Ktm duke 390 off road review

KTM has announced details of the 2023 KTM 390 Adventure, which will be available in dealerships in March. The 390 Adventure has been given a new look and increased off-road capability, for a bike that KTM says offers “sheer usability, superb power, and incredibly light handling.”

In our review of the 2020 model, our reviewer said the KTM 390 Adventure was “a lot of bike for the money, with an impressive list of standard features that make it a serious threat to value-oriented Japanese competitors like the Honda CB500X and Kawasaki Versys-X 300, as well as BMW’s G 310 GS.”

Related: 2020 KTM 390 Adventure Road Test Review

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The 2023 KTM 390 Adventure still features a compact 4-stroke DOHC 373cc Single with four valves, a balancer shaft, a PASC slip/assist clutch, and electronic fuel injection. Two catalytic converters ensure the system breathes within emission targets, and the vapor design of the 3.8-gal fuel tank also contributes to its eco-friendliness.

Also returning for the 2023 model and contributing to the bike’s off-road persona is the Offroad ride mode (offering more rear-wheel slip) and linked Offroad ABS (disengaged on the rear, reduced on the front), as well as throttle-by-wire, Motorcycle Traction Control, and cornering ABS. Stopping power comes from Brembo BYBRE brakes (320mm front and 230mm rear discs with a 4-piston calipers on the front and single-piston in the rear), and the bike has adjustable WP APEX suspension.

See all of Rider‘s KTM coverage here.

The KTM 390 Adventure also still has 19-inch front and 17-inch rear wheels shod in Continental TKC70 tires, but for 2023 the wheels are spoked (but still tubeless) and have black anodized aluminum rims. The bike also comes with a two-tier seat that can be easily removed to reveal storage space or swapped out for other models in the KTM PowerParts collection, LED lights, and a windscreen with two positions. It has a claimed wet weight of 379 lb.

KTM says both the lightweight steel trellis chassis and the new 2023 colorway take design cues from the company’s work at “the sharp end of rally competition.”

When the KTM 390 Adventure debuted in fall of 2019, I was immediately intrigued. It looked like a lot of bike for little money. I didn’t get a chance to ride the new model in 2020 (thanks, COVID!), but now I’ve just got back from a 5,400 km trip around Newfoundland on the made-in-India Katoom—one of the longest tests I’ve ever done on a press bike. Here’s what I found out about the machine:

Street Manners

On the street, the KTM 390 Adventure is a nimble as a barrel racer, with a surprisingly powerful single-cylinder engine. It’s funny, because the engine was my biggest concern when I picked up the bike. I was riding pretty carefully during the 1,000 km break-in period, because the 5-inch TFT dash (easily controlled by a four-button array on the left handlebar) would flash menacingly as I approached 6,500 rpm. Heeding the warnings, I backed off on the throttle.

However, once I hit a thousand klicks on the odometer, I set out to find what the 373 cc liquid-cooled thumper was capable of. Answer: Extreme fun.

Thanks to a modern design (four-valve head, DOHC, slipper clutch, fuel injection, throttle-by-wire), the KTM 390 Adventure makes 43-ish horsepower. Wimpy when compared to the 890, sure, but cruising at highway speeds is no problem, and with an optional up/down quickshifter, this bike accelerates far more quickly than a small single should.

On my trip around Newfoundland, my riding partners (a BMW R1100 GS, Suzuki V-Strom 1000, Yamaha Tenere 700) were surprised at just how much speed the 390 Adventure had on tap. The KTM easily cruises over 120 km/h, which is 20 over the limit on many Canadian highways, and that’s with a load of luggage and a Dad-bod rider (I’m 100 kg) on board. Plan your attack, and you can accelerate to expensive-ticket speeds even on uphills—especially on secondary highways. Pull out to pass a semi, bang-bang the 4th-to-5th and 5th-to-6th gear changes with the quickshifter, and you’re gone. My buddies were complaining that I was pushing the pace too hard, rather than slowing them down.

Not that they couldn’t easily keep up if they wanted, of course (they’re just wary of expensive-ticket territory). The 390 only has 27-ish lb-ft of torque, so you’ve got to keep the little single on the boil if you want to maintain speed. On level ground, no problem; on a long highway grade, bucking a strong headwind, then you’ve got a problem, if you haven’t built up a head of steam at the bottom of the hill. Still, the bike will handily do the speed limit and above, and that’s all you really need, isn’t it?

The counterbalanced single has some vibration, but nothing objectionable, and sees reasonable fuel consumption. I averaged 4.2L per 100 km when I rode the bike, although that would fluctuate when I was on the gas hard. On some fill-ups, the Low Fuel light came on around the 175 km mark, if I was flogging the bike hard. KTM reckons the 14.5 L tank would do 400 km, but I think you’d have to be pretty gentle on the throttle to achieve that. I made 250+ km with the bike stripped of its luggage on mild-mannered backroad rides, before the fuel light came on. I think 300 km would be relatively manageable with a skinny rider and light throttle hand.

Along with the surprisingly zippy engine, the 390 Adventure suspension is a cut above the norm in the sub-500 category. Fully-adjustable WP Apex forks and shock come standard, and they’re well-matched to the bike’s weight and power. You have to be going very hard to feel the suspension get loosey-goosey in the corners; the ride is firm, responsive, and mostly gobbles up the road’s imperfections well. As a whole, the chassis is tight, with great mass centralization (claimed dry weight of 158 kg). It’s a confidence-inspiring machine at any speed.

