KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

[Chaitanya4693]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Ride experience:

I suppose I can be confident about my statements here on, since I have experienced both the positives and negatives of the bike over my 5000 km. The bike is a Hooligan if I can call it that. Loads of torque is available right from the time you twist the throttle at standstill, till the bike hits redline. The bike gives a feel of riding something similar to a modern two stroke machine.

All ‘Good’ so far? Now let me introduce you to the issues faced, which are mentioned in the series of occurrence.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254340[/ATTACH]

About the Service Centre:

A trained set of senior mechanics having more than 5 years of experience are assigned to work on the 790’s, and not every mechanic at the service centre gets his hands on the bike. Even washing is done under the supervision of these senior mechanics. At Mekhri circle KTM, Mr. Sebastian (service manager) himself takes special interest to sort out the issues.

The First event:

At around 150 km was when I noticed that the indicators were not functioning. Met Mr.Sebastian at the service centre, asked him to look into the issue, to which he confirmed that the sensor had failed after inspection. I was asked to come back a week later, since the spare parts were not yet stocked at the service centre.

The second event:

The week after I noticed that the engine coolant temperature on the dashboard was very high (started blinking). I assumed that overheating was normal during the initial few kilometres, considering the bike was running in. The next day morning, I slotted the key in, switched it on but couldn’t start the bike, the reason being engine overheat (dashboard indication). I further tried cranking a few times to no avail. I Called Sebastian, he asked me to check again after a while and inform him if the issue still persisted. I sprayed water over the radiator, assuming something to be faulty there and I tried cranking after around five hours. Voila, the bike starts and the temperature bar on the dashboard was normal after which I rode the bike for a while with no issues. So I assumed that there was some issue with the engine coolant temperature sensor.

The Third event:

The next week I started the bike in the morning, went out for a spin and it was all fine for 3km’s. After which, the temperature bars on the dashboard started acting a little cranky, with intermittent display of overheat condition. I could still ride the bike (with intermittent stalling) so I didn’t bother much, as I was anyways heading towards the service centre. Sebastian examined the bike with the diagnostic tool, found no issue, which was strange. Heck, even the bike started behaving perfectly once I reached the service centre. I headed home from the service centre, and the dashboard starts its drama after a while. I rode back to service centre again. Sebastian reset the dashboard software, the bike started behaving well. I reached home with no issues this time.

The Fourth event:

Next day morning, the bike started on the first crank, I was relieved that the issue was solved. Everything except the odo reading was reset during the flash. I realised that the overheat indication showed up again after I set the date on dashboard (year 2019 to be specific). I went for a spin and realised the issue was popping up and the temperature indication on the dashboard was fluctuating when I went over a speed bump or a pothole. I returned home, parked the bike and let it cool down. I informed this to Sebastian and told him that I would be dropping the bike at the service centre for a thorough check up.

This time, the bike refused to start (after a few hours) no matter what I did. Sebastian offered to come home and check the bike, but we decided to check with the Orange Assist (RSA). The Orange assist team was really responsive and arranged a pickup of the bike at my place in less than 30 minutes and got it dropped off at the service centre.

Just out of curiosity we set the month and year on the dashboard to 12/2018 (the initial month and year that was shown when we reset the dashboard). The bike started but was still behaving a little cranky. It wouldn’t start or if it started, it would just switch off in a few minutes and never crank again. I was happy for the first time, since I didn’t have to explain repeatedly to Sebastian about what exactly was happening with the bike. Sebastian wanted me to leave the bike at the service centre for three days so that the engineers from Pune could come over and check the issue in person. I was okay with leaving the bike since I wanted to know the real issue as this was getting annoying. We were not sure why the bike behaved cranky with respect to setting of date and year.

The first day of analysis: Mr. Saravanan and an engineer from Pune flew down to examine the bike but couldn’t find anything wrong, since the diagnostic tool didn’t throw up any errors. They replaced the speedometer of my bike with the test ride vehicle’s speedometer to check if the bike behaved similarly. The bike was all fine when the speedometer was replaced. Saravanan and the engineer flew back to Pune to test the speedometer at the plant (they wanted to be sure if the main issue was because of the speedometer, since many bikes reported similar issue).

Now you may ask if the test ride vehicle didn’t report of this issue. Yes, the test ride vehicle too had similar issues. That bike hadn’t clocked much on the odo (say around 100km), and since it was a test ride vehicle, the technicians assumed the issue was due to the rash riding of the people who came in for test rides. Also to note is that the test ride bike’s year was not set to 2019.

The second day of analysis: The speedometer is the culprit. After thorough inspection, they found out that it was due to a sensor and relay fault in the speedometer which caused all the drama, including the indicators not blinking, which I mentioned initially. Saravanan flew back the same day with a new set of speedometer from Pune, plonked it onto the bike and all issues sorted.

I received a message from KTM for an estimated bill of ₹62000 for the repairs carried out. I was shocked at first; not knowing what it was for. I checked with Sebastian and he informed me that the speedometer was replaced under warranty. After an hour I received another message from KTM stating the estimated bill was zero and the bike was ready for delivery. Just for my knowledge, I wanted to know the prices of a few other important parts so I checked with Sebastian for the prices, for which I was told that the front brake oil reservoir assembly would cost approximately ₹25000, and the alloy wheel would cost approximately ₹45000 for each. This bit was to give you guys an insight on the pricing, which I guess is on par with the competition, since all these parts are imported until now. Probably we can expect a price drop after localisation starts.

I also learnt that there were many owners complaining of the heating issue (dashboard indication). Subsequently, the speedometers of all the vehicles with similar issues were inspected and replaced.

