2024 T7 suspension - upgrade options?

[krza]

I’m sure this has been discussed a lot, but I’m brand new to the T7 (500 miles in!) and would like to discuss suspension upgrades. 
 

My background: I’ve ridden my whole life, and race ISDE enduros on a Beta 2t 250 RR race edition, and I’ve desert raced various races on a 450x. I also dual sport and camp on semi-long trips (10 days to 3 weeks), usually on a plated 450x. I race A class, I’m decent, and know a thing or two about bike setup. 
 

I got a 2024 T7 to get to know the ADV market, as I work in marketing focused on ADV stuff. I had the ECU flashed by 2-Wheel Dyno Works, put a Leo can and cat delete mid pipe on it, and had suspension done by Evo with more aggressive valving and springs for my 225lb rider weight. 
 

Overall, the T7 is fun to ride. But I want it to be a bit better. It would be nice if it could get the front wheel off the ground a bit easier, for obstacle clearing and general rear-wheel technique. I might experiment with re-gearing. 
 

But the suspension is really the biggest lacking point. I will admit: I’m asking a lot of the bike. I want to enduro-clear big downed logs, climb steep rocks, etc.—think like the “heavy enduro” type stuff. Even with the spring and valving upgrades, the suspension is a bit “one dimensional” in that it lacks bottoming resistance; doesn’t have a progressive feel with top, middle, and bottom stroke; and it can blow through the stroke and bottom out quite easily. With the re-valve, the suspension front and rear mostly feel like it has a singular firm stroke without a ton of comfort or give when hitting objects at faster speed. 
 

I think going to a 2.5” rear wheel and a 140 true “enduro” tire could help with a softer rear feel (currently running a Motoz Desert H/T 150/70-18 which feels like a hard / stiff tire).

 

Anyway: what are the realistic suspension upgrade options? Does anyone have experience with an aftermarket shock or fork cartridge insert? I heard from a friend the World Raid edition bike feels far better—is this suspension available as an upgrade? Does anyone just 48mm KYB swap the T7? I run the 48mm KYBs on by Beta and love them. 
 

Am I asking too much of the T7? Is it just an “it is what it is” kinda thing?

 

Thanks in advance for the chatter on this. 

[john_aero]

Everything is possile, all depends on budget.

 

there is fully ohlins and yamaha kyb suspension upgrades but run into thousands

 

There is also basic spring and valve kits.

 

Alot go for the following and I have done this, is gone for the open cartridge fork kit and new rear shock.

 

I have heard the newer suspension is an improvement however i would prefer go for a cheaper model and pay for custom suspension. Hence why i went for the standard bike and rally raid OC forks and Adventure shock

[Tenerider]

18 minutes ago, krza said:

Does anyone have experience with an aftermarket shock or fork cartridge insert? I heard from a friend the World Raid edition bike feels far better—is this suspension available as an upgrade? Does anyone just 48mm KYB swap the T7?

 

Yes, yes and yes.

 

I think we have almost all available different drop-in cartridges here on the forum: Öhlins, Touratech/Rally Raid/Tractive are the most common ones and their pros and cons have been widely discussed here. The search function works really well, give it a try and be prepared for loooong threads.

 

At least in Europe there's the T7 Extreme Edition, which features the World Raid suspension, which I doubt to be that much better than the standard version's suspension.

 

KYB 48mm forks have been adapted by a few guys, like Cory @Camel ADV. Check out his YT channel, he is really pushing the T7 to its limits. There's now a GYTR KYB 48mm fork kit available from Yamaha as well, see here:

GYTR KYB Front Forks 48mm, 270mm stoke

---

GYTR KYB Front Forks 48 mm, 270 mm stoke   This Race-developed 48mm diameter KYB closed cartridge forks features DLC coated tubes and have an…

 

Apart from that, there's a 48mm Öhlins fork available as well.

 

Regarding the somehow stiff feeling of your upgraded suspension: Keep in mind that the T7 only has about 2/3 of the travel of an Enduro or MX bike, and carries much more weight. This means the spring rates are necessarily higher to provide sufficient support/bottoming resistance, paired with probably higher damping at the end of the stroke. Of course a lot can be achieved with customized shim stacks, but compared to a 270mm or 300mm travel suspension, especially the forks will show their limits (or sacrifice comfort). This is a trade-off for offroad performance, but allows the T7 to be very well planted on the road.

