[VishJ]

I am waiting for almost 2 years plus for this launch. Hope so it happens this year. We are in need of an adventure category bike for sure given our vastly different road conditions. Even if one doesn't off road much, our road conditions will be better taken care of by an adventure tourer. KTM please hear us and bring in the adv 390 soon.

[timuseravan]

Are Unicorns finally real?
http://overdrive.in/news-cars-auto/k...at-eicma-2018/

Trunkenpolz said, "The 390 Adventure project is on-going. It will definitely be at EICMA 2019." I spoke to KTM India officials who said exactly the same thing - that their declaration of a 2019 launch was still on, that no one promised a Milan show debut and that the 390 Adventure will, in fact, arrive in the 2019 calendar year.

[ashwin1224]

Originally Posted by timuseravan

Are Unicorns finally real?
http://overdrive.in/news-cars-auto/k...at-eicma-2018/

They'll launch it on 31st December 2019 and then claim they "listened to what the fans said and delivered on their promise"

The only reason I dislike the 790 adventure is because it isn't the 390 adventure.

/rant

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Spied testing in India now? Getting circulated in biking groups, original source unknown.

[mayanksabharwal]

Here is an official update from Rushlane, which claims that launch has been confirmed for 2019.

https://www.rushlane.com/ktm-390-adv...-12286655.html

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Wonder what people think about the wheels - the alloy wheels will not make it as extreme as many would have liked.

Though personally - I'm happy with the convenience it brings.

[ashwin1224]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Wonder what people think about the wheels - the alloy wheels will not make it as extreme as many would have liked.

I'm pretty sure there will be two versions of this bike, one focused on the road, the other off it. This is the road version probably with its alloy wheels, while the off road will probably get spokes. However knobby tires on this bike somewhat throws the on/off road versions theory, we'll have to wait for the final launch to know for sure really. The tires seem like michelin Siracs, are they any good off road?

Its great to finally see the beast on our roads and the bike looks ready for production. Lets see when does this half a decade long wait finally end!

[timuseravan]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Wonder what people think about the wheels - the alloy wheels will not make it as extreme as many would have liked.
Though personally - I'm happy with the convenience it brings.

Same for me. I would bet 90% of adventure bikes go at most on dirt paths where alloys are fine.

Overdrive has a good analysis of the prototype:
http://overdrive.in/news-cars-auto/n...-they-promise/

The prototype looks complete. Very few bits on this look like they're not final validation aggregates and that whole indicate that KTM India will launch this around April to June 2019 - which as we have said before, is their usual launch slot for the 390 series. Exciting times!

[Urban_Nomad]

Originally Posted by timuseravan

Same for me. I would bet 90% of adventure bikes go at most on dirt paths where alloys are fine

Completely understand where you are coming from. And you are right, most folks will be Ok with this set up

But here's the thing - Most folks will also be Ok with a street focused bike in this terrain. Just look at the hordes of people heading to Leh / Spiti and their rides. Not many go up in flames

Heck, the weekend trails I ride also see villagers on their mopeds or 100 cc workhorses. But the difference is, we are going a fair bit faster than them

If just getting through the terrain is the focus, Oh yeah! - Most bikes will do just fine. When you start to go faster though, you start seeing the weaknesses (outside of your skill level). Small wheels that tend to deflect easily, Alloy rims that are always at risk of cracking open like egg shells and suspension that's bottoming out with a gut wrenching THUD. This (wheels and suspension) are the first ones to let you down when you want to go faster, trust me

Your options - Dial down the pace

OR

Have a bike that wont just allow you to go through the terrain, but blast through it with a wide grin on your face. This is where, at least in the pictures... this 390 is extremely disappointing to me

I always had a picture in my mind when the topic of 390 ADV presented itself; and I blame KTMs pedigree when it comes to off road and / or ADV bikes. I was thinking - around 10 inches suspension travel, at least 19 inch spoke wheels in a relatively lightweight package

A desi, but probably much better version of the DRZ 400 which is more comfortable, modern (FI), has the highway legs (useful 6th gear) and will be off road focused to the tune of 50% at least. This one is no more than 20%

There are enough bikes that can tour on road and handle a broken patch easily. Mojo, Duke, Himalayan, Beloved CBR etc - they all are doing all this today; right? You also have the RE twins now that should be comfy mile munchers

If this is it from KTM - then with all due respect; I am sure I can do a better job with the wheels and suspension myself and for a cheaper price. This needed to be a bit more juicy, Hardcore!! Instead, it looks a bit ... Limp

[Red Liner]

Urban, what you are looking for is a hardcore enduro bike, and as you get better you will venture into trail bikes as well.

This ktm is going to positioned as a travel enduro or a light weight dual purpose adv bike. Such tourers do not intend to go fast and then stop to fix the bike. This is positioned more for people who explore long distances across varied terrain in a non competitive manner, safe for them as well as their bikes. No undue risks, the riders are fairly average motorcyclists with little to no training, just the thrill of adventure and seeing new places and completing the journey takes precedence. This is the target for the new breed of light weight adv travel enduros.