The 1^st Service:

After all this, Petse suggested that I ride to the India Bike Week along with the KTM riders which sounded interesting. I had covered roughly around 350 km by the time we had this conversation, and I had 2 weeks remaining for the event. Now the confusion was if I really had to ride to IBW while the bike was still in the run-in period, or drop the plan altogether. Keeping in mind that I had to cover another 600+ km in around two weeks’ time was a little overboard considering that I get to ride only during the weekends. Even if I rode to IBW during the run-in period, I would be easily covering close to 2000 km by the time I returned to Bangalore from Goa, which means I would have to get the 1^st service done after I return (which I didn’t want to). This was when I thought I’ll cover whatever distance I could, with in the two weeks and get a service done, and maintain the revs to what was mentioned on the manual till about 1000 km or so.

I successfully covered close to 750 km, four days prior to the ride, and all the distance was within the city limits. I checked with Sebastian and he told me to get the bike for service on a Sunday, given he could devote full time and care for the bike. As requested, I reached the service centre by 2 p.m. and was done with the service in less than three hours.

The charges are as below,

Periodic service charge: ₹ 2832.00
Engine Oil: ₹ 2198.17 (Motul fully synthetic)
Oil filter service kit: ₹ 4018.00 (the whole kit is imported and hence the price)

The 1^st Long Ride:

All set and done, everyone gathered at the showroom for the flag off, on the day of the ride. There were close to forty bikes, and mine was the only 790 joining the ride. There were six 125’s, around ten 390’s and the remaining were a mix of 250’s and the 200’s. My only concern was keeping up with the group considering we had 125’s in the picture, there were a few guys who were fairly new to riding, and there were many first time long distance riders in the group.

Now I thought this setup would help me run-in the bike and also let me explore and open up to the potential of the bike over the complete rev range in a linear fashion. I kept the revs below 4500 till about 1000 km’s. Mind you, the bike pulls to some serious speeds below 6500 revs itself. I slowly cracked open the throttle while on an empty stretch, and I could take the bike close to 185 kmph while keeping the revs around 6500 rpm. I also took the bike to over 200 kmph in short bursts. The bike returned an unbelievable fuel efficiency of 28-30kmpl on an average. I couldn’t believe the fuel reading on the dashboard, so I checked the same on a full tank to full tank method which also proved the fuel efficiency to be 28-30kmpl. This was the fuel efficiency achieved while keeping the bike mostly between 120 kmph to 160 kmph, and most of it being highway.

The line up for flag off:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254342[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254343[/ATTACH]

In front of our stay:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254344[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254350[/ATTACH]

A few pics from India Bike Week:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254345[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254346[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254348[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254349[/ATTACH]

On the way back:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254351[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254352[/ATTACH]

The 2^nd Long Ride:

I rode solo to Chennai during the Christmas week, which was within a span of two weeks after my return from IBW. I was able to reach Chennai from Bangalore in around 2.5Hrs (that’s around 350 km one way). On my return leg, almost half way through the journey I was accompanied by a Street Triple RS (unknown rider who was also on his way towards Bangalore), which was fun throughout considering we synced with each other very quickly.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]254341[/ATTACH]

The Final Thoughts:

Due to the real compact dimensions, it doesn’t really feel that you are riding a big bike (especially during the lower speeds). The brakes are too good which clubbed with the Maxxis tyres provided a real good feedback. The differences between ride modes are very prominent, especially when you jump off the rain/street to the track mode and the throttle response is not at all snatchy while on the go. The headlights have no proper illumination during night (in fact useless). The bike heats up pretty quickly during stop-go traffic, and cools down immediately once you are on the move. The good thing is that most of the heat is diverted away from your legs. Another important thing to mention is the usage of higher octane fuel (though the recommended fuel is 91 RON), which reduces heating drastically. I stick to Power 99 from HP fuel station while I’m in Bangalore, and use the regular Power from HP otherwise. Pillion seat is very comfortable, and no, the heat from the exhaust doesn’t bother the pillion much. Suspension setup is a bit on the firmer side but can take on most of roads with ease. Mounting luggage is a real tough task due to the exhaust placement. The feedback from ABS on the rear wheel is felt under hard braking and it is a little annoying at times. The radiator accumulates most of the dirt thrown from the front wheel due to a small fender.

The Latest issue:

I noticed that my Quickshifter learning module gave up, just a few weeks before the lockdown. I got the issue checked at the service centre, and I was told that the issue would be sorted soon. I’ll not be able to use Quickshiter, and the gear position indicator will not be functional until this is sorted. I’ll get this rectified as soon as the situation turns normal (after lockdown).

Thank you for sharing your experience.I have KTM Duke 390 ,I haven't faced single issue in last 6 years.Touchwood.[emoji16].I wish you happy miles on your beast.Ride hard,ride safe

[#bpk]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Kish, full marks for opening up honestly about the issues, pros and cons. Though the issues were deemed minor, nonetheless enough to be a pain in the arse considering a new bike, and again, full marks here to KTM for proactively addressing the issue and staying by your side. Sorry to hear that the QS is acting weird, but looking forward for the diagnoses and prognoses of what's about to transpire on this one. Sad to see, even imports having such lame issues which haywire a rider's peace of mind. Hopefully, all current owners read this thread, and get the required insight.

Ride safe bud.

Cheers!
VJ

Even KTM's sold abroad are also full of issues. KTM can never be as reliable as the Japs or even the Indian motorcycles.

[B7ACKTHORN]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Kish, full marks for opening up honestly about the issues, pros and cons. Though the issues were deemed minor, nonetheless enough to be a pain in the arse considering a new bike, and again, full marks here to KTM for proactively addressing the issue and staying by your side. Sorry to hear that the QS is acting weird, but looking forward for the diagnoses and prognoses of what's about to transpire on this one. Sad to see, even imports having such lame issues which haywire a rider's peace of mind. Hopefully, all current owners read this thread, and get the required insight.

