mtbmike
Member
Well I'm assuming there are a fair amount if you very interested in the AT and some that don't give a crap but I'm going to attempt to make this comparison even though they are completely different. So here it goes. I have had my AT about 3 weeks now and it has about 800 miles on it now I have had alot of time to ride it over the NC while I wait for my water pump. First thing I want to say is if your on the fence about upgrading your NC to the AT I'm pretty sure most would be happy however the time I have spent on the bike so far I can tell you I am so happy I decided to keep my NC. Even though the AT freakin awesome and is very nimble it feels much heavier than the NC in all aspects. I think the NC is the better commuter period!!! When I ride the AT I miss the frunk bad even though I have all my racks installed on the AT when my boxes are on it's just so dang wide so I have them off most of the time. The motor on the AT feels good lots of punch down low the throttle is very light and feels alot like a dirt bike throttle when going back in forth the NC throttle feels tube feels way different almost like it's stiff and binding. I'm almost flat foot on the AT and I am solid flat foot on the NC. I'm 5'9" 32 inseam. Wind protection is slightly better on the AT with the stock windshield I have the touring shield on the NC. Suspension is a no brainer its miles ahead of the NC the NC feels like I'm riding on a hard tail in comparison. It's actually amazing it might be the best stock suspension I have ever ridden on any dirt bike. The egros are good on both but I needed to add risers to the NC to get the bars back so it was not such a reach the AT feels perfect stock. The other sore side of the NC is the knee bend man I don't know how you tall guys do it but my knees are bent way to much on the NC the highway pegs are a great addition to the NC for me. The AT feels much better in this regard so taller people are going to love the knee bend. There is alot more room on the AT I ride with my boy on the back alot on both machines and I really can't turn around at lights to talk to him on the NC it's too tight but the the AT I have no troubles at all he says he is more comfortable on the AT as well. The dash and controls are great on the AT I can see ambient temp I can also see how many miles tell the tank is empty and how much is left in the tank I can see my average fuel consumption as well. I am getting a respectable 57mpg on the AT. The NC is smoother at low speeds is way better than the AT. Going slow is very easy on the NC and that matters when your stuck in traffic. Imo compared to the NC the AT is a oven when it comes to heat the NC is a much cooler running bike. I find it difficult to keep the motor smooth at anything lower than 25 mph on the AT the fuel injection just is not as smooth as the NC. So I guess the long of the short if you have lots of miles on your NC I assume you are really happy with the bike for those guys thinking of dumping the NC for a AT you may miss your NC. Like I said earlier I am really glad I have decided to keep the NC. I bought the AT for it's offroad capability's the engine is smooth and the gear box is fantastic it's a awesome offroad machine I like them both for what they were designed for. If your not going to use the AT as intended you might miss the nc NC. So there you have it the NC is all patched up with a new water pump ready for duty. I can't get pictures to work sorry. For reference both my NC and AT are manual models.