KTM ’ s 790 Adventure R was an impressive machine . Clearly the class leader off-road and by some margin . That said , I found it underwhelming in the looks department and somewhat ‘ loose ’ at speed on tar seal . It was none-the-less the closest a 200kg-plus machine had ever got to dirt bike capabilities . In short , for the talented / serious adventure rider it was outstanding for a genuine adventure bike and a huge step up from a chassis / suspension point of view . So , it was a little surprising to hear that the 790 had been upgraded to an 890 in such short order , I guess Euro5 will do that to a bike . But , while at the drawing board , it looks like KTM didn ’ t just consider the emissions implications ,
their Austria-based engineers gave the 890 a decent once over with the aim of making it a more refined and complete ride . Word soon filtered back to us at Kiwi Rider that the 890 was a great improvement over the 790 , with a quieter engine , more torque and a smoother power delivery . Well , it ’ s taken a while , but we finally got our eager little mitts on one to find out the truth of the matter .
HIGH INTENSITY My first impressions of the new 890 was that not much had changed , but , then , it ’ s been a while since I rode the 790 and riding bikes backto-back is the only genuine way to compare oranges with oranges . It is fair to say though ,
KIWI RIDER 49