Ride safe bud.

Cheers!
VJ

[Starter71_Kish]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Corona invasion followed by multiple lockdown extensions, yesterday i finally got a small window to get my bike home.[ATTACH]254441[/ATTACH]

Congratulations on getting the bike. Hope you are enjoying the feel. Do post more on the Delivery and how you feel about the bike.

----consecutive posts auto-merged-----

Thats actually a lot of issues for a new bike but hopefully that should be the end of it. Also impressed by the way KTM handled it. Get a fender extender that will avoid getting muck on the radiator or a radiator guard and some protection spools considering the expensive parts.

Definitely impressed by the way KTM handled all this. I have been planning to install a radiator guard for a long time now. Hope I'll get it once the lockdown thing settles down. I'm waiting to get the Quickshifter fixed as soon as possible (it's such a joy to change gears without using the clutch lever).

[swatcat59]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Corona invasion followed by multiple lockdown extensions, yesterday i finally got a small window to get my bike home.

[swatcat59]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Thats actually a lot of issues for a new bike but hopefully that should be the end of it. Also impressed by the way KTM handled it. Get a fender extender that will avoid getting muck on the radiator or a radiator guard and some protection spools considering the expensive parts.

[Starter71_Kish]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Ride experience:

I suppose I can be confident about my statements here on, since I have experienced both the positives and negatives of the bike over my 5000 km. The bike is a Hooligan if I can call it that. Loads of torque is available right from the time you twist the throttle at standstill, till the bike hits redline. The bike gives a feel of riding something similar to a modern two stroke machine.

All ‘Good’ so far? Now let me introduce you to the issues faced, which are mentioned in the series of occurrence.

About the Service Centre:

A trained set of senior mechanics having more than 5 years of experience are assigned to work on the 790’s, and not every mechanic at the service centre gets his hands on the bike. Even washing is done under the supervision of these senior mechanics. At Mekhri circle KTM, Mr. Sebastian (service manager) himself takes special interest to sort out the issues.

The First event:

At around 150 km was when I noticed that the indicators were not functioning. Met Mr.Sebastian at the service centre, asked him to look into the issue, to which he confirmed that the sensor had failed after inspection. I was asked to come back a week later, since the spare parts were not yet stocked at the service centre.

The second event:

The week after I noticed that the engine coolant temperature on the dashboard was very high (started blinking). I assumed that overheating was normal during the initial few kilometres, considering the bike was running in. The next day morning, I slotted the key in, switched it on but couldn’t start the bike, the reason being engine overheat (dashboard indication). I further tried cranking a few times to no avail. I Called Sebastian, he asked me to check again after a while and inform him if the issue still persisted. I sprayed water over the radiator, assuming something to be faulty there and I tried cranking after around five hours. Voila, the bike starts and the temperature bar on the dashboard was normal after which I rode the bike for a while with no issues. So I assumed that there was some issue with the engine coolant temperature sensor.

The Third event:

The next week I started the bike in the morning, went out for a spin and it was all fine for 3km’s. After which, the temperature bars on the dashboard started acting a little cranky, with intermittent display of overheat condition. I could still ride the bike (with intermittent stalling) so I didn’t bother much, as I was anyways heading towards the service centre. Sebastian examined the bike with the diagnostic tool, found no issue, which was strange. Heck, even the bike started behaving perfectly once I reached the service centre. I headed home from the service centre, and the dashboard starts its drama after a while. I rode back to service centre again. Sebastian reset the dashboard software, the bike started behaving well. I reached home with no issues this time.

The Fourth event:

Next day morning, the bike started on the first crank, I was relieved that the issue was solved. Everything except the odo reading was reset during the flash. I realised that the overheat indication showed up again after I set the date on dashboard (year 2019 to be specific). I went for a spin and realised the issue was popping up and the temperature indication on the dashboard was fluctuating when I went over a speed bump or a pothole. I returned home, parked the bike and let it cool down. I informed this to Sebastian and told him that I would be dropping the bike at the service centre for a thorough check up.

This time, the bike refused to start (after a few hours) no matter what I did. Sebastian offered to come home and check the bike, but we decided to check with the Orange Assist (RSA). The Orange assist team was really responsive and arranged a pickup of the bike at my place in less than 30 minutes and got it dropped off at the service centre.

Just out of curiosity we set the month and year on the dashboard to 12/2018 (the initial month and year that was shown when we reset the dashboard). The bike started but was still behaving a little cranky. It wouldn’t start or if it started, it would just switch off in a few minutes and never crank again. I was happy for the first time, since I didn’t have to explain repeatedly to Sebastian about what exactly was happening with the bike. Sebastian wanted me to leave the bike at the service centre for three days so that the engineers from Pune could come over and check the issue in person. I was okay with leaving the bike since I wanted to know the real issue as this was getting annoying. We were not sure why the bike behaved cranky with respect to setting of date and year.

The first day of analysis: Mr. Saravanan and an engineer from Pune flew down to examine the bike but couldn’t find anything wrong, since the diagnostic tool didn’t throw up any errors. They replaced the speedometer of my bike with the test ride vehicle’s speedometer to check if the bike behaved similarly. The bike was all fine when the speedometer was replaced. Saravanan and the engineer flew back to Pune to test the speedometer at the plant (they wanted to be sure if the main issue was because of the speedometer, since many bikes reported similar issue).

Now you may ask if the test ride vehicle didn’t report of this issue. Yes, the test ride vehicle too had similar issues. That bike hadn’t clocked much on the odo (say around 100km), and since it was a test ride vehicle, the technicians assumed the issue was due to the rash riding of the people who came in for test rides. Also to note is that the test ride bike’s year was not set to 2019.

