Ural: 2019 Ural Ranger Sahara test ride.

Matt from Ural Australia ( In Uralla of course) was kind enough to let me take the 2019 model Sahara for a test ride around the neighbourhood yesterday. Here are my thoughts:
Pros.
1.The outfit is a well engineered, well sorted sidecar combination and is robust and reliable.
2.Ural have invested serious time and money in concentrating on reliability.
3. Power is useful and well delivered for what the Ural is designed to do. Torque is in the right places and serves well to get the outfit motoring along well for the kinds of places you will want to take it.
4. Switchgear and instruments are well laid out and work well. I didn't ride it at night, so can't say how effective the lights etc are, but can say that the blinkers and brake lights etc are well sized and visible.
5. Finish is excellent.
6. Riding position is very good, with the rider's knees bent for a straight up and down angle to the footrests, enabling good bike control on all surfaces.
7. Gearbox and drive train work very well and were surprisingly smooth on this bike.
8 Clutch is light and works well.
9. The outfit has good road presence and is not buffeted by large vehicles coming the opposite way.
10. Fun factor is a good 9 out of ten.

Cons:
1. The windshield fitted to this bike was worse than useless. It created too much buffeting, was annoying to look through and it would be the first thing I'd throw away. ( each to their own of course).
2. The long bench seat was terrible. It felt narrow and also felt like the scalloping between rider and pillion was in the wrong place, making the rider feel like he is sitting on the hump between the two. The Ural tractor seat was extremely comfortable on the other one I rode previously and I would opt for that immediately.
3. The bike is too quiet.
4. I felt that the outfit was inclined to wander a little and follow contours in the road a little too easily. This could be a matter of set up. It could also well be a case of stepping from my own outfit to this one. The Ural is of short wheelbase and its tyres are flat profile which makes the steering feel very light and a bit twitchy. This is probably just a matter of getting used to. Having said those things, by the time I was on the return trip to the shop, the bike rode along well with just one hand on the bars and felt stable at all times, ( regardless of what I might have said on video initially.) I never had a disconcerting moment while riding it... it just felt different.
5. It's not a mile eating road tourer for covering long distances in a short time. However, this is not generally what people will buy them for and won't be an issue. For taking the road less travelled, on winding roads off into the hills, dirt, across paddocks and looking for that good fishing spot, the Ural will prove more than capable.
5. Lastly, the bike isn't mine...yet.