[Red Liner]

https://youtu.be/AOIMTTdtb_E

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by Crhysis

Got my bike today.

Congratulations on the new bike.

For parking, as folks have suggested either use the front suspension trick OR always be mindful where you are parking. Ensure you park it in a way it is safe for the bike, as well as rider to move out. 390 Adventure is very light and easy that way, unlike the larger Adventure bikes. Another simple thing to do is, just stand by the side and use normal push-pull to move out of the parking spot, before you mount the bike.

Updates from my end:

I have covered about 840 kms as of today morning. Last weekend had a medium'ish ride to Coorg that was about ~ 250 kms one way and it gave out some very different perspectives about the bike. Some good, some not good and some outright bad

Good

Brilliant fuel-efficiency - though the figure was hovering around 23 kmpl with the city runs, I was surprised when the mid showed close to 28 kmpl with a mix of city and the onward ride to Coorg. And the bike was ridden while taking speeds upto 125 kmph and revving it up nicely.

The surprising part was the return trip, one of the rider friend was feeling little under the weather and we were riding at slower but continuous pace and the MID was showing 37.3 Kmpl over a distance of 90 kms.



Soon the pace picked up and when I parked the bike at home mid was showing 36.9 Kmpl!! I was not very convinced so I went and topped up the tank and that reading was 36 Kmpl! This i feel is brilliant figures.



Only concern is the huge variation in FE, city peak hour commute can bring the FE easily down to 20 and then on highway jump to 30's, the tall sprocketing makes this difference i feel. And since in city one rarely engage 5th and 6th gear.

Handling in hills - Bike has got its KTM pedigree right and is superb to take on the curves. It's light, very chuckable and predictable. The cornering ABS is a great boon and felt doing its job, the bike doesn't seem to stand up abruptly unlike the regular bikes even when brakes are applied inside the turn. You will fall in love with the handling and push to a good extent. At one point when the pace was slow, I was able to do one hand turn into moderate hairpin bends



Hooligan mode - True to the brand image this is another hooligan of a bike from the stable. Loves to be on the boil, no fuss while doing abrupt direction change etc. I got a feeling it was too boring to ride relaxed, if you want to enjoy this hooligan mode is the one to be in. Ride safe!

Not so good

Sedate rides - As I mentioned above, when you are riding sedately the lack of low end below ~ 4000 Rpm along with the sprocketing makes it a not so enjoyable bike. Add to that the clanky gearbox makes it a little unnerving. Things have improved a lot from day 1 and hopefully, the move to synthetic oil at first service will improve things further.

Mid range engine vibration - My bike is still viby at 4500 to 6000 RPM, the lower and higher RPM's seems to have settled down better. Problem is, this is where one is mostly during longer highway runs. 5000 RPM corresponding to about 108 KPH if I remember correctly, and holding steady RPM starts to send a vibration to the chassis and in turn into the footpegs. The padded gloves though seem to isolate vibes from the hands to an extent.



Seating posture - With the current seating triangle and with my height, I land up kinda at the midpoint of the front seats while seated. And this is not really a great place to be, the narrower base puts a bit of pressure on the thighs and extended rides definitely will get them to ache. Moving back one has to bend a lot to the front to reach the handle which again is not natural and eventually you will land up moving back to the middle. So though the seats have lot of space, is not really usable.

The bad

Highway cruising - I have bought this bike for city commute mostly, and for those one-off trips where I might ship the bike, so this may not be really an issue for me.

Butttt for people who are buying it mostly for long highway tours, I would suggest a big NO!. Yes, it is fast, it 'maybe' more reliable yadayada, but just get a Himalayan instead, save a lakh or more and be very comfy during your tours. The issue is ironically this bikes major plus point compared to Himalayan, the weight factor. The laws of physics though doesn't work for it on highways as expected. The bike feels too light, at speeds above 100 Kmph, just a slight wind makes it nervous, so one has to really be concentrating so as not get pulled into a wind drift, say while overtaking a huge container lorry. The tall gearing again results in low engine braking at higher gears, which again adds to a disconnect while touring at speeds. Add to that the vibes from engine and stiffer progression of suspension let in lot of fatigue onto the rider.



I would like to go on records and say it again, the biggest MISTAKE KTM India did was the removal of adjustable suspension. This at least could have given some amount of adjustability to the user based on their needs. I for one plan to move the rear preload to softest and check, but those adjustable inserts would mean a lot more and I need to figure some options ASAP.

Wind protection is ok with the windshield and the deflector keeping it smooth for the rider at speeds of 120 kph, but it is darn too noisy. The Arai helmet was a pain to use on this ride with vents open. I believe a power part is going to be available but at ~7000 INR, need to check how tall that is.

Handle bars - Badly need risers, it is just not comfy the way it is set up now for riding while standing on the pegs. You are standing almost ready to take a dive, even with a slight squat at the knees. Very unnatural position and makes it even more difficult to shift gears or reach the rear brakes. Will need 2" riser asap, someone is working on this and hopefully will be able to get my hands on it soon. If not go for the expensive Rox ones.