The second day of analysis: The speedometer is the culprit. After thorough inspection, they found out that it was due to a sensor and relay fault in the speedometer which caused all the drama, including the indicators not blinking, which I mentioned initially. Saravanan flew back the same day with a new set of speedometer from Pune, plonked it onto the bike and all issues sorted.

I received a message from KTM for an estimated bill of ₹62000 for the repairs carried out. I was shocked at first; not knowing what it was for. I checked with Sebastian and he informed me that the speedometer was replaced under warranty. After an hour I received another message from KTM stating the estimated bill was zero and the bike was ready for delivery. Just for my knowledge, I wanted to know the prices of a few other important parts so I checked with Sebastian for the prices, for which I was told that the front brake oil reservoir assembly would cost approximately ₹25000, and the alloy wheel would cost approximately ₹45000 for each. This bit was to give you guys an insight on the pricing, which I guess is on par with the competition, since all these parts are imported until now. Probably we can expect a price drop after localisation starts.

I also learnt that there were many owners complaining of the heating issue (dashboard indication). Subsequently, the speedometers of all the vehicles with similar issues were inspected and replaced.

The 1^st Service:

After all this, Petse suggested that I ride to the India Bike Week along with the KTM riders which sounded interesting. I had covered roughly around 350 km by the time we had this conversation, and I had 2 weeks remaining for the event. Now the confusion was if I really had to ride to IBW while the bike was still in the run-in period, or drop the plan altogether. Keeping in mind that I had to cover another 600+ km in around two weeks’ time was a little overboard considering that I get to ride only during the weekends. Even if I rode to IBW during the run-in period, I would be easily covering close to 2000 km by the time I returned to Bangalore from Goa, which means I would have to get the 1^st service done after I return (which I didn’t want to). This was when I thought I’ll cover whatever distance I could, with in the two weeks and get a service done, and maintain the revs to what was mentioned on the manual till about 1000 km or so.

I successfully covered close to 750 km, four days prior to the ride, and all the distance was within the city limits. I checked with Sebastian and he told me to get the bike for service on a Sunday, given he could devote full time and care for the bike. As requested, I reached the service centre by 2 p.m. and was done with the service in less than three hours.

The charges are as below,

Periodic service charge: ₹ 2832.00
Engine Oil: ₹ 2198.17 (Motul fully synthetic)
Oil filter service kit: ₹ 4018.00 (the whole kit is imported and hence the price)

The 1^st Long Ride:

All set and done, everyone gathered at the showroom for the flag off, on the day of the ride. There were close to forty bikes, and mine was the only 790 joining the ride. There were six 125’s, around ten 390’s and the remaining were a mix of 250’s and the 200’s. My only concern was keeping up with the group considering we had 125’s in the picture, there were a few guys who were fairly new to riding, and there were many first time long distance riders in the group.

Now I thought this setup would help me run-in the bike and also let me explore and open up to the potential of the bike over the complete rev range in a linear fashion. I kept the revs below 4500 till about 1000 km’s. Mind you, the bike pulls to some serious speeds below 6500 revs itself. I slowly cracked open the throttle while on an empty stretch, and I could take the bike close to 185 kmph while keeping the revs around 6500 rpm. I also took the bike to over 200 kmph in short bursts. The bike returned an unbelievable fuel efficiency of 28-30kmpl on an average. I couldn’t believe the fuel reading on the dashboard, so I checked the same on a full tank to full tank method which also proved the fuel efficiency to be 28-30kmpl. This was the fuel efficiency achieved while keeping the bike mostly between 120 kmph to 160 kmph, and most of it being highway.

The line up for flag off:

In front of our stay:

A few pics from India Bike Week:

On the way back:

The 2^nd Long Ride:

I rode solo to Chennai during the Christmas week, which was within a span of two weeks after my return from IBW. I was able to reach Chennai from Bangalore in around 2.5Hrs (that’s around 350 km one way). On my return leg, almost half way through the journey I was accompanied by a Street Triple RS (unknown rider who was also on his way towards Bangalore), which was fun throughout considering we synced with each other very quickly.

The Final Thoughts:

Due to the real compact dimensions, it doesn’t really feel that you are riding a big bike (especially during the lower speeds). The brakes are too good which clubbed with the Maxxis tyres provided a real good feedback. The differences between ride modes are very prominent, especially when you jump off the rain/street to the track mode and the throttle response is not at all snatchy while on the go. The headlights have no proper illumination during night (in fact useless). The bike heats up pretty quickly during stop-go traffic, and cools down immediately once you are on the move. The good thing is that most of the heat is diverted away from your legs. Another important thing to mention is the usage of higher octane fuel (though the recommended fuel is 91 RON), which reduces heating drastically. I stick to Power 99 from HP fuel station while I’m in Bangalore, and use the regular Power from HP otherwise. Pillion seat is very comfortable, and no, the heat from the exhaust doesn’t bother the pillion much. Suspension setup is a bit on the firmer side but can take on most of roads with ease. Mounting luggage is a real tough task due to the exhaust placement. The feedback from ABS on the rear wheel is felt under hard braking and it is a little annoying at times. The radiator accumulates most of the dirt thrown from the front wheel due to a small fender.

The Latest issue:

I noticed that my Quickshifter learning module gave up, just a few weeks before the lockdown. I got the issue checked at the service centre, and I was told that the issue would be sorted soon. I’ll not be able to use Quickshiter, and the gear position indicator will not be functional until this is sorted. I’ll get this rectified as soon as the situation turns normal (after lockdown).

