Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Did a Bngalore-Chennai-Bangalore Ride on my RC last weekend. Left Saturday morning at 05:30 and was back by Sunday Night around 22:30. Total of about 800kms covered. Couldn't ride too fast because the other two bikes that accompanied me were RE Classic 350s. Maintained about 80-100kmph throughout. The bike was very comfortable cruising at those speeds. 80kmph felt too low sometimes. I noticed the console showing a slightly higher Average if I maintained 90kmph as compared to 80kmph.

The seat is hard and the hardness was felt. Every time I moved a bit on the seat, I'd feel the pain. If I stayed in the same position, no pain was felt. Should get a mod for the seat soon. Holding the throttle position for too long also gets a little uncomfortable but very manageable.

Did a pretty darn good job though it isn't actually meant for touring. Should see how it fares in even longer distances.

KTM RC 390 2016 - Short term review

After usage of 1 month, I am writing this review of RC 390 2016 model(Pardon my English in the review). And yeah, headlights are always on, no need to remind me- Ae bhai,tera light ON h... :P

Heating Issue:
Initially, I was scared of the heating problem in old RC390, which is terrible in traffic. I haven't ridden old one on a long ride,but I can say that this is not a problem in the current version. I guess the reworked radiator worked pretty well. Of course,there will be heat as it is single cylinder bike,but it is bearable and you won't feel much on legs when you are wearing jeans and shoes(yes,sometimes I drive in lowers and slippers only )

Vibrations:
Talking about vibrations, on lower RPMs, specially below 5k, there are a lot of vibrations and as you open the throttle,it becomes smoother. So it is a pain to ride it in city traffic, not meant for daily commuting. There are people who use it for travel to office/college,but if given the option, I would have preferred 150-200cc bike for daily commuting.


Fuel economy:
My bike is currently giving 22-23kmpl in city and 27-28kmpl on highway. (Current ODO reading 1250kms).
In service manual, preferred fuel is 95. In India, 91,93 and 97 are available, so I use speed 97 mostly. It doesn't affect fuel economy, but it does make bike feel smoother. Also, bike dissipate less heat on 97 as compared to regular. It does cost a bit, I feel it's worth it. But fellow KTM owners use regular/speed and they are not facing any problem, so might not need to spend 25% extra on 97.

Seat:
Not so comfortable, but better than old RC. Seat height is 820mm, so person above 5'5 or 5'6 can handle it easily. Tourers can use RideOnAir or GelSeat for long rides.

Riding position:
Aggressive. You will be having wrist pain,back pain after riding for a long time. And, not at all recommended to ride with pillion on long drive or even in city traffic.

Power: 43BHP (Same as old RC)
Here comes the power machine. This is the only reason why I bought this pocket rocket. Awesome power delivery. It gives you immense confidence while overtaking. And you will start loving cornering, you will crave for it. On weekends, you only want to take the beast to Ghats. The more you open the throttle, the more she ask for it.

Slipper Clutch:
Apart from the other benefits of slipper clutch(avoid rear wheel locking while shifting gear), I like that it feels butter smooth like normal 100-150cc bike,helps a lot in city. So definitely a plus one.

DRLs and Auto headlamp:
As mentioned on various blogs and posts, these are not auto headlamps. These are always on headlamps. There is no on/off switch, however, beam light switch is there as usual.


So this is my review for KTM RC 390 2016, this is my first review so kindly bear with me. Didn't cover all the aspects as others features are same as old one(like performance of metz tyres, suspension setup, pillion seat comfort, torque, fuel tank capacity etc etc). Any suggestions are welcome.

Re: KTM RC 390 2016 - Short term review

People mistaken rc pillion seat.
Its much comfortable than rider.
I just did 5 hrs, 220 kms ride with pillion on mixed road conditions avg speed 39 kmphr ,
but pillion was good to go for few more miles. Just make sure you are slow on throttle and pillion have enough time to get used to with seat.

