Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle Review Specs

The new Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle is an adventure motorcycle with a sharply-renewed focus on off-road core abilities. It comes with a modern appearance and feels with more minor, slimmer and lightweight chassis. The bike offers more athletic performance, thanks also to the changes to its engine, which offers 7% more peak power and approximately 6% more peak torque than the 2019 Honda Africa Twin. The motorcycle also comes with Euro 5 certificate.

Moreover, the frame has been entirely revised and now it contains a bolt-on aluminum subframe. The subframe is also aluminum that is based on a CRF450R moto-crosser. The center of Africa Twin has a six-axis Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) that controls not only the 7-level HSTC but is also has 3-level Wheelie Control, Cornering ABS, Rear Lift Control, and DCT cornering detection. An off-road setting features Urban, Tour and Gravel as default riding modes.

In addition, the motorcycle is tailored for complete control; the riding position contains a slimmer-section seat and higher-seat handlebars. The full-color Multi-Information Display (MID) 6.5 inches TFT touch screen provides immersive engagement with the machine’s system. The new dual-LED Daytime Riding Lights (DRL) are apparent; improving safety and cruise control is standard-fit.

Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle – Features

Engine Features

The new Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle features a SOHC, 8-valve parallel-twin engine with the same architecture as the 2019 model but has a more significant displacement of 1,084cc. It results in peak power of 70kW to 75kW at 7,500 rpm with peak torque getting from 99Nm to 105Nm at 6,250 rpm. This increase in power and torque can be felt during the ride.

To create a larger capacity, the bore remains 92mm but the stroke is kept longer at 81.5mm with the compression ratio of 10.1:1. The cylinder sleeves are made from aluminum. The manual transmission comes as standard that is about 2.5kg lighter than the previous design, the DCT version is 2.2kg lighter at 74.9kg.

The 270-degree phased crankshaft and uneven firing internal create the engine’s distinctive pulse and feel for rear-wheel traction. The cylinder head however is completely revised and is the larger diameter 46mm throttle body; the bore and new cylinder pitches are now aligned to make a smoother air intake profile. The unique ECU setting and the injector angle has been modified to create a more direct spray into re-shaped twin-spark combustion chambers. The new Honda’s SOCH unicam valve train is a distinctive feature of MX competitor-specification CRF450R. The low-set position of the new cast camshaft adds to the compact nature of the cylinder head. For 2020, the new valve timing has been optimized and inlet and exhaust valve lift increased to 10.1 mm inlet and 9.3 mm exhaust.

To match and deal with an uprated intake efficiency and greater output, the exhaust end-can now contains a variable Exhaust Control Valve (ECV) similar to the unit attached to the CBR1000RR Fireblade. It enhances engine performance and efficiency as it opens at higher rpm and offers pleasing exhaust not at lower rpm.

The new crankcases are split vertically; the new water pump is housed efficiently within the clutch casing with a new thermostat integrated into the cylinder head. The manual and DCT versions of the engine share common crankcases with only minor external differences; the oil and water pumps are both driven by the engine’s balancer shafts.

The new semi-dry-sump design with in-tank lower crankcase oil storage comes as standard that allows a lower pan depth, maintaining overall engine height low. As the pressure-fed pump is mounted within the tank where it offers its oil, there is no need for any pressure-feed passage. Secondary vibrations are minimized by the mutually reciprocating motion of the pistons, while primary inertial and the use of biaxial balance shafts cancel coupling vibrations.

The new Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle comes with better front and rear balance gears, allowing removal of their scissor gears; the accumulation of a crank pulsar ring adds misfire detection, necessary for OBD2/EURO5 compliance. Additionally, for Euro 5 the O2 lambda exhaust sensors have been replaced with Linear Air Fuel (LAF) sensors in the downpipes to permit a much more accurate measurement of the air/fuel mixture ratio. The new aluminum clutch center and pressure plate use ‘assist’ cams in easing upshifts and slipper cams for deceleration and downshifting. The clutch diameter is now smaller and contains reduced spring tension for a lighter lever feel. The gears are also re-shaped and constructed from a more robust material. The quick shifter remains available as an optional extra.

Electronics

The new Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle’s engine received the benefits of Throttle-By-Wire (TBW) control in 2018, allowing much more exemplary management of engine output and character and expanded Honda Selectable Torque Control (HSTC) for rear tire grip. For 2020, the system has smartly evolved and now works in conjunction with six-axis IMU. The system gives 4-levels of power and 3-levels of engine braking. There are still seven levels of HSTC but each level’s amount of intervention has been optimized to work with real-time feedback from the IMU. The spacing of the groups has been optimized to enable the rider a more acceptable choice of rear tire slide for off-road riding. HSTC can be turned off completely.

Wheelie Control is another impressive feature that works in conjunction with IMU, measuring pitch angle and rate and controlling engine torque with the help of TBW. The rider can choose between 3 different levels of input. Additionally, there are four different riding mode settings Tour, Urban, Gravel, and Off-Road, to cover all sorts of riding conditions and situations including two customizable USER settings.

Chassis Features

The new Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle features the latest Bosch MM7.10 six-axis Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) tucked away at the machine’s center that measures real-time roll angle/rate, pitch angle/rate and yaw angle/rate. It can easily manage rear-wheel traction with the help of HSTC and TBW, front braking grip with the use of Cornering ABS, front-wheel lift through Wheelie Control and also adds Rear Lift Control.

In combination with IMU control for its 2020 evolution, the strength and rigidity balance of the steel semi-double-cradle frame was entirely re-examined by Honda’s development engineers to enhance off-road ability – simultaneously reinforcing its all-round on-road manners. The steering head rigidity has been optimized for a better front-end grip feel; the main spars are also slimmer and straighter and do away with the front cross pipe. The frame weight is about 1.8kg lighter than the 2019 Honda Africa Twin Adventure Bike.

The new bolt-on aluminum sub-frame replaces the integral steel structure of the previous design, and it is about 40mm slimmer at the width of 195mm. An all-new aluminum swingarm is 500g lighter and based on the same technique used in CRF450R. It has an improved rigidity that improves rear-wheel traction and rider feel. The ground clearance remains 250mm with a wheelbase of 1,575mm and a rake and trail of 27 27° 30’/113mm. The overall wet weight is 5kg lighter at 226kg.

Thanks to the stroke length of 230mm, the 45mm Showa cartridge-type inverted front fork gives long-travel bump absorption and contains revised internal settings for better on- and off-road performance. Additionally, rebound and compression damping are entirely adjustable. A hollow aluminum stem shaft joins the cast aluminum top yoke and the forged bottom yoke, clamp the fork legs, including two bolts on each top and bottom.

The Showa rear shock has been revised to match the front suspension, delivers 220mm axle travel, and contains a 46mm cylinder and remote reservoir for stable damping control under extreme off-road riding conditions. Spring preload can be adjusted with the help of a dial on the shock body; rebound and compression damping are also fully adjustable.

The swingarm pivot points with inner plates now use 600MPa high-strength steel, and the upper cross tube that unites them acts as the rear shock upper mount, enhancing the feel for rear-wheel traction. The IMU takes in lean angle, deceleration and incorporates the slip rate of the front and rear wheels to manage braking pressure with the help of ABS.

The new two-piece radial-mount four-piston calipers work dual 310mm wave floating disc through sintered pads. The rear 256mm wave disc contains hole punching and shaping. The new 21/18 front/rear spoke wheel features 90/90-21 and 150/70-18 tires. These tires feature a black pattern to ensure better grip.

Honda 2020 Africa Twin Adventure Motorcycle – Technical Specifications

Engine

Suspension

Brakes

Tires

Measurements