[Starter71_Kish]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Kish, you were really overdue on your review, but you made up for that with a great review. Do post your reviews about servicing costs, niggles if any and solutions provided. Just the finer side of things.

Cheers!
VJ

Thanks VJ! I had to strike a balance between rides, office and home. Couldn't get time to write down the review. Mean while there were issues to be addressed, so I thought I might as well get all that sorted and pen down everything, and hence the delay.

[B7ACKTHORN]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Kish, you were really overdue on your review, but you made up for that with a great review. Do post your reviews about servicing costs, niggles if any and solutions provided. Just the finer side of things.

Cheers!
VJ

[Starter71_Kish]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Ownership experience:

Please accept my apologies for delaying the write up which was long due. This is the first time I’m penning an ownership experience, so please do excuse me for any imperfections. I have roughly clocked around 5000km on the odo, and I would be concentrating more on my experience than speaking too much about the spec sheet here.

Introducing myself:

I have been more of a two wheeled guy than four. I have been riding bikes for around 13 years now. I started off on an Apache RTR 160 efi. The reason I opted for the RTR 160 efi was because of the sporty orange colour it flaunted and a modern tech (Fuel injection), which was distinct around the time I picked it (I didn’t know about anything else apart from the colour and FI). The bike had crisp throttle response, throaty exhaust, and a little more grunt and power, compared to the regular RTR 160. The interest I had towards vehicles (engines in particular) grew deeper over time, and I wanted to experience how different types of engines would perform. Each type of engine gave me a different level of exposure and satisfaction, which left me wanting a vehicle for a purpose. As luck would have it, the ‘want’ started then and has never stopped so far.

Coming to the 790, this was an ‘Unexpected Impulsive’ purchase if I may term it that.

Why I say so:

I always wanted to own an RC390, for the performance it offers as a whole package. I didn’t give serious thoughts about picking up the bike, until I attended the track day organised by KTM in Bangalore (June 2019). After the track day, I thought ‘Why not pick up a pre-owned RC390 which saves me some money, prep it up just for the race tracks?’. Started my search on a few platforms and shortlisted a few bikes, contacted the owners to no fruit. I was in no hurry, so the search was going at a slow pace.

Checking with KTM:

In the meantime, I thought of checking with Mr.Petse (Manager) from KTM Mekhri circle, if he had any dealer test ride vehicles for sale. I have known him since the time the RC8 was on sale, as I was in talks with him to pick that one (just to let you all know that owning a KTM has been on the list for quite sometime now). It was the last week of August and the itch was growing stronger to purchase something soon. I made up my mind to drop in directly to the showroom to check with him, and pick up any test ride vehicle if he had any on sale. To my disappointment, he had disposed the test ride vehicles a week prior to my enquiry.

Here is my boy:



The Booking:

Just before leaving his cabin, I casually enquired about the 790 duke, since the news of launch were floating the internet for quite some time then. This was just a casual enquiry and no plans of picking up the bike for I knew the bike would be out of budget, compared to the pre-owned RC390 budget I had on mind. He was positive about the launch soon, handed over the brochure to go through all its features. Further into the conversation, KTM’s value for money pricing of their range in India, and news of the 790’s to be brought in via the CKD route, made us assume that the 790 would be priced in the ball park of 6 lakh to 7 lakh ex-showroom, translating to roughly around 8 lakh to 8.5 lakh on road Bangalore. He asked me to make a booking if I was interested and cancel it later, if the pricing didn’t work out for me (all this conversation was before the official launch which was initially planned for the 1^st week of September, 2019). He also mentioned that only 100 units of these would be imported initially via CKD and the rest would have maximum localisation if demand continues. Spy pictures of the bike ready for RTO (Bangalore) duties surfaced online, around the 1^st week of September. The GST council meet was to take place during the 3^rd week of September which was expected to have relief for automobiles. I assume that the meet and spy pictures doing rounds, had something to do with the postponement of official launch to the 23^rd of September.

The First Feel:

I get a call from Mr.Petse on the 13^th of September to check if I was interested to have a look at the bike and if I was free over the weekend, to which I quickly answered a YES. Again he called me on the 14^th at around 3PM and informed me that I could check the bike by 4PM. Excitement pumping, I reached the showroom on time (which usually never happens). I was escorted to the bike by DJ (senior sales rep) which was hidden from everyone’s view. The cover taken off the bike, I just couldn’t believe myself when I saw the bike in flesh, it looked so compact, the huge tyres, the high mounted exhaust, the wide pillion seat, and the engine, I just couldn’t take my eyes off it. DJ then asked me to sit on the bike and feel it; I didn’t come to terms that it’s an 800cc bike under me, felt like a 390 Duke with a little more room for everything. Didn’t want to leave the room, and was conversing with DJ on the technicalities of the bike though I knew a lot about the bike (through the research and international reviews), just so I could get some more time with it. It was love at first sight.

During my discussion with Petse and DJ, I learnt that I was the 1^st customer to book the bike in Bangalore. I was disappointed as I could not hear the exhaust, because the vehicle was under transport lock. I was promised that I could check the exhaust note by the end of next week. As promised, I got a call from Petse to check out the exhaust note. I ran to the showroom immediately and boy it sounded like a V-twin. What more could I ask for, a compact package weighing just 169Kg, a powerful and torquey engine, high ground clearance, the electronics on offer, the raspy exhaust note, and the VFM aspect (assuming our 6-7Lakh ex-showroom price).

The Confusion:

Come 23^rd September, I was watching the live stream of the launch on YouTube. I was highly disappointed and confused on hearing the 8.64Lakh ex-showroom price. The confusion now was if I really had to go ahead by extending my budget or just drop the plan, as it would cost roughly around 10.7 lakh on road in Bangalore. Since I had come so far, I decided to short list other bikes in this price range and compare them against the Duke.

