[tom.armstrong33]

Did my first jump on my Norden. It wasn't much of a jump, but it was like landing on a cushion with the standard suspension. What a difference from my last bike a VSTROM 1000. The front wheel ABS pulled me up quickly in deep soft loamy soil too as I'd misjudged my exit. I didn't realise how slippery the soil was until I stopped. I'd have dropped it for sure without ABS on the front wheel. Which makes me wonder - do I leave ABS on when off road, or switch the back off and also reduce the interference on the front. So far leaving ABS on and riding on Off-road mode has worked well on goat tracks. Guess I won't know until I go down a really gnarly hill with it on! Little baby jump small.mp4

 

[Mooseb]

Did my first jump on my Norden. It wasn't much of a jump, but it was like landing on a cushion with the standard suspension. What a difference from my last bike a VSTROM 1000. The front wheel ABS pulled me up quickly in deep soft loamy soil too as I'd misjudged my exit. I didn't realise how slippery the soil was until I stopped. I'd have dropped it for sure without ABS on the front wheel. Which makes me wonder - do I leave ABS on when off road, or switch the back off and also reduce the interference on the front. So far leaving ABS on and riding on Off-road mode has worked well on goat tracks. Guess I won't know until I go down a really gnarly hill with it on! Little baby jump small.mp4

Nice!
I find the standard Norden performs fine in most circumstances to. I did bottom it out a couple times when doing the WABDR. I had full camping gear packed on the bike and I'm over 220lbs myself. I was getting cocky and launching myself out of the road deactivations. Tonnes of fun.
I'm sure the Explorer suspension would be better but I'm happy with the Norden as is until my skills get better. I may look at getting my spring rates adjusted though.

 

[Thierrix]

Nice jump !
I consider that de-activating the rear ABS is a must for off-road riding. If you are going down a steep hill, or want to stop/decelerate fast, on soft/loose gravel or other loose surface, blocking the rear wheel will work but the ABS will prevent that and you won't be able to stop. I suggest you experiment with the settings in a familiar environment/trail and I'm sure you will encounter some situations in which you literally cannot stop with the rear ABS on. Plus, there are other benefits to being able to block the rear wheel.
Cheers
Thierry

 

[tom.armstrong33]

Thanks for the advice Thierrix. I've ridden the last 4500 kms (half off road) under the incorrect assumption that 'Offroad' mode automatically disables the rear ABS and reduces the interference on the front. I now realise that I have to manually select ABS offroad if I want that to happen. I'll test it out in a familiar setting as you suggest. Interestingly enough, I've been riding some pretty loose packed trails with decent up and down hills and so far not had any scares despite unknowingly riding in road ABS mode. It must be well sorted out software. I've now changed my quick selector down button from heated grips to ABS. That way I can leave it on when I want and switch it off when I hit a big downhill.

 

[deeve]

I believe you are correct on Offroad deactivating the rear ABS. I dont have my Norden yet, but section 7.5 in the manual says it only controls the front wheel. I believe my KTM 790 I had several years ago had the ABS and Riding modes separated. I think once of the highlights on this new OS is that the ABS is now linked to the Ride Modes. It was specifically mentioned by the KTM folks. Easy enough to check by hitting the rear brake only in Offroad mode and see what happens. Like Thierrix says, making sure the rear ABS is deactivated while in the dirt is a must as you may find yourself in some harrowing situations otherwise.

 

[tom.armstrong33]

Thanks deeve. I'm looking forward to trying it. I thought the manual said that ABS was not affected by the ride modes. When I'm in Offroad mode, the ABS is still shown as 'Road'. I have to manually turn it off. I was primarily worried about the ABS kicking in when going down a big rocky hill. I had that happen on an old F800 and the ABS just let go at the worst time when I was trying to descend a big hill. Definitely don't want that happening again. What's the issue with ABS and the rear wheel when off road. I don't use it to slide into turns as I'd probably end up on my A.

 

[deeve]

What's the issue with ABS and the rear wheel when off road. I don't use it to slide into turns as I'd probably end up on my A.

ABS kicks in a lot easier off road where the traction is limited which greatly increases your stopping distance and control when off road. You kinda want ABS in the front wheel as a locked up front wheel can often lead to a crash/loss of control. On the rear tire, having more control without ABS, being able to lock up the tire and stop (buildup of dirt and gravel in front of a rear tire can help stopping). Also a locked up rear tire doesn't lead to a crash...at least as immediately as a front could.

I have heard (anecdotally) that newer ABS systems seem to work better on the front wheel off road. Certainly better than first gen ABS did for sure.

 

[ECJJCE]

From Cycle World's recent review of the Norden Expedition model:

"Bosch’s 9.1 MP Cornering ABS system utilizes an IMU to determine the bike’s lean angle and intervene accordingly when switched to the standard mode. In Offroad mode, ABS is turned off to the rear wheel so it can be completely locked, while the lean-sensitive function is turned off and ABS intervention (at the front wheel) reduced."

Not sure if this applies to 2022 'standard' Nordens.....

ECJJCE

 

[deeve]

If accurate that is one difference between the 890's and 901. The 2023's use Bosch 9.3 MP Cornering ABS. Not sure the real-world differences between the two since the cornering ABS in the 901 and 2022 890s seems to get great reports.

 

[Mooseb]

From Cycle World's recent review of the Norden Expedition model:

"Bosch’s 9.1 MP Cornering ABS system utilizes an IMU to determine the bike’s lean angle and intervene accordingly when switched to the standard mode. In Offroad mode, ABS is turned off to the rear wheel so it can be completely locked, while the lean-sensitive function is turned off and ABS intervention (at the front wheel) reduced."

Not sure if this applies to 2022 'standard' Nordens.....

ECJJCE

The description of how it works seems to fit with my experience on the 22 Norden last year.

 

[tom.armstrong33]

I read that a software update ensures the new Norden Expedition automatically switche abs to off-road mode when the off-road riding mode is selected. I wonder whether that software update will be available for 2022 and 2023 Norden's.

 

[SydsTub]

Hi Tom,
as far as I am aware and on my Norden, ABS has to be deselected on the rear when switching to Offroad and Explorer mode. I can get the rear to lock up, and just this weekend I played around with trying to get the front to lock up on downhill dirt, but it just wanted to pull me up, which does exactly what you want. So the front with ABS is supper powerful on loose gravel under load. The rear easily locks up if you want to slide the rear but with a lighter touch it just assists the front to slow you down, plus a little pull of the clutch also washes of speed pretty quick too.

 

[tom.armstrong33]

Hi Tom,
as far as I am aware and on my Norden, ABS has to be deselected on the rear when switching to Offroad and Explorer mode. I can get the rear to lock up, and just this weekend I played around with trying to get the front to lock up on downhill dirt, but it just wanted to pull me up, which does exactly what you want. So the front with ABS is supper powerful on loose gravel under load. The rear easily locks up if you want to slide the rear but with a lighter touch it just assists the front to slow you down, plus a little pull of the clutch also washes of speed pretty quick too.

OK thanks. That's useful information. I'm off on a three day ride around the VIC high country this weekend, so I'll give it a good tryout. I've used my down quick selector button to access the ABS on/off mode so I should be able to do it easily when I select off road riding mode.

 

[SydsTub]

OK thanks. That's useful information. I'm off on a three day ride around the VIC high country this weekend, so I'll give it a good tryout. I've used my down quick selector button to access the ABS on/off mode so I should be able to do it easily when I select off road riding mode.

Cool, enjoy…should be good weather too. I haven’t worked out how to set the quick selector button yet 😜 but would like it for a few options - I like the idea for using it for ABS on/off