Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

I tested the windscreen upto 150Km/h . To be honest, I did not feel any difference as such although I never took the bike above 120Km/h when there was no windshield. But nonetheless it looks good and for INR250! . You should also try pulsar 135 rear view mirrors, much better view than the stock ones. These are useless.
BTW, any one here adjusted suspension to a softer setting? any noticeable drawbacks? I have bit of pain in my lower back, wondering if its due to stiff suspension.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

Really? I felt considerable reduction in windblast from 100-130 kph, I don't know beyond that though.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences


That looks cool.
Do post the details in the diy thread bro.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences


I hear people complaining about suspension stiffness on duke 390 but I feel its on the softer side on all the dukes I rode. Maybe its just me.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences


Thanx bro. Will check it out.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

Speed 97 has no difference in performance guys. Its just that our mind plays that bike is running smooth. Not worth the extra money.

And, many COCO's tend to cheat. I stopped filling even at them. I had issue with Indian Oil pump too.

Now, my permanent OPS (Original Petrol Supplier ) is Essar followed by Shell.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

Its nothing new dude, [MENTION=63159]Venkatesh Velmani[/MENTION] has already posted the details in this thread before.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

Initially even I felt that suspension is soft but now I think bit differently. Perhaps, it's time to change my mattress. Although it would be nice to know experience of any one who changed the suspension setting.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

I switched from the Honda unicorn. maybe I had the suspension set to hard on that. Also I am used to riding a Bullet.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

unfortunately shell has closed down in Hyderabad temporarily. BP is my OPS lol.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

Total insult of my Duke 390 today. Listen to the conversation below, between me and a rural old man I gave lift to:


OLD: Beta, ye teri gaadi to kuch alag si hi lagay hai.... kaunsi hai ye?

ME: Duke Teen sau nabbey hai.

OLD: .........(gap)............ Duuuudh....?? tin ka kya??..... Chal jaan-de.... Kya average degi ye?

ME: 22 se 40 ka....

OLD: 22 to koi average na hota... Kis hissab se hai ye? Shauk ke hisaab se lii hai ya average ke hisab se?

ME: Shauk ke hisaab se....

OLD: Aur kitne ki padi?

ME: 2 Laakh ke aaspaas....

OLD: Arey issey acha to Bullet le leta beta... kamas kam 40 ka average to mil hi jata... aur paisa bhi na lagta utna....

ME: Par ye gadi tez chalti hai...

OLD: Hain? Arey, kya hawai jahaz pakadna hai tez chal ke? Bullet bhi to tez hai.... Acha chal, yaha sadak kinarey rok de.
Aur beta, petrol to kabhi sasta na hoga... Petrol ka to sochna hi padey hai.... Meri maan, Koi achi gaadi le le.

ME: Haan ji, bilkul dekhta hu. (Un-obvious Sarcasm)


Seeing my thin frame & soft voice, sometimes people cross limits. And I got absolutely no thanks for the excessively-sane pillion friendly riding!
Since, I had helmet on, couldn't properly communicate but I was glad his place came soon. What people you meet...Damn!

Those lightning fast overtakes, the dominance on the roads, seeing wrap speed numbers on getting just a little space, seeing 80 kmph @ 4krpm and getting 43 kmpl on this speed, etc, etc... How was I supposed to explain all this to the tough daada ji?

I wouldn't say the day was ruined. But all this did get me thinking for a while...

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

Forget the old timers... i had a similar conversation with some of them 'educated' buggers at work! Non stop nonsense , why 1.5 lakh (d200)..you could have got bullet, its not for pillion riders, what does it have for 1.5lakh blah blah blah.
In fact let me tell you the irony.. on the day i picked up the bike, that evening i had stopped at a store to pick up some soft drinks. As i was in the store, one uncle (probably around 65 yrs old) came up and was looking at the bike along with his pal (another 65 yr old man).. he then had a conversation with me:
uncle: hey this is a 200cc right ? --pointing to the 200 sticker on the tank.
me: yes uncle
uncle: wow looks neat man, which company is this ?
me: ktm, by bajaj in india.
uncle: oh is it, i did not know
me: yep
uncle: how much did it cost ?
me: 1.5 approx
uncle: including everything ?
me: total approx 1.53 incl registration etc.
uncle: nice, these days a lot of people are buying bullets and i see them a lot in our area.. even bullet costs 1.5 lakhs (the other uncle interrupts: is it ? bullet is so expensive?)
uncle: yes bullet is also around that price, but this bike looks awesome and i was attracted to it from a distance so came closer to take a look
me: *grins* and says thank you
uncle: hey man, have you touched 150 on it yet ? how fast are you going ??!
me: *taken aback* *grinning* no uncle i just picked up the bike this morning -- felt embarrassed to tell him it doesn't touch 150
uncle: oh oh u just bought it.. nice bike, enjoy ! .. and he starts talking about something to the vegetable seller nearby who is shocked to hear the price.
me: thank you, and drive off.

he never asked the dreaded 'kitna deta hai' Q ! But I had a zillion ppl ask me that at almost every signal/traffic jam! how much (cost & mileage)?! Dang!.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences


If you take such words coming from old-timers like him to the heart, you'll never be able to ride happy. I sometimes feel like I made a mistake buying my 390 when I hear garbage like this from people but my bike does a damn good job of reminding me why I bought it. And THAT sir is what matters.
And besides these geezers are talking a lot despite being part of the gas guzzling generation.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences


Yeah you meet all kinds buddy. And people like this uncle you're talking about, you know he was like us when he was young. A biker at heart.

Re: KTM Duke 390 - Owners Reviews and Experiences

My simple Answer to the similar questions.

Q. Kitna Deti hai? (What is mileage?)
A. 60 KMPL city mein. Highway pe 70kmpl. We both happy.

Q. Kaunsi company? (Which Company?)
A. KTM - Kanpur Town Motorcycles.

Q. Kitneki hai? (Whats the price?)
A. Company ki gaadi hai. kharida nahi. (It is company vehicle, did not buy)

Q. Isme tho car aajayegi? (You would have bought a car instead?)
A. Car hai mere paas. (I have a car)

Q. Kitna speed jaati hai? (What is top speed)
A. 300 jaaati hai, par roads nahi hai. (300 kmph, but no proper roads)

Q. Kitne CC ki hai? (How many CCs?)
A. 150cc