Bikes	Considerations	What put me off
Kawasaki Z900	1. 7.69Lakh ex-showroom which would mean the fully accessorised Z900 would still cost me a lakh less than the Duke. 2. More power and torque figures, butter smooth inline-four engine. 3. Adjustable suspension (preload and rebound).	1. After sales support of Kawasaki India. 2. Low ground clearance.* 3. Heavy weight. 4. Instrument cluster. 5. No electronics.
Triumph Street Triple	1. Powerful triple cylinder engine. 2. Light weight.	1. More expensive than the Duke, for a lot lesser electronics package. 2. Low ground clearance.* 3. Not a great after sales support in Bangalore.
Suzuki GSX 750S	1. 7.4Lakh ex-showroom. 2. Most affordable and a powerful Inline-four engine. 3. Power modes and traction control.	1. Low ground clearance.* 2. Heavy weight. 3. Instrument cluster.
Yamaha MT 09	1. Been in love with this from the time of its launch in India. 2. Powerful and a torquey triple cylinder engine. 3. Power modes and traction control. 4. Fully adjustable suspension.	1. Very high price (ex-showroom price equivalent to Duke’s on-road price). 2. Low ground clearance.* 3. Instrument cluster.

*All in comparison to the 790 Duke’s 186mm ground clearance.

The 790 fared well in comparison to all the above bikes, 105 horses, 87 NM torque, 169 kilos, having the best in class electronics package which consisted of the following:

- MTC (Motorcycle Traction Control) : A lean angle sensitive traction control with 9 levels.

- MOTOR SLIP REGULATION (MSR) : Which means there is no chance of accidentally locking up the rear wheel under downshifting or abrupt throttling-off.

- QUICKSHIFTER + : Clutchless up and downshifts (has a learning curve based on riders usage).

- SUPERMOTO MODE : Deactivation of ABS at the rear.

- MOTORCYCLE STABILITY CONTROL (MSC) WITH CORNERING ABS : Lean-sensitive cornering ABS.

- Ride modes : 4 ride modes namely Street, Sport, Track (3 levels of throttle response) and Rain.

- TRACK MODE : Launch Control, Wheelie Control, Variable Slip adjustment.


Add to this, the ground clearance of 186mm is such a boon to ride over any surface. It would have been great if KTM would have offered adjustable suspension, but nevertheless, the stock setup is great as is.

The Confirmation:

I answered in the affirmative, when Petse checked with me if I wanted to go ahead with the booking. My only concern then was arranging finances. He mentioned that the RTO approval was still in process and would take more than a week for getting the bikes registered in Karnataka. Meanwhile I was running the above comparison through my mind, to justify if the Duke really fits the bill. Not that I would pick something else but just to convince myself to incline more towards the Duke. All bikes in the comparison were already showing age and were due for an update soon. BS6 emission norms around the corner meant that the bikes will have some performance updates along with a hike in price and weight.

The First Ride:

Petse gave me a call and asked me to drop by the showroom. On reaching the showroom, he handed me the keys of the test ride bike and told me to take a short spin. Believe me, I was sold. All the comparison running through my mind just vanished. No numbers on the specification sheets (of all bikes considered) could provide the sheer fun the bike had on offer. I decided to go with what my heart says, and told him to go ahead with the process and keep me updated on the RTO approvals. On the 6^th of October, I submitted the required documents for loan process. Approvals from the RTO for registering the bikes were granted on the 10^th of October. I got clearance from the bank on the 11^th of October, the next step being approval of loan which would take another two to three days. The next day was a second Saturday of the month and since banks were closed, I was expecting the sanction to be done towards the end of next week.

Bikes ready for PDI (Had to select from these 3):







And the Chosen one:


The Excitement:

To my surprise, I get a wakeup call from the showroom mentioning the loan had been sanctioned and we were ready for the next steps for delivery. I called Petse immediately and checked with him on the next steps, as I was restless and couldn’t control my emotions. He asked me to drop by the showroom, get the PDI done and select one of the three bikes that were present there, so that they could finalise the RTO process and hand over the bike to me. Petse was checking with me if I had any particular dates for delivery. Trust me, at that point I was in no hurry to get my hands on the bike, so I told him I’ll get back after discussing with my parents. He gave me call at around 11AM and asked if I could drop in soon and finalise the bike by 12.30PM, so that he could get all the formalities done by the end of same day and get it delivered to me.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it as I was at a friend’s function. It was pretty late by the time I reached showroom, say 6PM. I had taken my mom along, and she asked me one question ‘The bike looks very small, are you paying so much for such a small bike?’ . It’s not that she doesn’t know about bikes, what she meant was the bike looked very compact and there was little to differentiate the 790 from the 390 when viewed from the front. A special mention about the interest my mom has for bikes, she is the one who tells me which bike to pick next and she hasn’t stopped me from picking up any of the bikes I own today. We finalised the bike and were about to leave the place, Petse again checks if we could take delivery the next morning. He was confirming since the delivery was to be on a Tuesday, and many people don’t prefer a delivery on a Tuesday for auspicious reasons. My mom and I were okay with it, gave him a green signal to go ahead with the process and get the delivery done by 1PM to which he agreed. Even the more exciting, he also mentioned that mine would be the first delivery in Karnataka, if all goes smooth till delivery.

The Delivery:

Delivery process was smooth, with the regular cake cutting and intro to the bike and its features. Not a single freebie was offered with the bike (not even a cap). During the introduction to the bike by Mr.Saravanan (Head of sales and service, Karnataka), is when I learnt that the gear shift could be setup to a MotoGP fashion, i.e., 1-Up and 5-Down. The only restriction during the run-in period was to ride in Street mode and keep the revs below 6500RPM. I was told the other ride modes and Quickshifter would be unlocked post the first service.

