denial on my warranty claim from the factory in Portugal, because it was probably my fault, since I must have taken a hard fall or had another big impact on it. This is not true!
My local dealer, from which I purchased the AJP, has been great about it. He had a spare header unit + muffler lying around, as another customer did the exhaust upgrade from Doma. Problem solved immediately. So there must be some faulty header systems being placed from factory, that are just not aligned right.
Concerning the weak headlights: I bought the LED unit from Adventure Men Cave, very easy to install. Great solution for better visibility.
Nice stuff Johannes. This radiators are just crying out for a home brewed solution, as is the bash plate. Kindly ship the bike to Australia and I’ll take care of these upgrades while you are in Crete. 😊
Ha! I'm not sending the bike to you, instead I'll come with the bike :D
Big thanks for the great on-point short review of your learnings from the latest trip. Very helpful. Enjoy your holidays!
Crashbars: crosspro manufacture one for the PR7, it is aluminum, so its light. However it won't fit on the standard version because the lambda sensor is in the way. (Fits on the extreme one though)
Lights: I installed LSK lights, they are bright, very good (and expensive), but there are cheaper led solutions there.
Nice early review Johannes, interesting. We experienced the rear brake pedal issue as well on the 4 day test ride this summer as well. It got as bad that we had remove the rear wheel and motion the caliper pistons as well. We tried to adjust the the pedal travel, but there wasn't enough adjustability. But after the caliper motion it got function as new again. Good to know aboutvthe radiator as well, the 690 had the same issue as well with a very exposed radiator and as well a cooling fan that famaged the radiator (could be fixed with distance washers). Happy Trails man. What endurobrace did You do?
Hi Johannes, great vídeo!
I heard that the factory has radiator protectors available.
Maybe you can contact your dealer to check on that.
If my memory serves me correctly, and just check the forums, but maybe braided brake hoses and race brake fluid. Rear brake is tricky to adjust. I think Adv Man Cave (as well as Thork of course) sell replacement light kits.
The concern of radiator protection is valid. However, increasing the bike's weight by mounting metal crash bars is not necessary. If you are concerned regarding the weight gain, radiator guards made of carbon fibre are the best option (Oakleaf Engineering, Bielefeld, Germany).
Interesting finding... Can you get aluminum radiator braces/guards? Then you won't need heavy steel tubing which besides adding weight may not even protect the radiators...
My friend who sells motorbikes sold me the AJP PR 7 first and I was happy after changing some parts and doing some work on it. Same colleague also represents KOVE and he recommended me that I must try the KOVE 450 Rally and I did. And I immediately sold the AJP PR 7 and bought a KOVE 450 Rally and to be honest it surprised me and for me personally it is much better for off road compared to the AJP PR 7. I have no problems with it. And fortunately, all the modification parts that are available are very affordable. I also had the seat improved, which is otherwise (after 3 to 4 hours) as hard as a wooden board.
Issue with kove is the potential question about reliability (differently from other Chinese brands that have been around longer). Time will tell
@@miro_s Known Issues:
• Too much pressure is building up in the fuel tanks
o Doing the fuel cap modification should alleviate this.
• Posts in airbox air filter frame can break free from the plate causing them to spin freely.
o JB Weld applied at the base of the post where it meets the plate should fix this.
• Coolant Overflow reservoir cap
• Wheel/Tire Balance
o Front tire comes horribly unbalanced
• Inaccurate fuel gauge
o The consensus so far has been that doing the cannister delete and venting the fuel caps mostly resolve the issue.
• Non-Pro model front turn signals interfere with removing the front fairing quickly.
o Remove and install waterproof connectors
• Oil cooler upper right banjo leaking
o Check that it is tight when assembling the bike
• There is no sight glass to check oil level
That is very interesting, thanks for sharing and the informative comment regarding the Kove below.
I haven't had the chance to ride the Kove yet, but if it is as good as you say I can't wait! I'm having a blast on the PR7 and it honestly feels like a heavy dirt bike, so if the Kove is significantly better, I'm excited!
@@JohannesDalen Greetings
You have to try it, And get your own impression
@@JohannesDalen The Adventure On Bikes channel traveled all over Morocco on the KOVE 450 and had no problems with it
I don't have this bike but those are some interesting things to know. The brake pedal hitting the exhaust seems quite weird.
Thanks! Looking at this bike here in the States and really appreciate these perspectives. I must admit that I'm surprised by the exhaust interference with the swing arm and the brake pedal? Also, was that 2 point bash plate stock? Cheers from the mountains and canyons of Utah!
