Photo: KTM
In the first week of September Austrian bike maker KTM pulled the wraps off the 890 Adventure R Rally. Described as "the most performance driven Adventure motorcycle yet," it was not meant for everyone, but only for those wishing to experience what it means to ride a bike in some African desert. Turns out there are plenty of those to go around.
Whenever KTM releases such an extreme incarnation of its bikes, it does so as limited runs. In the case of this two-wheeler, production slots were capped at just 700 units, sold for a little over $21,000 each.
And like we've seen time and time again with KTM products, they were all gone in a heartbeat. The Austrians said at the end of last week it only needed three days to burn through the entire production run after the order books opened on September 20. That's not a record for the bike maker, but still remains impressive.
34 of the people who bought themselves the extreme ride were also given the chance to pay an extra $5,200 for something called the Ultimate KTM Desert Experience, and that is now sold out as well.
The Experience is a three-day trip to the African desert with luxury accommodation and a night of camping under the stars, highlighted by rides on the sand on fully-prepped bikes and with tech support in tow.
As for the bike itself, we're talking about a machine that was not only inspired, but also shares a lot of components with the 450 Rally, the bike Kevin Benavides rode to the win in the Dakar Rally this year.
The machine is propelled by an 889cc parallel-twin engine that is rated at 105 horsepower and 100 Nm of torque. An Akrapovic slip-on line exhaust system the likes of which KTM uses on the factory race bikes has been fitted on its right side.
To handle the requirements of riding over unexpected surfaces, the bike rides on Excel wheels coming in 21 inches at the front and 18 inches at the rear. They're held in place by a WP Xplor fork and shock with 270 mm of travel.
For some, the fact the bike is no longer available for purchase may seem a bit disappointing, but there is still room for hope. People are known to back down from the deals they make, and in case that happens now KTM has created a waiting list. We have no idea how long the list is.
For some of those who won't change their minds, Christmas may come early. KTM says deliveries of the 890 Adventure R Rally will begin in December, but warns some people might get theirs as late as May 2024.
And like we've seen time and time again with KTM products, they were all gone in a heartbeat. The Austrians said at the end of last week it only needed three days to burn through the entire production run after the order books opened on September 20. That's not a record for the bike maker, but still remains impressive.
34 of the people who bought themselves the extreme ride were also given the chance to pay an extra $5,200 for something called the Ultimate KTM Desert Experience, and that is now sold out as well.
The Experience is a three-day trip to the African desert with luxury accommodation and a night of camping under the stars, highlighted by rides on the sand on fully-prepped bikes and with tech support in tow.
As for the bike itself, we're talking about a machine that was not only inspired, but also shares a lot of components with the 450 Rally, the bike Kevin Benavides rode to the win in the Dakar Rally this year.
The machine is propelled by an 889cc parallel-twin engine that is rated at 105 horsepower and 100 Nm of torque. An Akrapovic slip-on line exhaust system the likes of which KTM uses on the factory race bikes has been fitted on its right side.
To handle the requirements of riding over unexpected surfaces, the bike rides on Excel wheels coming in 21 inches at the front and 18 inches at the rear. They're held in place by a WP Xplor fork and shock with 270 mm of travel.
For some, the fact the bike is no longer available for purchase may seem a bit disappointing, but there is still room for hope. People are known to back down from the deals they make, and in case that happens now KTM has created a waiting list. We have no idea how long the list is.
For some of those who won't change their minds, Christmas may come early. KTM says deliveries of the 890 Adventure R Rally will begin in December, but warns some people might get theirs as late as May 2024.
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