 

I myself am still trying to achieve a more comfortable, supple ride on my otherwise excellent Tractive closed cartridges. I've ridden Touratech closed cartridges as well a few times, these are tuned differently (but otherwise are identical), and offer more comfort for an average rider (like me). Tractive is more rally-biased: The faster you go, the smoother and more planted they feel. I'm considering a re-valving/customized shim stack to get a more compliant feeling.

The Tractive rear shock on the other hand is just perfect to me.

[Tenerider]

16 minutes ago, john_aero said:

Everything is possile, all depends on budget.

 

there is fully ohlins and yamaha kyb suspension upgrades but run into thousands

 

There is also basic spring and valve kits.

 

Alot go for the following and I have done this, is gone for the open cartridge fork kit and new rear shock.

 

I have heard the newer suspension is an improvement however i would prefer go for a cheaper model and pay for custom suspension. Hence why i went for the standard bike and rally raid OC forks and Adventure shock

Agree 100%. This would probably be my choice now as well if I had to do it again. I'm convinced Rally Raids aftermarket suspension outperforms the T7WR/Extreme OEM shock and forks.

[john_aero]

1 hour ago, Tenerider said:

Agree 100%. This would probably be my choice now as well if I had to do it again. I'm convinced Rally Raids aftermarket suspension outperforms the T7WR/Extreme OEM shock and forks.

i agree

 

i spent €2,600 and i have a full custom suspension and fully adjustable 

 

When look price difference i will pick cheaper model and add money into custom suspension. Even the extreme model is a suspension 

For the “generic” rider and weight

 

in a positive i got my bike at 2k off so suspension was free. I intentionally picked the 2022 model over 2023 for less electronics and basic suspension 

[Redneckj]

The biggest issue with the T7's suspension is the factory  cartridges.  They take a lot of work to flow enough oil.  George at 101 has the factory cartridges worked out. I decided to get the K-tech cartridges.  They work well for how I ride the bike.  I too had some bottoming issues. You simply need to add 5cc of fork oil to each fork and then go ride it.  Additional fork oil will help with the bottoming resistance.  Ask  EVO what they think too and go from there.  I absolutely love the Penske rear shock. FYI

[DK51]

@krza I’ve been on a similar path, looking for improvements for my stock suspension. I started like you with having Dan @ EVO revalve my stock fork and Shock. It was a huge improvement over stock, but I still felt it could be better. I agree with your assessment regarding the firmer stroke with loss of comfort. The setup allowed for more aggression, but could be harsh at times. I believe his setup was the best the 43mm forks and shock could offer, but was still limited by the simplicity of the stock components.

I was interested in transplanting 48mm SSS forks and found Boana Race Parts in Italy offered a turn key solution. They offered 48mm forks, billet triple clamps, caliper spacers, brake lines and front fender. They also have a number of shock options to match the forks. I went with their Ohlins super ralley shock to match the forks. I had no issues with international shipping to Washington state. In addition to the suspension, I ordered a 2.5” rear wheel from Dubya to allow a better profile for 140 sized tires.  This also added the benefit of running lower pressure with a rim lock. 

I’ve been running the setup for close to 7 months and i believe it’s a definite improvement. I don’t think the bike has lost any street manners, and it’s definitely more confident inspiring on the typical dual sport trails, basic single track  or even a Vet Moto track.
 

However - Did it transform the Tenere into a light weight 300 or did it magically become the “Seeker”?..… sadly no.  
 

[krza]

Thanks everyone for the responses!

 

There is a part of me that wonders if I’m chasing the wrong thing. Each of my bikes do something different and do something well, but none of them do everything or do all things well. 
 

Maybe I need to log more pavement time on the T7. Or maybe I should ride more chill double track rather than chasing the toughest Shet. 
 

But I do have a vision in my head of being able to slab pavement, ride gravel, ride fast flowy double track, and ride technical singletrack on a T7, all with the same confidence. 
 

I’ll dig into these options. I’m tentatively interested in 48mm KYB-swapping it, but of course you gotta manage investment vs payoff. 
 

