It’s always good news to hear about reasonably sized adventure bikes coming to market, especially those in the 500cc range. This one, the Aventura 500 Legend from Spanish brand Rieju, was announced at EICMA in Milan and comes with a unique offering in the class.

So, no, Rieju isn’t a household name in the States, but in the wider world and Europe especially, it’s respected for its off-road and enduro bike line. Founded by two friends in 1934 who fused their last names to create the brand name, Rieju began with bicycles, moved to mopeds and then in 1953 it entered the motorcycle market, and by the late 1970s Rieju had become a notable presence in the international enduro racing scene. 

This new bike, the Aventura, Spanish for adventure, is a bit of a departure from the brand’s small displacement enduro, supermoto and road bikes. In fact, the 471cc liquid-cooled parallel twin will be the largest mill in Rieju’s lineup of bikes, currently headlined by some lightweight GasGas derived models, designs which Rieju acquired rights to when KTM purchased GasGas.  

Of course Honda CB500X fans and followers will recognize this engine immediately since it’s indistinguishable from the twin in the now decade-old CB500 line. 

The Rieju version is manufactured by Loncin reportedly under a Honda license. A manufacturing powerhouse in China, Loncin builds the F750/850GS twin powerplant for BMW, producing millions of motorcycles and even more engine units year after year, which are sold under an assortment of brand names throughout the world. 

So what we know is the engine is a clone of the affable twin from the CB500X (known to deliver around 47 hp) that will be driven by six gears and housed in a steel frame. Unlike the Honda, a bike that’s regularly up-kitted to make it more off-road adept, the Aventura Legend will come straight off the rack with spoked 21” front and 18” rear wheels slowed by twin disc brakes up front and a single disc on the rear. In the suspension department, the Aventura appears to sport a long travel upside-down fork and mono shock rear. 

What’s really off the charts for this new entry is the Aventura 500’s bum-killing fuel capacity of 10.3 gallons, which is provided by dual tanks, a 5.3 gallon (20-liter) front reservoir and another 5 gallon (19-liter) tank at the rear. According to Rieju that will take you to upwards of 600+ miles between fuel stops, providing the bike with class-leading range.

The bike is said to offer a seat height of 32.3 inches (820mm) and weigh in at 418 pounds dry, just a few cheeseburgers more than the CB-X, which can be justified by standard adventure-minded features on the bike that include a rear mounting rack, crash bars, hand guards and a skid plate. Another accessory on the Aventura is a double dash cam to record your ride, a simple but advantageous element, and something we’re sure to see on more new models in the future.  

The Aventura’s aesthetic has been likened to Honda’s Africa Twin and certainly you can see it in the knitted brow, the sweep of the side panels, and those distinctive gold rims. The Rieju with its handy rear tank, looks ready to hit some dirt roads and potentially some technical trails too, once we see the capabilities of the suspension package. 

As for now, this will be a Spring 2023 European launch, with no word on availability in the US, though Rieju does currently have 40 dealers spread across the country, which certainly leaves room for hope. 

Author: Jamie Elvidge

Jamie has been a motorcycle journalist for more than 30 years, testing the entire range of bikes for the major print magazines and specializing in adventure-travel related stories. To date she’s written and supplied photography for articles describing what it’s like to ride in all 50 states and 43 foreign countries, receiving two Lowell Thomas Society of American Travel Writer’s Awards along the way. Her most-challenging adventure yet has been riding in the 2018 GS Trophy in Mongolia as Team AusAmerica’s embedded journalist.