[timuseravan]

Originally Posted by ebonho

And this only got worse when the first VERY raw 390s were launched.

And the funny part was that the 390 made the 200 look and feel like a Rolls Royce in comparison! LOL

Cheers, Doc

As a 2013 first gen 390 owner, I think a big mindset change was and is needed. Most people in India are upgrading from 150cc or Bullet 350 and used to low rpm riding. This is absolutely the worst way to ride a duke - especially the 390.
Was same case for me and I almost started regretting my purchase in one month. But someone (dont remember who now) told me (or maybe I read it somewhere) the right way to ride the Duke is to try to hit the rev limiter in each gear. I thought this was crazy and but tried it for a week and was completely converted.
I still own the bike 10 years later and plan to keep it.

Bajaj KTM need to train their salespeople to inform people about the correct way to ride it.

Originally Posted by ebonho

Because the market response from India said that a vast proportion of riders preferred it, and felt cheated that Gen 1 had no flamboyant looking performance (Akra type) exhaust.

Trust me, I'm NOT kidding.

Sadly looks and show-off matter a lot to the Indian buyer. I think this is also the reason Duke has grown in size with each year. Many people had commented to me that for such an expensive bike, it looks so small.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by timuseravan

I think this is also the reason Duke has grown in size with each year.

Brilliant. One of the gems I've read in a long time.

Porkiness sells.

Cheers, Doc

[kedar3223]

Financial miscalculation is just the simple ground reality of multiple used gen 3 or last lot of gen 2 ktms for sale in India. These bikes really do not have any hidden sour grapes that would compel the buyers to sell off their bikes. Some other genuine factors to sell off brand new bikes are reliability niggles or bad after sales(don't see any modern machines being highly unreliable. Some EV products might be included in this category. Service can be hit and miss for certain brands in a location), unmanageable weight(eg RE 650), unmanageable height(mostly advs purchased on a whim), bad suspension(eg: RE hunters, most of the scooters on used market) or simply not understanding the characteristics and nature of a bike.

The upkeep cost between a 125/150cc commuter and most of the 200-400cc bikes is an exponential curve that people fail to realise.

The air cooled 125s/150s make you lenient towards the maintenance aspect of your machine. Oil changes can be stretched to the limits. Chains, sprockets, bearings, suspension maintenance can be forgotten for years. Tire changes are a myth, the bikes come with one straight from the factory. And ofcourse, you fill it, shut it and forget it. Down the road, after many years and kms of neglect when you finally realise the mistakes at your end, the tlc can be had on the cheap. EMIs and insurance too is manageable.

A 200-400cc bike in comparison would simple drain you, if this purchase is made on a stretched finance. There's a substantial cost delta in the prices of the parts, EMIs, insurance and fuel consumption. The maintenance requirement is generally time bound. Lapse in maintenance has a greater adverse affect on the reliability and feel good factor of the machine.

A modern 250-400cc would end up costing approx 50k-70k in terms of insurance, fuel and maintenance cost(including averaged out wear and tear parts replacement)if run for 10000km in a year. People also tend to buy these with over leveraged loans. So we can safely add 7k per month of EMIs to the annual cost.

60000+ 84000=144000/-
I don't know what the salary distribution and trends are, but this cost is certainly not for everyone. It's 20% of a 7.5L in hand salary package.

Most people are better off having a commuter bike/scooter/ev scooter and a basic small car.

Thoughts?

