By the mid-1980s, the Paris Dakar Rally had become an immensely popular event on the world stage, and the big factories were competing hard to develop the next two-wheeled Trans-Saharan victory machine. At the same time, their marketing departments had gotten savvy to Dakar fever. After Yamaha launched the Ténéré 600, Honda responded with a Paris Dakar special edition of their own: the XL600LM.