#xl750

Adventure bikes weren’t really a thing in 1989, at least not in the United States. Even BMW’s venerable GS was nothing more than a misunderstood, oversized dual-purpose machine with ties to the Paris-Dakar rally, which itself was only a little more than a decade old at the time. At the back of the dealership where I worked in 1991, parked next to the tire rack, languished a 1989 Honda XL600V Transalp. Along with other two-year-only (’89 and ’90) model offerings from Honda, including the GB500 and CB-1, the Transalp was nothing more than a curiosity.

American Honda officially announced the XL750 Transalp, bringing the middleweight adventure bike to the U.S. market. The Transalp slots into Honda’s lineup between the Africa Twin and the CB500X, while offering more off-road capability than the NC750X DCT.

Back in May, Motorcycle.com broke the news that the Honda XL750 Transalp was coming to America for 2024, arriving a year after it’s been available in Europe. While we’re glad to see the middleweight adventure bike will finally arrive stateside, we can unfortunately confirm the U.S.-spec model will produce less power than its European counterpart.

The California Air Resources Board has issued an executive order for the Honda XL750 Transalp, certifying the mid-sized adventure-tourer for the 2024 model year.

Honda has brought back the Transalp name with the new XL750 Transalp, a middleweight adventure-tourer powered by the Parallel-Twin engine introduced on the Hornet CB750.

Honda provided an update on the development of its new 2023 Hornet streetfighter, releasing test footage and details about its new engine.