Thank you for the report man! Very good info!
Ps: I envy so much your one-take vidoes 😂😂 you might even have time to do what your wife asked xD
Quick and dirty ;)
Get stiffer springs man! Loving this series
I definitely should, but with stiffer I should probably do some valving as well, right?
"a jack of all trades is a master of none, but often times bettter than a master of one"
william shakespeare
I've never heard the second part of that quote, that was cool, I'm going to use it in the review!
With Doma have the same problem after fall to the right side.
Ajp PR7 💪🏻
LED lights looks bright but Halogen lights make things more visible, its something to do with the contrast and eye as per my experience
Much Enjoyment 👍😎
can someone who owns pr7 tell me how it is looking in terms of getting OEM parts? e.g. IF I destroy radiator, do I have to order it from Portugal and wait 1 month or more for dlivery or how it is looking
Hi Johannes !
Is the AJP road legal with open unrestricted enginepower somewhere in Europe now ???
Hei Johannes, hvor i Norge bor du? Jeg vil kjøpe PR7, så kanskje det er mulig å møte med deg?
Hey Johannes! Hope you’re ok. Wanted to ask, do you miss a twin bike in your garage? At the moment I’m rethinking my garage, sold everything but a 701, will soon buy an enduro (prob husqvarna TE), and find myself considering whether on not I want a twin adventure bike…
Hey man! Good question, and from time to time I do. A garage with multiple bikes is "the best way", but at the same time we can only take one bike at a time. I find myself looking at more street oriented bikes instead of an adv twin. I too will get a proper enduro bike sooner or later. I have an old HD that I take out on sunny sundays just for the fun of it, and I find that covers most local tarmac jobs, for the the rest a 701/PR7 is currently enough. Keep in mind that I've started to trailer my bike to the trails now, and the need for street comfort is out of the picture.
Nice bike ,dust can be a lot if you have another bike in front of you on a group ride.One person cant lead the entire trip!
What is your view on the PR7 vs the 701 for the type of riding you do?
This is a question I probably should make a video about. To be honest these two bikes are so similar that either one would work great, but I enjoy the PR7 more than the 701 - mostly geometry, nicer seat and better suspension.
@@JohannesDalen many thanks to you! I have followed your steps. First T7 now the 701. 701 is a great bike but I it is very difficult to access and fuel pump (requires dumping fuel) and engine is very hard to get to. I like the easy access of the pr7 motor, airbox location for water crossing, longer suspension, no electronics to go wrong abs/traction and it comes out of the box cheaper than everything required to build the 701. Would be great to hear your thoughts on this too
The PR7 is simpler in every way, no doubt about it. It's made to be worked on. However, you need to understand what you're getting into when buying a PR7. You're pretty much on your own if anything happens, and it is known to having some issues here and there (all bikes are though, and nothing major that comes to mind).
Can you test ride one?
hey man do you still have your 350?
A mojito in your hand? Don’t you mean Coca Cola Zero? 😂 For a guy that claims you can drink a Dane under the table you don’t practice enough 😂
Great little status update on the PR7. I can reveal that I rode Johannes’ PR7 for a full day in Slovenia, it was like using cheat codes compared to my T7 when the stuff got rough. An amazing bike, and I actually gained a lot of confidence in my riding skills that I could apply once I got back in my T7. Thank you again for an amazing trip to the Balkans, enjoy Crete and your Coca Cola Zero 🥳😂❤️
Ha! I only said that to sound cool, of course I was enjoying my Zero's ;)
@@JohannesDalen you are too professional an athlete to indulge yourself in Mojitos, no shame in that, maybe I should take a page from your book, it might help me on the climbs and when I have to lift my bike on my own 😂
That's why I chose powerlifting, we can be fat and strong at the same time!
On our next trip you'll be on an exc 500, so you don't need any help. You heard it here first!
@@JohannesDalen pleease let be true 🤤 Would love that. I can definitely lift that myself. But wait, what are you going to do then? No bikes to lift 😂
Moore Fields
just get some radiator braces and be done - rads are not cheap but braces are and will also mean you don't need heavy bars - as for these stupid build failures, i cannot believe after so many years they are still selling these bikes with such idiosyncracies... they are losing sales because of this ignorance to fails that they have known about since before the 1st bike was sold
Get a 690. None of that nonsense
Lavada Manors