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Crash Bars - Anyone got any (not Honda ones)

318K views 516 replies 182 participants last post by  Advriderrr 
#1 ·
I want to get some crash bars for my new black DCT AT, there are a lot being advertises but other than the Honda ones I don't think any are actually available in the UK

Has anyone fitted any non Honda Crash bars to their bike and if so what are they like?

Preferably I am looking for engine and from bodywork protection.
 
#5 ·
Yes been watching them and TT (who I don't expect to buy) SW-Motech, R&G, Hepco and Becker and Holan, but none of them have anything actually available at the moment.

Holan say their engine bars are only for non DCT and they haven't bothered replying to my email asking if they will be doing a DCT version so I wont be buying from them.
 
#8 ·
Crash Bars, yes we need crash bars :surprise:

Spanish demo bike










Unfortunately, none of the crash bars that are offered today appear to be any good. The problem seems to be with the bike - no proper fixing points. :frown2:
 
#11 ·
Yikes. Pretty short life on that bike.
I'm not sure there is a lack of mounting points. The Holan, Honda, SW Motech, Touratech all seem to find different ways to connect under the front fairing but they all bolt directly to the motor/motor brackets. That's as solid as any other bike with bash bars.
I'd prefer not to find out which works best through testing.>:)
That being said, I've crashed SW Motech several times and they've faired well. The Honda ones looked strong in person and seem to have rubber mounts to cushion the blow. I guess we'll have to see when someone has a get-off which are the best. :nerd:
 
#398 ·
If he has skills to build something like a roll cage or any form of welding/fabricator, pay him to custom build you some. lots of crash bars are very basic or VERY expensive.

Mine are the basic honda ones, and they are good enough to protect the fairings, but not much if any of the engine :D
 
#12 ·
The Honda "crash bars", as we see them on the AT, first appeared on the Crosstourer. At the time Honda did not dare call crash bars. They were marketed as "Cowl Ornament Kit
08P71-MGH-640", i.e. support for the led lights.

Those built for the AT may look a bit stronger, nevertheless Honda still calls them "Light Bar" and not crash bars and for a good reason.

The remaining manufacturers are trying to do better, but the AT is not factory prepared for mounting proper crash bars :frown2:
 
#14 ·
Interesting. Have you seen them in person? Or do you have any information about their construction.:nerd:
Up close, they look identical to any of the other offerings and bolt to the same places as aftermarket ones.
I'm curious as to why you think they are only for mounting lights.
Someone ventured a guess that 'crash bars' wasn't a particularly good marketing term and opened Honda to potential liability issues.
I can't say for sure either, other than the fact that I've had 'crash bars' on other bikes and these look like they'd do the job.

** Edit - on second look on Honda part sites they are called 'cowl guards' not 'cowl ornament kit'. Guard would lead me to believe they are intended for protection.
 
#15 ·
The term "Cowl Ornament Kit, 08P71-MGH-640" refers to the Crosstourer.

I did say that the AT bars look stronger, but I still believe that they are crap as far as protecting a 250 kg bike goes, even if now Honda is willing to call them "Cowl Guard".

My long time friend and Honda dealer agrees. You don't have to :wink2:
 
#18 ·
Fair enough. I guess we'll have to wait and see.



All of the 'crash bars' or whatever we'd like to call them mount directly to the frame. Some, like the Holan, offer additional mounting points. I think that should be sufficient for basic protection - tip over, slow speed drop, etc. My guess is the Honda ones would do the same - we'll have to wait until someone actually 'tests' them. :wink2:

Although, (as I've posted in another thread) the SW Motech ones on my KLR did just fine falling over and sliding several hundred feet at about 50 km/h. Picked up the bike and rode on (in the Yukon) - scratched 'crash bars', scratched hand guards, scratched plastic corner on Trax bags. Glad I had them as it would have been a long walk home. :grin2:

Unfortunately, none of the crash bars that are offered today appear to be any good. The problem seems to be with the bike - no proper fixing points. :frown2:
 
#20 ·
Sure, just look at them from a structural perspective. They have just two mounting points down low (one either side), and only one very flimsy mounting point top-center under the lights. Look at close-up shots of that top mounting point. It's thin sheet metal, there to stop the bar from vibrating too much. It has no structural integrity. If your bike gets knocked down in a parking lot, the bars might save a little plastic damage. That, and give you a place to put lights, that's all.

Only the Holan Adventure Pro has more mounting points. But even those are going to have limited protection in a fall (inner part mounted to what looks like the radiator bracket... hummm...)
 
#21 ·
I ordered the TT bars for DCT.
On my S10 the TT-bars did their job well.
You can't expect the bars to protect your bike in any accident.
But it wil protect your engine and plastics when it falls over or when you make a slide at 50kmh. If they are fixed to strongly, they wil harm more than protect I think.
 
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#22 ·
An "Adventure Bike" is likely to go down more than once on a longer trip (not necessarily RTW). It would be nice to know that when this happens, all you need to do is put it back on two wheels and continue your journey, rather than call road assistance.

My KTM 990 was like this :smile2:



Should I be missing my KTM :crying:

Let's hope that at some point somebody will come up with proper engine and bodywork protection. This bike is "hot" so third party accessory manufacturers also want a slice of the cake (people are assessing strength / quality on the basis of photographs and ordering on-line). Once owners start using the bike as designated (also off road) they will know what is needed and the market (probably niche players) will respond. So I hope :wink2:
 
#25 ·
Thanks @Juha - that is very enlightening!

I remember, back in the very distant past, that some mag or paper ran an article that said it would cost 3 - 4 times the price of the original bike if you built it from official spares. Seems things haven't changed much. Sadly.
 
#27 ·
Interesting that SW Motech now has 'engineering in progress' on Crash Bars for the AT. Completely different design again that doesn't even go up to the plastics. I guess you pick what you think will work and hope for the best or wait until someone drops their bike to tell you if they worked. ;)

 
#30 ·
Had a close look at the 'accessory frame' on a show AT at my Honda dealer (15 minutes on the bicycle from my house). Honda clearly does not mention it a crash bar, but a frame for installing accessories.
The steel tubes may be strong enough, but the mounting to the bike is very flimsy. With moderate force by hand you can push the frame towards the tank. Useless for protection.

The SW-Motech looks better in my opinion, but I think crash protection by any crash bar will be very little. It is more for the looks and for the mounting of accessories of course.
 
#31 ·
They key thing you need to protect are the radiators so I think anything that is going to give them some protection in an off has got to help. There is no option of any of the after market ones getting here in the next 8 weeks so for me it has to be the Honda one.
 
#32 ·
From the ones I've seen so far I like the SW Motech crash bars. They're made in Germany so you know they've been well thought out. The design pretty well ensures your radiator and motor and faring won't touch the ground and they are priced reasonably. I think the most critical part of any crash bar is the attachment point on the bike, it has to be solid.
 
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