Initial gremlins of KTM - The quick shifter remains off for me, since activating it does not make the unit seem to work. The workshop still has not given a confirmation that the OBD unit has been updated, so that i can try recalibrating the quick shifter.

The windscreen makes a continuous krrr sound at certain speeds, so that needs removal and some double side tape insertion.

The rear mud flap unit already has lost one screw thanks to the vibes I guess. Will need to to find sometime and re-torque all such screws.

Hope this helps, do ask if you need to know anything else and that I can help with. No, I am not a hardcore 2 wheel offroad person, so may not be of help there.

[rakesh_r]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Handle bars - Badly need risers, it is just not comfy the way it is set up now for riding while standing on the pegs. You are standing almost ready to take a dive, even with a slight squat at the knees. Very unnatural position and makes it even more difficult to shift gears or reach the rear brakes. Will need 2" riser asap, someone is working on this and hopefully will be able to get my hands on it soon. If not go for the expensive Rox ones.

Since you are based on Bangalore, why dont try the handlebar from Art of Motorcycles. The owner himself bought a 390 ADV and did some tasteful mods.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVAbFhH6yLE

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by rakesh_r

Since you are based on Bangalore, why dont try the handlebar from Art of Motorcycles. The owner himself bought a 390 ADV and did some tasteful mods

Good tip, will pay him a visit this week to see his mods in person. I don’t think I want to switch the entire handle bar, pretty happy with the stock one. But his other stuff like the aux light mounts and the rear rack seems interesting and I want to see them for myself.

[sukiwa]

With so many bikes delivered to BHPians, some of them taking it to highways and trails alike, who is going to start an ownership thread for 390 ADV?
This very thread is more than 3 years old and has served its purpose in my opinion; time to move over to living with 390 ADV; 'Jaggu', 'Red Liner' anyone?

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

The comments on the highway performance are rather disappointing to read!

To most customers - this would ideally be a Duke 390 with longer legs, and it appears that is not really the case?

[ihrishi]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

But his other stuff like the aux light mounts and the rear rack seems interesting and I want to see them for myself.

Pls update us as well. Am in the market for aux mounts, saddle stay and engine guard.
Thanks!

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

The comments on the highway performance are rather disappointing to read!

To most customers - this would ideally be a Duke 390 with longer legs, and it appears that is not really the case?

Wait wait. Dont cancel your bookings yet. Jaggu has given a good review, let me drop mine too once i close out 1000 kms.

Both of us are comparing this bike with a versys and a tiger with respect to ON ROAD performance.

Isn't it obvious that a 650 parallel or a triple triumph is built for that with the kind of engine and body?

Lets also let the bike open up a bit and settle down with fresh oil.

Originally Posted by ihrishi

Pls update us as well. Am in the market for aux mounts, saddle stay and engine guard.
Thanks!

I don't think I will buy anything from him. I hate that handle bar. Looks terrible. Sorry, but it is what it is. I also like the existing grab rail and I would just like to add a rear rack to fit a tail bag or top box to keep the weight down and the style simple.

Katoom here has agreed to design a few things for the 390 adventure, and another bhpian will hopefully help us have it cut in his cnc machine.

I will also need to verify if two inch risers will fit from rox, but i think 2 inches might be too tall? I have to experiment.

Originally Posted by sukiwa

With so many bikes delivered to BHPians, some of them taking it to highways and trails alike, who is going to start an ownership thread for 390 ADV?
This very thread is more than 3 years old and has served its purpose in my opinion; time to move over to living with 390 ADV; 'Jaggu', 'Red Liner' anyone?

I think the mods should simply move posts starting from jaggus review a page back to a KTM 390 Adventure owners thread where we can all continue contributing.

[shreyascashyap]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

My erstwhile versys used to give me 24-26 all the time, and Nasirkaka’s versys refused to go above 19. Imagine that..within the same generation brand of motorcycle.

Happy to report nasirkaka's erstwhile versys just gave 30.xx on a comfortable highway cruise recently

Congrats to everyone who got the delivery of their 390 ADV! Quick question: One of my friends is looking to buy one as his first ever 2-wheeler. How noobie friendly is this bike?

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by shreyascashyap

Happy to report nasirkaka's erstwhile versys just gave 30.xx on a comfortable highway cruise recently

Congrats to everyone who got the delivery of their 390 ADV! Quick question: One of my friends is looking to buy one as his first ever 2-wheeler. How noobie friendly is this bike?

It should be fine. But the BMW is more forgiving and maybe a better experience for your friend.

[mercedised]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Hope this helps, do ask if you need to know anything else and that I can help with. No, I am not a hardcore 2 wheel offroad person, so may not be of help there.