I’m going to work with Evo a bit more to maybe tweak the valving a bit to see if we can get it a bit more progressive and less harsh, too. I’ll report back. 
 

I do have to say that it’s a bit of a miss that Yamaha didn’t go with a more impressive suspension package, given their long history with KYB and already-existing 48mm KYB bikes. The KTM 890 gets lauded with praise for its lower center of gravity and its great suspension when compared to the T7. I know the price point of the T7 is $8k lower, but maybe Yamaha could have raised the mark here a bit. 
 

But I’m a marketing guy, not an engineer! What do I know. 

[JB700]

I went for Ohlins OC cartridges (with the 30mm pistons) with 7.0kg springs  and their shock with. 90nM Spring 

 

It is a lot better now 

[john_aero]

i see the tenere as a blank canvas.

 

its an excellent motor, basic electronics (especially pre 2023 model)

 

the Ktm is a cracking bike nut there is too many problems with it which to me makes it a non runner.

 

As i said the tenere can be made into what you want, just depends how deep your pockets are. Plenty upgrade the bike and run rallies and hard off road events.

 

I think for offroad use the best choice is RR/Touratech/Tractice units as they are designed more for offroad use. for road use the Ohlins setup is the choice.

 

The K-tech is a good system just for me i wanted do it once and do it right.

 

There is a UK builder who will build you a full WP/KYB front for system. he builds the forks and makes custom clamps for you. its about 4k sterling

[Tenerider]

3 minutes ago, john_aero said:

i see the tenere as a blank canvas.

 

its an excellent motor, basic electronics (especially pre 2023 model)

 

the Ktm is a cracking bike nut there is too many problems with it which to me makes it a non runner.

 

As i said the tenere can be made into what you want, just depends how deep your pockets are. Plenty upgrade the bike and run rallies and hard off road events.

 

I think for offroad use the best choice is RR/Touratech/Tractice units as they are designed more for offroad use. for road use the Ohlins setup is the choice.

 

The K-tech is a good system just for me i wanted do it once and do it right.

 

There is a UK builder who will build you a full WP/KYB front for system. he builds the forks and makes custom clamps for you. its about 4k sterling

I think the Öhlins setup would be great for offroad use, too - especially when you're not doing rally racing. Touratech definitely feels more supple than Tractive, I've ridden both with identical spring rates.

 

I think Rally Raid's open cartridge might be very similar to Öhlins: More suited for low to medium speed offroad riding as I do it.

[JB700]

1 hour ago, john_aero said:

i see the tenere as a blank canvas.

 

its an excellent motor, basic electronics (especially pre 2023 model)

 

the Ktm is a cracking bike nut there is too many problems with it which to me makes it a non runner.

 

As i said the tenere can be made into what you want, just depends how deep your pockets are. Plenty upgrade the bike and run rallies and hard off road events.

 

I think for offroad use the best choice is RR/Touratech/Tractice units as they are designed more for offroad use. for road use the Ohlins setup is the choice.

 

The K-tech is a good system just for me i wanted do it once and do it right.

 

There is a UK builder who will build you a full WP/KYB front for system. he builds the forks and makes custom clamps for you. its about 4k sterling

The suspension shop I used in uk, supplies all makes Tractive/KTech/Andreani/Ohlins  & said the Ohlins was the best made cartridges he used and fitted - the margin across all units was the same, so he made no more selling one over the other pro rata 

So went with that recommendation 

[john_aero]

i don’t think go wrong with any of the cartridge kits or shocks

 

my rational was after talking to a few owners, one who had both RR and ktech setups. He also worked on an ohlins. His answer was rally raid open forks. Said he took the ohlins apart at 15k and looked very worn. He has over 50k on his rally raid and said its still Like new inside. 
 

also some of the ohlins owners had to pay more for custom springs.

 

no one system is bad, all personal choice. What i will say is the tractive models are made for offroad. So need to be tweaked for plush on road. 
 

for my needs i plan service as follows.

with lower spring rate,

5w oil in rebound

2.5w in compression.

no preload in forks

130 or 140mm air gap over 120 from RR

[john_aero]

Also one plus was RR system was cheapest option for me. Ohlins was a bit more. Also Touratech and Tractive only offer closed forks. I wanted open so i can do my own work in them