If you’ve got to come to a stop, the single 320 mm disc works nicely, with radial-mount four-piston caliper from ByBre (Brembo’s Indian subsidiary). These brakes are a major cut above the systems on old Japanese 650 thumpers, and frankly, if KTM can sell these systems so cheaply, the Big Four should be ashamed of themselves for not including similar on their small-displacement models.

If you’ve really got to come to a stop, then ABS will help save your butt when things get wild. This machine comes with leaning-sensitive ABS (a two-channel Bosch arrangement). You can switch it into Off-road mode (allowing more rear wheel lockup), but you cannot switch it off.

The 19-17 front-rear wheel combo is an obvious compromise; motorcycles aimed at hardcore off-road use would have a 21-inch front rim. However, the 19-inch steers very nicely, and the cast rims mean you’ve got a wide range of tire choices if you don’t like the stock Continental TK70s. For what it’s worth, I was very happy with the factory-issued rubber. They had more than enough grip for this bike, and seemed very long-lived. The TK70s had thousands of kilometres of life left when I sent the bike back to KTM with 6,000+ km on the clocks. I expect they’d do 10k, while the Tenere 700 I rode with had its rubber basically beat at 7,000 km.

The seat gets the job done. My butt is (I think) a mass of scar tissue from years spent on dodgy dual-sport seats, so I’m incapable of objectively gauging comfort levels. However, I can tell you the 390 seat has the wide-in-back, narrow-in-front design that you need on an adventure bike that’s splitting time between street and off-road.

Speaking of off-road …

Off-road Manners

Let’s get one thing straight from the start: With 19-17 wheels and low ground clearance, the KTM 390 is not designed to be ridden like an enduro bike. The forks have 6.7-inches of travel, and the rear shock has 7-inches of travel.

That’s not a lot, especially when compared to machines like KTM’s 690 Enduro—but it’s enough. You would be silly to take the 390 Adventure down woodsy single-track, but ATV trails and gravel roads aren’t bad. You just need to learn to be clever at picking your lines, carefully steering around obstacles instead of trying to roll over them.

In fact, if ridden in the lower gears, the 390 is a very non-intimidating off-roader. It has a low seat height, a user-friendly powerband, and tires well-matched to the bike. I know other reviewers have gone on at length at their willingness to “send it’ on the bike Larry Enticer-style. Personally, I mostly avoided that, but did find the 390 was quite capable of getting itself out of the trouble that I got it into.

I did find the handlebars a bit low for my awkwardly-elongated upper body, when I was standing on the pegs. No biggie, a cheap set of bar risers would fix that.

The only other issue I had off-road was—I did not care for the traction control on hill climbs. The 390 requires a vigorous throttle hand to blast up loose hills, and the TC system had a habit of kicking in just when I needed the power most. Thankfully, it’s easy to turn traction control on/off on the fly—go back to analogue clutch lever/throttle traction control, and the problem is solved.

On level gravel roads, I didn’t mind the TC system at all.

Summary

At $6,799 when this bike was introduced, it might have been the greatest bargain I’ve ever seen in Canadian moto dealerships in my lifetime. Alas, the price tag has now risen to $7,399—but I still think that it’s well-priced.

Consider that Kawasaki’s Versys-X 300 comes in at $6,799, with only standard ABS, and a generally less-advanced platform (that 300 engine now dates back to 2013). Other than that, the only other competitor in the ballpark is the Honda CRF300 Rally, priced at $7,399 with ABS. Again, that’s an older design (based on the 2011 CBR250 engine). From where I sit, the 390 Adventure looks like a great deal for a rider starting out in the ADV world.

What if you’re a more advanced rider? Personally, I had a lot of fun flogging the little KTM around Newfoundland for 10 days, but I did find the bike less enjoyable without the quickshifter. The little single-cylinder is peppy, but that optional add-on transformed it into a sleeper. At $263.99, I think it’s well worth the price.

Even without the quickshifter, though, the 390 is a non-intimidating and capable bike, with all the latest safety electronics—stuff that wasn’t even available on superbikes a decade ago. For $7.4k, I’d certainly consider buying one if I wanted to travel, maybe explore some unpaved roads, and didn’t mind wringing out the throttle on the highway.

Is Duke 390 good for off

KTM's tried-and-true chassis is the foundation for this motorcycle, but it has been modified in several significant ways to make it better suited for off-road use. The KTM 390 Adventure comes with ride-by-wire technology, an assist-slipper clutch, and various riding modes.

What are the disadvantages of Duke 390?

KTM Duke 390 Cons.

While the low-end torque has improved by almost 5 Nm, you'll continue to go 3-2-1 on the gears while within the city..

The Quickshifter, while a huge leap from the outgoing model, still isn't textbook perfect during gear shifts..

OEM tyres don't match up to the performance the bike is capable of..

Is the KTM 390 an adventure bike?

The KTM 390 ADVENTURE features a distinctive KTM-style bodywork, providing excellent ergonomics and an aggressive look inspired by the rally bikes. Ready for adventure, the bodywork is produced in colour to help keep its appearance looking fresh, even after scratching.

Can you take KTM 390 Adventure off

Don't get us wrong, with over 6 inches of squish on tap, the KTM is more than capable of handling just about any dirt or gravel road on the planet, but things like bigger hits, ruts, and logs are bound to give it some trouble.