Sorry if I bored you guys with such a long story on why and how I ended up purchasing the 790 Duke. A few pics from delivery:

All set for delivery:


With parents and Mr.Petse:


A legend joins to welcome the new kid:


The regular after pooja pose:


The ride experience is next.

[Starter71_Kish]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Hi Kish,

What parts were defective? Care to elaborate on your first service experience.

Hi Subhash,

That's a great write up there and congrats on your bike. You will definitely enjoy your time on the bike.

I have almost finished writing the ride experience, with all the niggles i experienced over time. Will post it soon.

[subhashjo]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

Do let us know the total price you paid for the bike including the discounts applied.

Cheers!
VJ

Thank for hosting my admittedly noobish review.

Due to the BSIV firesale, the on road price for the bike came down to 8.1L across most KTM showrooms in Bangalore. I however managed to eek out a better deal for myself & was requested by the management to not get into the particulars; which I will respect.

Going slightly off topic here - I would recommend everyone to download the DigiLocker app.
It is a Govt. of India approved app to digitally store your personal documentation such as Aadhar, DL, Vehicle's RC/Insurance/PUC copies.
This saves you the trouble of having to carry photocopies of your documents in your wallet/in your vehicle.

[B7ACKTHORN]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

@subhashjo, your owneship experience has been approved and merged.

Thank you for such a detailed review. Do keep posting your reviews, service expenses, just about everything about this motorcycle. Do let us know the total price you paid for the bike including the discounts applied.

Cheers!
VJ

[subhashjo]

Re: KTM Duke 790 2019 Ownership Experience Thread

The 1st service costs close to 10k. Not sure about the cost of brake pads, chain sproket and tires. With respect to spares, KTM has been very supportive with replacing some defective parts in the least possible tme.

Hi Kish,

What parts were defective? Care to elaborate on your first service experience.

[subhashjo]

KTM 790 Duke - Initial Impressions & Long Term Ownership

Thread Approved and Merged

Prelude
My earliest memories of a two wheeler was on the Bajaj Chetak that my father used as a workhorse & then when my mother got her DL - the Kinetic Honda.

My first taste of 'riding' a bike was the Honda Dio that my mother owned - which I ensured to ride at every given opportunity on the pretext of running errands for my folks.
I was officially gifted a bike (Bajaj Pulsar 150) when I passed out of 12th & started my Bachelors; post which I bought the KTM Duke 200 on 29-Feb-2012 when I started working, which I loved & cherished. Happy to report that it currently sits in my friends garage.


Let’s skip to the chase.


The KTM 790 Duke was launched at an on-road price of Rs.10.83 lakhs in Bangalore – aka Dead on Arrival.
No amount of marketing or positive reviews was going to move the common man to pull out his wallet for the ‘Scalpel’.
Cut to 09-Mar-2020 & KTM dropped the huge bombshell of issuing discounts on the existing BSIV units off up to Rs.2.65 lakhs. So, guess who decided to bite the bullet.


After calling almost every KTM dealership in South India & maybe I even reached out to folks in Bombay & Pune – I found out that there were bikes available with TWO caveats.
Caveat 1 – Limited stock availability
Caveat 2 – Full payment needed to be made on spot for the bike to be allotted to you
Well there goes my dream of finally owning a Super Bike.

But – it ain’t over till the fat lady sings & she was just warming up.

Going off on a tangent here – the following would have never transpired if it were not for the constant support of my wife. She was not a silent spectator; rather – there were instances where she was a force of nature with multiple folks in our endeavor to get the bike.

Now back to the story; Khivraj Motors said they had 8 bikes in stock. 5 bikes had full payments against them & the other 3 had partial payments.
Popular Bajaj did not wish to give me their quota of bikes, but also sang the same tune of all bikes being booked.
Whitefield dealer was sold out, Marathalli had 1 bike & BTM did not wish to answer or return our calls.
Our only hope was if one of the people who made the payment backed off at the last minute.

We went to the Indiranagar Showroom to possibly meet someone & see if we could move the ball along. The Manager Mr. Dhinakaran at Khivraj (Indiranagar) took a booking amount of Rs.20k from us on 10-Mar-2020 with the assurance that he would somehow try to arrange for a bike to come our way.
So with that – the better half & I went out to have celebratory drinks; chalking up plans on where we would go on our first ride.
Reality however struck when we went the next day to make the remainder of the payment. We were told that no bikes were going to come our way & we were gently suggested to take back our booking amount.
It was absolutely disheartening, not only because I was not going to get the bike; but to also see that this news affected my wife more than myself.
She asked Mr. Dhinakaran what it would take for us to get a bike; any bike; even the test ride bike. But we were told that there was no news to be provided at that point.
So we signed the cancellation papers to get the Rs.20k amount refunded & were told that the amount would be credited to us in 3-5 working days.

Meanwhile, we continued our search to see if we could get our hands on the 790.
Calls were made to KTM Showrooms across Karnataka – but to no avail. We even checked online to see if there was anyone who had previously purchased the bike & was putting it up for sale; & to our luck – one individual was selling his barely run (1000km) 790 in Bombay.
Quickly got on the phone with him only to be notified that someone had beat us to the punch by making a down payment of Rs.1 lakh . The prospective buyer had asked for 3 days to arrange for the remainder of the amount.
We spoke to the seller & asked if he could let us know if the buyer backed out so we could come over & see if a deal could be struck.

