Confirmed For US: 2024 Honda Transalp
Honda has revived the Transalp name with the new XL750.
(Updated: Sept. 19, 2023)
It’s been 11 years since Honda discontinued the last Transalp after a quarter of a century building middleweight adventure bikes bearing that name. Announced for Europe for 2023, the Transalp has just been confirmed for the US market in 2024. The XL750 Transalp will be available in US dealerships starting in October in one color, Matte Black Metallic, for $9,999. For reference, that price undercuts Yamaha’s Ténéré 700 by $800, and Suzuki’s new V-Strom 800DE by $1,350.
There’s no better way to track the changes in how the adventure-bike market has developed over the last few decades than to trace the way the Transalp has mutated. In 1986, the original Transalp was launched as the 583cc XL600V, sporting a three-valve V-twin with 50 hp and predating the more hardcore original Africa Twin (a Euro model, unlike the current open-class Africa Twin), which would initially arrive in 1988 with a 647cc twin before a hike to 742cc in 1990. Over the years, the Transalp would get capacity hikes to 647cc in 2000 and 680cc in 2008, but it never topped the 60 hp mark.
2023 Honda XL750 Transalp in black.
Fast forward to today and the Transalp is revived, this time with the 755cc four-valve-per-cylinder Unicam parallel twin that debuted a few weeks ago in the CB750 Hornet. Now called the XL750, the Transalp makes the same 91 hp as the Hornet, which is around 50 percent more powerful than the best any of its predecessors could achieve. And yet, it’s still a steppingstone toward the open-class Africa Twin, which is now a 1,084cc 101 hp machine.
The Unicam engine follows the current Africa Twin’s template, borrowing the cam system that proved itself in competition in the CRF450R motocross bike. A single camshaft acts directly on the intake valves and opens the exhaust valves via rockers, with the aim of creating a lighter, more compact engine while retaining the high-revving, high-power abilities of a DOHC design. It’s high revving for a parallel twin, with peak power arriving at 9,500 rpm with a 10,000 rpm redline. For contrast, the Suzuki V-Strom 800DE, launched the same day as the new Africa Twin, has only 82 hp from its own brand-new 776cc DOHC twin.
The cockpit view shows the new TFT display that allows riders to optimize the riding modes to their liking.
The engine sits in a frame that’s essentially borrowed from the Hornet, but with revised geometry to suit its off-road purpose. The steel “diamond” chassis weighs a mere 40 pounds, helping to keep the whole bike down to an impressive 459 pounds complete with fuel. The frame features a 27-degree steering head angle with 4.4 inches of trail. A Showa 43mm inverted SFF-CA (Separate Function Fork-Cartridge) fork provides 7.8 inches of front travel, while a Showa remote-reservoir monoshock at the back has 7.5 inches of travel. That’s a little less than the rival Suzuki or the Ténéré 700, but still enough for some gentle dirt road riding. Cost savings show in the lack of suspension adjustment; it’s limited to preload only. Braking duties are completed via Nissin two-piston axial-mount calipers at the front with dual 310mm rotors; a single 245mm rear disc and one-pot sliding caliper sits out back. ABS is standard with two selectable levels of intervention, and the rear ABS can be disengaged for off-road use.
The steel diamond frame is host to a Showa SFF-CA fork, while a pair of two-piston calipers and 310mm handle front-braking duties.
The Transalp’s styling is the work of Honda’s Italian R&D department in Rome; it’s a clean-looking machine but with some signs of cost-cutting. The screen isn’t adjustable, for instance, and the headlight is an off-the-shelf unit also used on the Hornet, the CB500F, and the CB500X. It’s still LED, though, along with the rest of the lighting which includes tech such as an emergency stop signal that flashes the hazard lights if you brake harder than a preset threshold. The turn signals are also self-canceling, using front and rear wheel speeds to determine whether a maneuver has been completed.
Optional side case.
Tank with optional tank luggage.
2023 XL750 Transalp with optional luggage.
Reserve the 2024 Honda XL750 Transalp now!