I have done enough offroad on jeeps to understand where you come from in terms of trail riding and offroad expeditions. What you want is the Honda CRF 450L which will never come here. So go ahead and continue building your enduro bike.

[Urban_Nomad]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Urban, what you are looking for is a hardcore enduro bike, and as you get better you will venture into trail bikes as well.

Bhai, call it Enduro, Dual sport or whatever! Even you cant deny that this is a watered down version of what most of us envisioned

Looks like they took the 390 as is, added wheels and suspension; tweaked the bodywork a bit and called it a day. Very disappointing!

Look at the 790 and the Adv variants. 200 mm suspension travel, longer strurdier swing arm, heck they have even completely redesigned the fuel tank to sit down low

The 390 ADV doesn't look right to me. I don't intend to go bouncing off rocks at 100 KPH. But I should not have my heart in my mouth coz my suspension bottomed out on a whoops section. Ambling along on a trail, again; is something I ve seen guys do on RE 350, Dukes, CBR with clip ons, Karizmas, RTRs

This bike should compliment the rider's skills and boost the confidence to be better, faster. Last time I took my 390 out on the trail the biggest problem besides my limited skills was the wheels and suspension. This seems to have been completely glossed over by none other than K FRIGGIN T M

My only hope is that there's an "R" type version that will come with the necessary goodies

Fellow riders - I remember reading this somewhere : 90% of the land is unpaved. So...

"Of all the paths you take in life, make sure some of them are dirt"
- John Muir

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by Urban_Nomad

Bhai, call it Enduro, Dual sport or whatever! Even you cant deny that this is a watered down version of what most of us envisioned

It's just been built to take on the Versys 300X, Himalayan, GS310, Vstrom 250..you get the drift. The audience for all these bikes are entry level bikers (me included!), not people who go sliding 100 kmph around a cliff and find the suspension bottoming out, no.

The 790 ADV has been built to take on the Tenere T7 from Yamaha and for a more committed audience who can "afford" to pony up the money for the better and bigger suspension upgrades etc.

That's all there is to it. Entry level bikes will always be watered down...want better, either make the upgrades yourself or buy the 790 ADV

Agreed on the dirt bit...luckily in India, whether you like it or not, Dirt is an uncompriseable part of your journey wherever you go lol

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by Urban_Nomad

Bhai, call it Enduro, Dual sport or whatever! Even you cant deny that this is a watered down version of what most of us envisioned

Look at the spec, adjustable upside down forks with long travel. Decent ground clearance for the 390 size; seating and steering geometry for adventure based riding. I think if they manage to sell it under 3, they are spot on and will sell like hot cakes. I am pretty sure they will have one base model with alloy and shorter seat height, second one- Offroad spec with spokes and higher seat and maybe gc planned.

I don't think we can expect the gadgetry or complexities that comes in a 790 or 1200 class in a 390 for that would make it prohibitively expensive and most importantly won't fit in the smaller proportion. Where will you get such sq ft area in a small bike. Or like Redliner said one should be looking at a moto cross type of machine. But FYI those small 250 cc sell at 7 lakh OTR and are not even road legal.

I think we should keep our expectations also real.

For me this is perfect city thrasher, with some fun mild offloading where I don't want to take my larger adventure bike, or have the fear of dropping the machine.

[Urban_Nomad]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

The 790 ADV has been built to take on the Tenere T7 from Yamaha and for a more committed audience who can "afford" to pony up the money for the better and bigger suspension upgrades etc.

The 790 reference was simply to compare the road vs off road variants. I don't expect 790 power, gadgetry etc here. Just wanted to highlight that it seems not much has gone by the way of engineering outside of a large wheel and a bit more suspension. How long have we been hearing about this again?

Originally Posted by Red Liner

That's all there is to it. Entry level bikes will always be watered down...want better, either make the upgrades yourself or buy the 790 ADV

Simple question - You happy with what you are seeing?

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Look at the spec, adjustable upside down forks with long travel

Are the forks adjustable? I remember seeing that red nub on the test bike but doubt if final production model will have adjustable suspension. Will be very happy if proven wrong here

Originally Posted by Jaggu

I am pretty sure they will have one base model with alloy and shorter seat height, second one- Offroad spec with spokes and higher seat and maybe gc planned.

That's what I am hoping too

Originally Posted by Jaggu

I don't think we can expect the gadgetry or complexities that comes in a 790 or 1200 class in a 390...

That was not the intent of my post. Have clarified above

Originally Posted by Jaggu

For me this is perfect city thrasher,

We already have enough of those. Anyhow, this is just my opinion. I wanted more

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

I think we should keep our expectations also real.

My only expectation is that they improve quality. A close friend and BHPian has the new 390. Even i took the TD with him and recommended the bike thinking KTM would have sorted all issues over time. Infact, he went ahead inspite the earlier experience of another friend in our circle who had to sell off his RC390 when niggles started bugging him.

But there are so many things going wrong with that bike within one year and 10k kms - the latest victim being rear suspension.

Mad fun when everything works, but doesn't give me confidence to purchase or recommend a KTM for rough use!