I own a 2019 Duke 390, bought it for occasional highway rides and have done only one till now. My observations of Duke 390 are very similar to what you have experienced. The gearbox still has not improved (clunkyness) after 4500 kms so I bet yours will do any better. The butt starts paining after 100 kms, I have to constantly change seating position as I could not find any particular position comfortable for longer times, the rider triangle is pathetic. The bike doesn't inspires confidence above 100kmph contrary to most of the reviews in which they quoted the bike tobe very stable and confidence inspiring at above 100kmph. The bike felt stable only upto 90kmph to me. The wind blast is terrible at above 90 kmph and adds to the unstablity feeling. The mileage in city for me has never gone above 20 kmpl, On highways I did get 35-37 kmpl at sedate speeds upto 80-90 kmph & anything above those speeds the mileage dropped to 26 kmpl. I guess they have not much improved the Adv 390 on all above aspects.

[mh09ad5578]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

It should be fine. But the BMW is more forgiving and maybe a better experience for your friend.

Ram sir and other senior BHPians who have brought the 390 adventure. What would you say makes a better sense for touring with a pillion, the 390 adventure or a pre worshipped Kawasaki Versys 650? I am talking in terms of overall ride,handling, comfort and also maintenance aspects. Per day travel distance being 600kms plus. Per annum running around 15k kms.

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by rakesh_r

Since you are based on Bangalore, why dont try the handlebar from Art of Motorcycles. The owner himself bought a 390 ADV and did some tasteful mods.

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Good tip, will pay him a visit this week to see his mods in person.

I definitely am ok with the handle if it is taller. Stuff from them is good, though not great when it comes to looks.

Originally Posted by sukiwa

This very thread is more than 3 years old and has served its purpose in my opinion; time to move over to living with 390 ADV; 'Jaggu', 'Red Liner' anyone?

Not getting time, hence i am jotting down in between updates as best as possible

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

The comments on the highway performance are rather disappointing to read!

To most customers - this would ideally be a Duke 390 with longer legs, and it appears that is not really the case?

It is a taller duke, but I am surprised if people believe if Duke has a good highway performance for long touring? It is as basic as it gets, any royal enfield's will have better comfort but with much lesser power and acceleration. Performance is a very wide canvas and reality is, none of these smaller lighter bikes are great at highway commute. Though I have heard Dominar is one of the better-off ones, I have not ridden it.

Originally Posted by shreyascashyap

Congrats to everyone who got the delivery of their 390 ADV! Quick question: One of my friends is looking to buy one as his first ever 2-wheeler. How noobie friendly is this bike?

If your friend is tall, don't see much issue in this. It is just another 390 cc bike.

Originally Posted by mercedised

I own a 2019 Duke 390, bought it for occasional highway rides and have done only one till now.
---
mileage dropped to 26 kmpl. I guess they have not much improved the Adv 390 on all above aspects.

City peak hour heavy traffic should give 22 kmpl. Highway hard riding 28-30 Kmpl, and sedate about 35-37 Kmpl. All these are great figures for ~400 cc engine.

Originally Posted by mh09ad5578

Ram sir and other senior BHPians who have brought the 390 adventure. What would you say makes a better sense for touring with a pillion, the 390 adventure or a pre worshipped Kawasaki Versys 650?

Pre owned Kawasaki anyday!

[neil.jericho]

I was asking around in the local motorcycling community about the Adv 390 test ride and the good news is that the bike is / was available at the nearby KTM showroom for test rides. The bad news is that test rides are not being given for everyone. The sales folks first determine if you are a "genuine buyer" or not and then will proceed to give you a test ride . There have been cases of test rides being denied by the KTM showroom to members of the motorcyclists community here in Cochin. Let me go and see if I pass the "genuine buyer" test and if I can sample the bike on the road.

Originally Posted by Jaggu

I have covered about 840 kms as of today morning. Last weekend had a medium'ish ride to Coorg that was about ~ 250 kms one way and it gave out some very different perspectives about the bike. Some good, some not good and some outright bad

Wonderful post! I was hoping that the Adv 390 would shine as a highway tourer, but your post has highlighted some of the issues with highway performance as well. Im glued to this thread to more real world feedback from you and the rest of the owners.

Originally Posted by shreyascashyap

Congrats to everyone who got the delivery of their 390 ADV! Quick question: One of my friends is looking to buy one as his first ever 2-wheeler. How noobie friendly is this bike?

Why a 390 as a starter bike? If it has to be a KTM, the 200 or the 250 is much more forgiving. If its got to be a 250, maybe the Suzuki instead? There are so many options that wont get a new rider in trouble.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by mh09ad5578

Ram sir and other senior BHPians who have brought the 390 adventure. What would you say makes a better sense for touring with a pillion, the 390 adventure or a pre worshipped Kawasaki Versys 650? I am talking in terms of overall ride,handling, comfort and also maintenance aspects. Per day travel distance being 600kms plus. Per annum running around 15k kms.

Pre owned versys 650 or a vstrom if you can find one. No contest.