Photo: Bjorn Hitterdahl
Awesome news for the adventure riders who are expecting a small-to-middleweight machine. It looks like KTM is entering testing phase for their upcoming 390 Adventure, and this spells massive thrills.
It may not be a bike to rival the glorious LC4, but let's not forget that the 390 family is also aimed at new riders. So far, the beginners have always been neglected by the manufacturers when it comes to all-road or adventure machines, but those days are over.
If all the rumors arriving from India are true, we might even see KTM becoming the first of the big manufacturers to deliver a beginner-friendly true adventure bike in the last decades. It goes without saying that the 390 Adventure will represent a huge headstart over the competition.
BMW was also rumored to be working on a small, beginner-friendly GS machine, but so far, no credible rumors surfaced. With KTM making this move, BMW will surely feel some pressure, especially as their tie-up with the Indian manufacturer TVS is aimed at this very segment.
The KTM 390 Adventure will be powered by the same engine that motivates the 390 Duke and RC390. If nothing is changed in terms of power and torque, we can expect it to produce 42.9 hp and 35 Nm (25.8 lb-ft) of torque.
However, the 390 Adventure is not a Duke remake. Last fall we spoke to KTM's Thomas Kuttruff about the new adventure machines (and other cool stuff, check out the exclusive interview) and he provided quite an interesting insight. According to the KTM official, building and adventure bike derived straight from the 390 Duke was impossible.
So, with these words, Mr. Kuttruff explained what KTM CEO Stefan Pierer wanted to say when he said that an "adventure Duke" was out of the question. Back then we suspected that KTM wasn't telling the whole truth, and we were right.
Basically, Mattighoffen said that they won't build an adventure Duke, but refrained to mention that they were working on a new platform that would use the 373cc engine. "The engine is not the problem. You can use the same engine for a lot of applications. It’s where you put it, the rest of the bike, the platform which needs to be different," Kuttruff told us at EICMA 2014.
According to cartrade, the KTM 390 Adventure sports a completely new frame and swingarm, new off-road wheels and stronger suspensions with a longer travel, a new headlight, hand guards, a tall, side-mounted exhaust and more comfortable seats.
Now we're out hunting for photos of the KTM 390 Adventure, because the bike pictured above is only a rendering.
If all the rumors arriving from India are true, we might even see KTM becoming the first of the big manufacturers to deliver a beginner-friendly true adventure bike in the last decades. It goes without saying that the 390 Adventure will represent a huge headstart over the competition.
Small-displacement adventure bikes are rather late... but better late than never
Honestly, a small-displacement adventure bike is something we should have had a long time ago. They are definitely overdue, but it's still not too late for them.BMW was also rumored to be working on a small, beginner-friendly GS machine, but so far, no credible rumors surfaced. With KTM making this move, BMW will surely feel some pressure, especially as their tie-up with the Indian manufacturer TVS is aimed at this very segment.
The KTM 390 Adventure will be powered by the same engine that motivates the 390 Duke and RC390. If nothing is changed in terms of power and torque, we can expect it to produce 42.9 hp and 35 Nm (25.8 lb-ft) of torque.
However, the 390 Adventure is not a Duke remake. Last fall we spoke to KTM's Thomas Kuttruff about the new adventure machines (and other cool stuff, check out the exclusive interview) and he provided quite an interesting insight. According to the KTM official, building and adventure bike derived straight from the 390 Duke was impossible.
A new platform using the KTM 390 engine
As the 390 Duke was engineered as a road-only machine, it's rolling chassis was impossible to tweak to become a full-on off-road bike. "If you are looking a bit into the technical layout of our small-displacement bike, you’ll see that it is limited to the naked bike concept. An adventure bike needs a completely different approach, a totally different layout. Frame, tank, airbox, exhaust: this is what makes the difference, and when it comes to adventure bikes and street bike, we’re talking day and night. [...] believing we’re just altering the naked bike platform to deliver a 390 Adventure machine is well… fairytales," Kuttruff told autoevolution.So, with these words, Mr. Kuttruff explained what KTM CEO Stefan Pierer wanted to say when he said that an "adventure Duke" was out of the question. Back then we suspected that KTM wasn't telling the whole truth, and we were right.
Basically, Mattighoffen said that they won't build an adventure Duke, but refrained to mention that they were working on a new platform that would use the 373cc engine. "The engine is not the problem. You can use the same engine for a lot of applications. It’s where you put it, the rest of the bike, the platform which needs to be different," Kuttruff told us at EICMA 2014.
According to cartrade, the KTM 390 Adventure sports a completely new frame and swingarm, new off-road wheels and stronger suspensions with a longer travel, a new headlight, hand guards, a tall, side-mounted exhaust and more comfortable seats.
Now we're out hunting for photos of the KTM 390 Adventure, because the bike pictured above is only a rendering.
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