Dual-sport motorcycle

A dual-sport motorcycle is a type of motorcycle that is designed for varying degrees of off-road use while still being street-legal. Dual-sports are equipped with lights, a speedometer, mirrors, a horn, registration plates, turn signals, and a muffler with spark arrestor and decibel noise output to comply with government regulations. They vary considerably in engine size and weight, though they are typically 510cc or smaller. They are often versions of off-road bikes that have been made legal for street driving.

Other names such as all-road, on/off-road, dual-purpose, and adventure bike may be chosen by the manufacturer based upon the size, weight, and intended application of the motorcycle. Typically the dual sport category weighs less than 400 pounds/180 kilos to make them more comfortable and capable off-road, while adventure bikes are more than 400 pounds/180 kilos to make them more comfortable and capable on the pavement.

The concept of a versatile motorcycle equally at home on dirt and pavement is as old as motorcycling itself. Most roads were still unpaved when motorized bicycles first appeared around 1900. In a sense, all motorcycles at that time were dual-sports, intended to be used on dirt as well as pavement. Advertisements well into the 1920s depict motorcycles on dirt roads, raising clouds of dust. By 1940, most roads in developed countries were paved and motorcycles had become heavier and more oriented to the street. In the 1950s and 1960s British manufacturers such as Triumph and BSA offered versions of their relatively light street motorcycles with high exhaust pipes, and called them scramblers.

Yamaha is credited with rekindling popular interest in dirt worthy motorcycles that could also be ridden on the street. In 1968 they introduced the hugely successful DT-1 based on a 250cc two-stroke engine. Other manufacturers soon followed with similar models called "enduros". These light weight machines were good on trails and adequate on pavement. Some manufacturers approached the trend from the opposite direction, beginning with a street motorcycle and modifying it for adequate off-road performance. For instance, the Honda CL350 Scrambler was a variation on the Honda CB350 street motorcycle with high exhaust pipes, a larger front wheel, dirt-oriented tires, and lower gearing. As a partial response to Yamaha's success with the DT-1, in 1969 Honda produced the SL350 K0. Considered Honda's first real production Dual Sport, the SL350 still borrowed heavily from the CB350 platform. By 1971, the Honda SL350 K1 and the later K2 had been completely transformed from a heavy, unyielding, unpredictable, unequipped off-roader into a nimble, user friendly, trail champion. This line of dual sports continued to evolve into the popular XL series of Honda Dual Sports.

BMW helped evolve the category with the introduction of the 797.5cc R80 G/S in 1980, the first large adventure dual sport machine and the ancestor of the adventure sport category that is so popular today.^[when?] Modified versions of the R80 G/S won the gruelling Paris-Dakar Rally, today called the Dakar Rally, four times in five years from 1981 and 1985, and Helge Pedersen rode one for 10 years over 250,000 miles/400,000 km in an around-the-world journey that helped cement the G/S's place in motorcycling history. Suzuki introduced the DR350 in 1990 and promoted it as a DualSport or “dirt bike with a license plate." The terms "dual-sport" and “dualie” were quickly adopted by riders and the motorcycle press.

Over the next 20 years, many manufacturers began producing enduros based on four stroke engines as they searched for better combinations of weight, power, durability, performance and comfort. The heavier machines were typically better on longer highway rides but less popular with “real” dirt riders, who often modified them by removing components to create lighter and more competent trail machines.

Manufacturers use several different names for their dual-sport models. Suzuki uses DualSport to describe its products. Kawasaki describes its offerings as dual purpose, Honda lists its entry under off-road, and other manufacturers describe machines as enduros, or simply list them as model numbers. A few models are described as "adventure bikes". Despite these differences in terminology, these models can be described as dual-sports, which are street-legal motorcycles that can be operated on pavement, dirt roads and trails. Dual-sport motorcycles are the most practical choice in rural areas in many parts of the world, and when traveling on unpaved trails they can often be a necessity.

Terms such as dual-sport, enduro and adventure bike are marketing descriptions, not strict definitions of weight, power, and intended usage. Generally a dual sport is less than 400 pounds while bikes above 400 pounds are considered adventure bikes. For example, the lightest dual-sport offered by Suzuki Motor Corporation in 2008 weighs about 250 pounds (110 kg) and has a small single-cylinder engine with barely enough power for highway use. The heaviest dual-sport offered by Suzuki Motor Corporation in 2008 weighs about 460 pounds (210 kg) and has a large two-cylinder engine with plenty of power for long freeway trips. Accordingly, it is necessary to refer to the manufacturers specifications for a particular model to learn more about its intended use.