Yamaha Tenere 700 Raid Designs Preview Production Model

Yamaha has filed designs that reveal what the production version of the Ténéré 700 Raid will look like. The Ténéré 700 Raid was shown at EICMA in prototype form as an even more off-road capable version of the Ténéré 700. While the prototype was essentially a Ténéré 700 modified with Genuine Yamaha Technology Racing (GYTR) performance parts, the designed filed with the European Union Intellectual Property Office appears ready for series production.

The filed design is a combination of the prototype and the production Ténéré. The frame, suspension, brakes, and tail look identical to the production Ténéré 700. The design even loses the prototype’s dirtbike-style fender, using the production model’s tire-hugging fender instead. Even the tires appear to be the same Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tires employed on the production model instead of the prototype’s more rugged off-road rubber.

The prototype had machined engine covers, but the engine used in the design looks more like the CP2 motor used on production models like the Ténéré 700 and MT-07. The design’s exhaust also looks identical to the existing production Ténéré. From looking at the similarities, one could assume this is just a mild redesign of the Ténéré 700.

But the differences are what earns the design the “Raid” name. We used the width of the front tire and the forks to line up head-on views of the design and the production Ténéré 700 below. While the angle isn’t quite perfect, it’s clear that the new model is significantly wider than the current T-7.

The extra width can be attributed to a larger fuel tank. Like the prototype, the design shows two filler caps, suggesting twin fuel tanks that extend down the sides of the bike, à la KTM 890 Adventure, which combine to hold more gas than the slender production model’s 4.2-gallon capacity while keeping the weight low. The prototype had extra tanks on the tail, but they are absent on the new design.

The fairing is a more refined version of the prototype’s, but with a smaller belly pan, though it appears bulkier than the belly pan on the production Ténéré.

The design’s windscreen also appears to be taller, though it retains a similar shape to the production model. Behind the screen sits a digital display, presumably a TFT color screen that should be an upgrade over the Ténéré 700’s LCD.

While the design doesn’t seem quite as aggressive as the prototype, it does seem to be a step up from the Ténéré 700. We suspect the Raid will be offered alongside the Ténéré 700, much like how BMW offers a F 850GS and F 850 GS Adventure.

When the Raid will enter production remains unclear. The design was filed on Sept. 30, and officially registered on Oct. 12, more than a month before EICMA. That Yamaha chose instead to show the prototype in Milan suggests it wasn’t quite ready at the time. A 2023 model launch seems realistic.

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