KTM Big Updates
Now, this year, KTM updated their 1290 Super Duke R with a new, bigger, faster 1390 version, So that begs the question, what about the rest of the 1290 bikes, like the Superadventure and the GT? Well, it looks like they might also be about to get an update soon and there are some other pretty big decisions here as well.
So it looks like the updates will be more than just the engine.
we’ll go over all of these models there’s about three or four here with everything that you need to know about them. ktm 1390
1390 SAS
First up, we’ve got a 1390 Superadventure, which looks like it will be a replacement for the 1290 Superadventure S.
And of course, with that bigger 1390 engine, the current 1290 makes about 160 horsepower, so you can probably expect similar, if not a little bit more than that.
Elsewhere, a lot of the bike looks pretty similar, and it’s a brilliant adventure tourer, so there’s no real need to start from scratch. ktm 1390
So you’ve got the same 19-inch front wheel.
Design and Features
You’ve got a 17 at the rear, very typical for this slightly more road-focused adventure bike, and their cast, not spoke, so definitely still retaining that slightly more on-road focus.
Breaks are from Brembo you’ve got the ragially mounted four-part calipers there and also, suspension, again, is going to be from their in-house brand WP.
the 1290 Superadventures a year or two back, the semi-active, electronically-adjustable suspension was one of the best things about it.
Really flexible, really versatile, which is exactly what you want for an adventure touring style bike. ktm 1390
Then you’ve also got the radar up front, its quite clearly below the headlight there, and that opens up active cruise control, so it’s going to follow the traffic in front at a set distance.
Again, another great feature, especially if you like your technology for covering a lot of miles in comfort.
Although what I don’t see on this new updated version is a rear-facing radar for blind spot warnings or rear collision warnings like you get now on the Multistrade V4 from Ducati, the new BMW R1300 GS, and even the Triumph Tiger 1200s.
Don’t quite have a clean shot at the back end of the bike, so maybe they have integrated a small radar.
But Side on, generally, you get a bit of a bulky bit just around where the tail light is, certainly on the bikes with the radars at the back there.
Generally, though, similar riding position to the 1290, similar chassis you’ve also got that split fuel tank, which is really quite big in capacity I think it’s 23 liters.
It hangs low at either side, which helps to keep the center of gravity nice and low, even if it’s fully fueled up. ktm 1390
And there might be some small tweaks to the frame and the geometry and the rigidity of it versus the 1290.
But it has to be said, the big update here is the styling, and the most prominent feature is that new headline, which is inherited from the 1390 Super Duke.
You’ll also see something similar on the 990 Duke as well, which is the middle weight And this design, it has to be said, the reaction to it is pretty divisive.
Effectively, what you’ve got is a similar shape to what you’ll see on the 1290s, but it’s just hollowed out.
So you’ve got daytime running lights around the edges and then stacked projector headlights in the middle.
And it has to be said, it does give it this very sharp, aggressive monster light from end, and you’re either going to like it or not.
Personally, I don’t mind it, especially on a super naked like the 1390 Super Duke, where it’s meant to look super aggressive.
But if you do like things a little more traditional or conservative in the design approach, then this is realistically going to take quite a while to sink in.
Also for me, I do like this sharper bodywork. so overall, I think personally, it’s a bit of an improvement because it’s slightly more aggressive and maybe a little more sporty looking. ktm 1390
New 1390 Rally
Now, Next up, this is where things do get a little more adventurous, you could say, with what looks like a new 1390 Rally model, which would effectively replace, I guess, the 1290 Super Adventure R.
So again, probably a little bit of a step up for the engine and a touch more performance, but the chassis is going to get that more off-road bias spec that you get with the R model,
Design and Features
so longer travel suspension, a 21-inch wheel at the front and an 18 at the rear, so slightly larger than the S model, which is obviously going to help them roll better off-road.
Spokes as well for a bit more strength, but there really are elsewhere outside of the off-road chassis, some big changes here.
So this slab-like front end, which looks a lot more like a rally bike than an adventure bike and like it’s been inspired by their 450 Rally and has a lot of that Dakar-inspired vibe to it. ktm 1390
It does look like that they’ve been testing a couple of different windscreens as well. There is one bungeed to the back of the bike.
They look like their rapid prototype, maybe 3D printed or something like that, completely blacked out.
But for the final production version, you would think that they will be fully transparent, obviously for the windscreen part, but also it’s part of the Rally esthetic for that transparency to go all the way down as well.
A little stacked headlight integrated into it. And then also in the cockpit, you can just about make out there a portrait dash.
So we’ve seen this on quite a few adventure bikes recently, like the Ducati Desert X, the Yamaha Tenerade 700, where it’s basically the TFT display off some of their other bikes, but just flipped on its side to give it, again, part of the rally look and feel.
So overall, this seems like it’s going to be a very similar bike to ride to the 1290 Super Adventure R.
But what they have really changed here is the visuals and that branding and positioning of this model because it’s not a more off-road bias version of their large-capacity adventure bike, but more so a large-capacity version of their smaller rallying inspired bikes. ktm 1390
1390 SMT
But look, this next one is effectively a completely new flavor on this particular large capacity platform, and it looks like it could be an SMT model.
So SMT basically stands for Supermoto Touring, and in its most recent incarnation, which is the 890 SMT, which I reviewed last year, effectively what you’ve got is an 890 adventure, the same engine,
Design and Features
The same chassis in many regards, but you’ve got 17-inch wheels front and rear, as opposed to the big 19s or 21 that you typically find on an adventure bike, and also proper sticky, sporty road-focused tires to give you the best possible road handling and absolutely zero intention of going off road.
this seems like basically the same concept, but applied to their biggest capacity engines, their big 1390 V twins. ktm 1390
On top of that, you’ve got what looks like a little bit more more of a sporty chassis as well, versus that 1390 Super Adventure S that we looked at earlier.
You’ve got a different swing arm, maybe a bit more Butch and sporty-looking also, the braking as well.
These are top-spec Brembo style emmer calipers, as opposed to the slightly less premium break calipers.
And so maybe this is something really quite punchy, and that’s another thing that makes you think maybe it’ll get a bit more performance.
Potentially, something to compete with the likes of the Ducati Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak, which is the most aggressive, racy version of that Multistrada V4, or to some extent, something like the BMW M1000 XR, which is a bit of a sports, tourer, crossover, adventure type thing, but just given the full on M treatment with all the super spec parts and carbon and things like that that make it just a cut above the standard bike.