[Asoon]

KTM is not for every one (including me), a lot of folks buy it just following the trend and expect the buttery smooth experience like a Yamaha, Honda because they have paid a good price. KTMs cannot be benchmarked based on the price spread or engine capacity (cc) spread, this is not a versatile offering, it does well what it is intended to do and cannot be your regular city / utility commute

[b16h22]

Originally Posted by Asoon

KTM is not for every one (including me), a lot of folks buy it just following the trend and expect the buttery smooth experience like a Yamaha, Honda because they have paid a good price. KTMs cannot be benchmarked based on the price spread or engine capacity (cc) spread, this is not a versatile offering, it does well what it is intended to do and cannot be your regular city / utility commute

While I agree that KTMs are not for everyone, it can serve as a regular everyday commuter perfectly okay for the targeted buyers. I used to daily ride a first gen 390 for 9 years and it was my main mode of transport. It entirely depends on what are you looking to get out of your purchase. The newer gen KTMs are much better at this.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Asoon

KTM is not for every one (including me), a lot of folks buy it just following the trend and expect the buttery smooth experience like a Yamaha, Honda because they have paid a good price. KTMs cannot be benchmarked based on the price spread or engine capacity (cc) spread, this is not a versatile offering, it does well what it is intended to do and cannot be your regular city / utility commute

I've been happily commuting daily 20 km in Poona peak traffic and roads (and pavements) for the past 6 months. Its getting hot now. So I just need to go faster.

Cheers, Doc

P.S. October 2013 first lot Duke 390

[scarn]

Originally Posted by Asoon

KTM is not for every one (including me), a lot of folks buy it just following the trend and expect the buttery smooth experience like a Yamaha, Honda because they have paid a good price. KTMs cannot be benchmarked based on the price spread or engine capacity (cc) spread, this is not a versatile offering, it does well what it is intended to do and cannot be your regular city / utility commute

I am using the gen-3 duke 390 as my daily office rides in Bengaluru traffic as well as for the long rides and it is serving both purposes exceptionally well. Light and nimble enough for daily rides. Fast and stable enough for highway runs. I believe it is the best all round bike in the market right now. It has great ground clearance, very stable, the riding posture is not too aggressive, comes with all the electronic aids which are also switchable so best of both worlds and it is very light.

[maverick029]

Originally Posted by scarn

Expanding on Doc's insightful remarks, I've noticed an interesting trend in the reviews of the 2024 Duke 390 by international vs Indian reviewers. While the international reviewers tend to overlook the vibrations issue, Indian reviewers consistently bring it up, often comparing it to 300cc or sub-300cc bikes. Tbh I find this stance a bit puzzling, given the insane power output of 45 bhp from 400cc single; it's only natural for vibrations to be present. After all, smoother single-cylinder bikes rarely exceed 30bhp, and even then, they still exhibit vibrations under heavy acceleration. With a 400cc high-compression engine, while keeping the weight below 170kg, some level of vibrations is to be expected. However, many reviewers seem to focus solely on this aspect without properly educating their audience about the broader context. This plays into the mentality of people who think all bikes should be vibe-free and hence believe there's something wrong with their bike.

A point well brought up, i totally agree with you. Not just reviewers even common folks crib about vibrations and stiff suspension, i mean come on appreciate the bike for what it is not for what you want it to be. KTMs have always been race ready and sporty if you have the skills to extract its potential you will be rewarded else you are going to crib mostly due to lack of skills. So what if its low end torque is less !! Its a single cycl sports bike it is supposed to have that. Keep the revs higher and make your ride smooth. We adjust our skills with the bike not vice versa and this is one reason why i have unwanted mods to the bike as well.

Originally Posted by Asoon

KTM is not for every one (including me), a lot of folks buy it just following the trend and expect the buttery smooth experience like a Yamaha, Honda because they have paid a good price. KTMs cannot be benchmarked based on the price spread or engine capacity (cc) spread, this is not a versatile offering, it does well what it is intended to do and cannot be your regular city / utility commute

Totally agree with you. I own an adv 390 which serves as my do it all. It has its quirks and rewards, but would i want any other bike as do it all i doubt there is any for me at the moment. I had previously owned as200, fz25 and tbx350, coming from them it took me a while to adjust to ktm but boy did it surprise me. I love to ride it.

[anilp]

People selling off the 390 within months are not a new phenomenon as such. I own a 2013 KTM 390 Duke myself, and the KTMs did not have today's "chapri" image that time. Many of the first gen 390s also were sold off within a year or two that time as well.