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Kindly attention please... Delhi's rc390 owners, arrange an meet up somewhere and rock the delhi... Friendly ride...

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Double bubble screen.
Share your thoughts about it.
Three colors available - Clear, Dark smoke and orange

Double bubble screen Puig KTM RC 390 14-16 dark smoke

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Looks hideous! What if you install it and park it somewhere and when you return,you see that it has magically disappeared? [emoji3] Kidding,but its too costly and looks pretty odd imo.

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Hey guys! Having problem getting the vehicle to neutral when the engine is running . Any solution to it ?

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Hi Guys, I am a RC 390 owner for 8 months now. So far the bike has been trouble free except for a failed radiator fan after 7 months. I got it replaced under warranty.

Can someone kindly post detailed instructions or links to pictures/videos on how to remove the fairing on the RC 390.

I have removed all the hex bolts on the sides but the fairing was still attached to something and won't come loose.

Also one of the hex bolt had its slot damaged. Is there any tool to remove it?

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

There are 3 locks on each side of the radiator. Press them with a smaller sized allen key or screwdriver,there would be an audible click sound and the side fairings shall be detached.

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

This is a good product have been using it for 2 months now, looks really great and performs even better. No vibration and perfect wind protection at high speeds

Sent from my Nexus 5 using xBhp Connect mobile app

Re: KTM RC 390 2016 - Short term review

Yeah..the pillion seat is alright..but the problem is, rider not at all comfortable with pillion, specially in traffic when you are frequently accelerating and braking, in that case,the rider has to bear the load of pillion every time you slow down your bike or braking and all weight transfer to rider's wrist. And riding at low speed isn't a solution.

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

First service done... Cost 1600rs only... 😊

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Mine is 2016 model. I tried hitting limiter in 6th gear and i was surprised to see that the top speed that i could go was 175. I've always heard that the limiter hits at around 179. The max rpm that it reached was around 10000. Anyone else observed this on 2016 model??

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Great! I just got my bike 2 days back already completed 200 kms and I might go to Pondicherry today so that is another 250kms.

I'm having two problems with the bike, and this is my first bike so please help out.

First is the engine heats up a lot, I know that for the first 1000 kms I'm running with mineral oil so it will heat up a lot compared to synthetic oil, but I have to wait 7-10 mins for the fan to stop before parking and on a few occasions the fan won't stop in the basement so I have to idle the bike somewhere around my building with good wind and the fan will stop in 3-4 mins.

Second is when I'm driving and I leave the throttle and don't hold the clutch there is a really funny sound from the exhaust. If I lower my speed and do not let go of the throttle but slowly reduce my speed I don't get this sound. I talked to the service center guy and he said this is because my bike is new.

Also is it okay if I take my bike to Pondicherry today 120 kms from my place? I will stop at least twice and let the bike cool down and is it okay if I complete 1000 kms in say 10 days?

Some pictures:

Re: KTM RC 390 Ownership Experience

Both the problems are pretty normal for a new bike. There will be a funny turbo boost kinda sound from the exhaust. For the engine heat, use a better coolant like Motul Motocool (Rs.400ish) or Engine Ice (Rs.1300-1500)
You can easily take your bike to Pondi and back. Do give some bursts of acceleration to 150kmph/10k RPM.It wont be a problem for the bike. But ensure the service is done right after the Pondi trip because engine oil would be totally black for sure.
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I have been using Engine ice since the last week and it is a pretty good product. The temp bar doesn't threaten you anymore in bumper to bumper traffic, also the heat is much more bearable in the scorching afternoons. I changed the coolant myself. Don't know if the service center would let you change to engine ice though.

Recently painted the front visor and other bits and pieces of the bike,pics coming up over the weekend. It is a real pain to re-assemble the panels of the bike,specially with the huge combo of screws, one might lose track which screw/allen bolt was to be fixed where.