KTM duke rear suspension spring protective peeling of issue -Reg.

Sent a mail to KTM info,Received a call today that i will get replacement once the stock arrives,his name is chandra shekhar.he told that for goa & karnataka he is the KTM representative.

But to get replacement i have to travel 400km (to-and-fro).and moreover i dont really think its an isolated issue.Because yesterday at auto service Bangalore,all the dukes(5) i had seen have this issue.So,unless they say they have resolved the issue and i wont face it again.I am not accepting the replacement because i cant ride all the way to Bangalore from my place(hassan) again and again.

Can u plz upload some pics for us?

This is the pic i sent (Actually its not mine,mines look very similar though). Its not rust,just the protective plastic peeling off. Yesterday had a talk with Venkat Shyam sir (Auto Service,Bangalore) .According to him its just an aesthetics issue, and also told even the suspension springs of cars are not painted.

What's the suspension setting on your bike?

How many kilometres have you completed till now and what kind of roads have you been riding on?

Its the stock setting (dont know which step )

Ridden over 1400kms, Had a off-road trip of 250kms in which 30kms of non-existent road with a pillion, BTW i weigh 77kgs.Rest is all highways.

Are you facing the same issue?

I am also having same issue with my suspension. Initially i thought it was mud, but closer look makes it evident that its peel off. Thanks for providing infor, will speak to thane service centre to get it replaced.

My ODO is at 4300 kms. Mostly driven on good roads (from thane GB road to Malad west via Ghodbunder road)

Now that you brought up this topic, I'll have to go back home and check.

If you notice in the picture - the peeling off effect is on the upper part of the suspension while the lower part is okay.

I'll have a check in the eve and let you know.

BTW thanks for bringing this up. I guess many people would be thinking that it is mud on the suspension.

Jammu to Baramulla

340 km; 2 tunnels; 3 small water falls; 22 landslide prone areas; famous Razma Chawal with Desi ghee at famous Peeda; one beautiful hill station-Patnitop; sound of Chenab flowing nearby and much more-really a journey which everyone should do on Duke.
End result-felt like riding on roads of Heaven and dirty clothes-seems as rode all day on dirt track.........

Yup. This is not an isolated issue. I had noticed it the first time I visited the svc. It hadn't showed up on my bike, but was there on other dukes which had decent miles on there odos. When I asked the service advisor about that he said, he's seeing it for the first time. The mech too said, it's there on almost all the dukes.

The suspension setting won't matter in the long run. No matter what you do, the spring windings are going to come in contact even on superb roads. You can change the setting to 10 , but you'll only delay the inevitable (at the cost of a jarred spine of course)

I don't think replacing is the solution unless Bajaj has taken note of the issue, which I am highly skeptical of, only after which they can come up with a re-engineered shocker.
PS :I did check the shock absorbers of the Ninja in the svc. They are not painted like we have it on the duke.They are black. No paint at all. Plain finishing I think.Probably because they are not quite visible anyway because of the clothes the bike wears. I think they should use a fine coat of paint so that paint does not chip, only fade.
I did bring the issue to the notice of the KTM engineer Mr Bhatt(nice jovial fellow this guy) after which he instructed the mech and the service advisor to take pictures of any such instances and mail them to Bajaj. Don't know if they are actually doing it or not. Will ask the next time I visit the SVC

So after the exhaust pipe, the suspension issues arises.. wtf are Bajaj people doing with the KTM?

Just now received another call from kiran,KTM service representative,Bangalore. He says its an isolated issue,as only few bring to their notice,and its only a manufacturing defect. The replacement parts are not re-engineered ones.Im skeptic we are going to face the issue again even with brand new replacements.

So guys SPAM their inbox with pics. of course not like me , use your own ktm spring pics instead :P

thanks ... it was farhan who attended me at the showroom and came with me during my test ride ... the same duke 200 costs around 3.5lakhs in europe ...

Just to keep this topic up-to-date, if you're referring to the discoloration on the exhaust header, there's nothing wrong with it; that's the expected behavior of a bare stainless steel exhaust that has been heated.

Second, the suspension peeling issue: this seems to be a recent development, but is not unexpected for a coated spring. Technically, yes, it's cosmetic, but KTM should have foreseen this one, and used something more appropriate for the coating on the spring.

Third, all Bajaj is doing is selling the Duke and providing the after-sales service. Any technical faults lie squarely with KTM and their engineers.

So far, legitimate issues with the bike are as follows (if I recall correctly):

1. Drive chain quickly stretches, and starts slapping on the swingarm, causing noise.
2. Coolant quickly drops below minimum line after delivery from showroom
3. Stumbling and/or stalling off-idle
4. Coating on rear spring wearing through very quickly

Non-issues include:

1. Exhaust header discoloration
2. Sensation of heat in stop-and-go traffic
3. Front brake strong enough to lift the rear wheel/rear wheel skids easily

I got my piston block replaced this weekend. I have posted a detailed write-up which is pending moderators approval. Seems like an isolated incident, but raises serious questions about the quality.

This is because the spring is wound in what is known as a "progressive" configuration. The top of the spring has coils that are close together, while the bottom has more widely spaced coils. By doing this, the spring essentially has two different "rates". The top part is very soft, and can be compressed easily. The lower part takes much more force to compress. This way, the bike's suspension can smooth out minor road irregularities, while still retaining enough tension in the spring to handle heavier weights.

The coating is wearing off the upper, softer part because the coils are constantly rubbing against each other, while the lower coils never touch.