Most of the guys who bought it with me at the time sold it because:

(1) Upgraded to a bigger bike. This is the majority. Many of these bought 600 CC+ bikes within a year or two.
(2) Like many mentioned earlier, disillusionment with the experience of upgrading from a smoother, smaller bike. This was only a small percentage at that time.
(3) Many of the 20 something group moved on to four wheelers due to the shaadi, biwi, bacha dukh bhari kahani and stopped riding altogether
(4) Interestingly, a small group of my old crowd moved to off road biking, rallies, etc
(5) A few sold the 390 because their better halves hate the KTM's really non-existent pillion seat. Gen 2 and gen 3 back seats are better that way. This nearly happened to me too...

As for me, I still own my 390 from 2013. And, it still makes me giggle like a little girl on sugar overdose every time I take out the damn bike.

[ebonho]

The best part about this discussion is discovering how many of us are still going strong with our old ladies.

One after another.

At 10+ years, we are in Bullet territory here.

Cheers, Doc

[sgmuser]

I for one, wanted to try 390 but stopped the idea altogether. The reason is that Duke is coming in many cc variants and the majority of the hooligan acts/stunts/road racing is done with KTMs and traffic police simply hate bikes which are orange in color stickers and with trellis frame. As simple as that. These kids just buy the 200 Duke and does all kinds of nonsense on roads and we see that all day every day. The Traffic Police think anyone with KTM is a racer dude who will do wheelies. This is the perception. This will be at least 10% if not more!

[masterChief007]

Originally Posted by sgmuser

I for one, wanted to try 390 but stopped the idea altogether.

I would say just go and do the test ride, just because some idiots are doing bad stuff doesn't mean you should miss the chance of at least experiencing it the first hand. I just loved 390 Adv (would have already bought it but stalling because of h450 tubeless and a possible 399 Adv release soon) and I am sure if I were in the market for a city bike would have considered the 390 duke too (I am actually going to test ride it this week for sure, just to see if I should wait for 399 engine or be satisfied with the 373 itself). I will make my buying decision around July/August.

[DBS65]

Good day, Comrades

I recently found two iron pins in the rear tyre of my 2024 Duke 390. I got it repaired at a puncture shop nearby(pierce and filler style).

Please advice about the life of the tyre and how to take care of this tyre now regarding the pressure, usage etc.

The Duke is my daily commute and occasional highway transport. Rarely do I carry a pillion. I am not a reckless rider but usually ride in high revs, the way a duke is meant to be ridden.

Thanks and regards

[VijayAnand1]

Originally Posted by DBS65

Good day, Comrades

I recently found two iron pins in the rear tyre of my 2024 Duke 390. I got it repaired at a puncture shop nearby(pierce and filler style).

Please advice about the life of the tyre and how to take care of this tyre now regarding the pressure, usage etc.

The Duke is my daily commute and occasional highway transport. Rarely do I carry a pillion. I am not a reckless rider but usually ride in high revs, the way a duke is meant to be ridden.

Thanks and regards

Depending on the mileage the tire has clocked, tubeless plug kit, the rubberized cord that you force into the tire cut to fill the hole and allow latex to seal the puncture is a cheap and easy way to fix a puncture and will hold tire pressure for the life of the tire - but this isn't aesthetically pleasing both inside and outside.

The proper puncture procedure is using mushroom plugs which are basically mushroom type plug that's shot inside the puncture hole and then the stem cut. This way the mushroom head acts as a vulcanized patch on the inside and the tire pressure itself pressing it hard so that it makes a 100% leak proof seal. They charge 250 per plug as far as I've come across here.

Pointers to keep in mind! Ride as you'd normally do, do get your tire PSI checked every three days after a patch to make sure there isn't any air leak - if there is any ever so slightly. If everything is satisfactory, there absolutely nothing to worry.

Cheers!
VJ

[DBS65]

Thanks
Duke is pretty new and has clicked only 1500kms.