We were called on 13-Mar-2020 to collect the refund of Rs.20k & was introduced to Mr. Chetan, a counterpart of Mr. Dhinakaran – who was in charge of the KTM 790 sales. Chetan was quite up front to say that there were A LOT of people who were in the queue for the bikes & some had even paid the entire amount to Khivraj with the hopes that should there be a bike made available, they could have it allotted to them. These guys were willing to have Khivraj Motors hold onto their money for as long as needed.
Having gone there, I saw the KTM 390 Adventure & the 790 Duke test ride bikes parked outside. So I decided to make the most of the visit & asked for the test ride of the ADV.

Going off on a tangent again – the ADV is an absolute breeze to ride & the ‘hooliganism’ of yester years' KTM is not to be found. The word I would use to describe the ride would be – refined.
When I finished my round & parked the bike – Mr. Chetan suggested I take the 790 also for a spin.
He did call out that this was in no way an indication that I would get the bike but since I was there already – why not hop in the saddle.
I gladly obliged.

The 790 is an absolute beast. I am certain it is not like the BEAST that is the 1290 Super Duke. But it is absolutely brilliant in its own regard. The entire ride I had a smile plastered on my face & kept laughing out loud – which caught a lot of motorists & passers-by off guard.
I came back, parked the bike & could only look at my wife & say – OH! MY! GOD!

It was then I saw a lady – the General Manager at Khivraj Motors (Ms. Jaya Chacko) who had helped me get the KTM 200 Duke all the way back in 2012.
I was lucky enough to have been allotted the 2nd bike in Bangalore & took delivery on 29-Feb-2012.
My wife managed to get a chance to speak to Ms. Chacko & all credit to Wifey – we were told that while no new bikes were available; perhaps the test ride bike could be given to us at a later point in time.

Well – it was something. It was not a total write off. So off we went to Doff Pub, that was right next door for lunch.
Again, we thanked God for small mercies that we were assured that eventually the test ride bike would come to us. Something is better than nothing eh!

However, on 14-Mar-2020; Mr. Chetan called me up in the morning to ask if I could come over & make the payment for the bike – because someone had dropped out of the queue.

Transcript of the call below:
Chetan: Hi, this is Chetan from Khivraj; is this Subhash?
Me: Hey Chetan! Yes, please tell me.
Chetan: How soon can you come over & make the payment for the 790?
Me: Why? What happened?
Chetan: Well I managed to get a bike for you. So uhh..
Me: One moment..

I immediately handed over the phone to my wife while the news of what I heard was still sinking in.

Did he just say I was getting a bike? Like a new bike? Not the test ride bike, but the actual bike? Did I hear him right? OMG, what is going on?
By then my wife had finished the call & she immediately started screaming & ran over to me.
What transpired next could be described as two individuals resembling teenage kids at a Justin Bieber concert, as we jumped around screaming at the news we just heard.
We could not believe what just happened & did not want to take any chances – so we were at the Showroom in 15 mins.
Chetan laughed out loud to see how soon we had landed there & we completed the remainder of the payments.

In the course of 5 days, we went from no bike, to test ride bike, to new bike & we were still not sure how we managed to pull this off.

Our sincerest thanks to the entire team at Khivraj – Ms. Chacko, Mr. Dhinakaran & Mr. Chetan who helped us out.

The process of getting the bike registered started on 18-Mar-2020 & was completed on 20-Mar-2020 & was told I could pick up the bike on 21-Mar-2020

Chetan called us up in the morning & confirmed that the formalities were done & we could expect the bike at 2:00pm.

We grabbed a quick lunch & headed out to the Khivraj Showroom at Indiranagar & arrived at 2:10pm.
After signing a few documents – I was briefed about the particulars of the bike & the unveiling took place.

Apologies in advance for not taking exhaustive pics of the delivery process as I was too busy living the moment.

So, with that – we took charge of the KTM 790 Duke & like my wifey called out in glee; “One off the Bucket List”.


First Impressions

What I like
1. Exceptionally light and nimble
2. Comfortable riding position
2. Rev Happy Engine (Hooligan)
3. Packed to the brim with electronic safety features (Dual Channel Switchable ABS, Launch Control, Anti-Wheelie, Ride Modes, Lean Sensitive Traction Control)
4. Throaty exhaust note


What I don't like so much
1. Engine heat dissipation (well its a KTM right)
2. Styling is a hit/miss. Head on there is very little to differentiate the 790 Duke & the 390 Duke. The rear of the bike is also its worst angle & I sincerely do wish they had tried to keep it as close to the prototype that they teased.
3. Switch-gear and plastics do not feel premium
4. Mirrors while adequate feel like KTM cutting corners in the cost department


Technical Statistics

Engine - 799cc, DOHC, liquid-cooled parallel twin; 4 valves/cyl
Bore x Stroke - 88.0 x 65.7mm
Power/Torque numbers - 105 HP @ 9000 rpm and 86 NM @ 8000 rpm
Gearbox - 6 speed (1 down and 5 up - neutral is between 1st and 2nd gears) with slipper clutch
Weight at the kerb - 189 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity - 14L
Fuel Type - Petrol
Fuel Delivery - Electronic fuel injection w/ ride by wire
Brakes - Front - 300mm Dual Discs; Rear - 1 x 240mm Single Disc
Chassis - Chromium-Molybdenum-Steel Frame using the Engine as Stressed Element, Powder Coated
Suspension - Front - 43mm inverted cartridge-type WP fork w/ split-function technology; 5.5-in. travel
Suspension - Rear - WP Monoshock, adjustable for spring preload; 5.9-in. travel
Tyres - Maxxis Supermaxx ST; 120/70ZR-17 / 180/55ZR-17
Seat Height - 825 mm
Ground Clearance -186 mm
Wheelbase - 1475 mm


Riding experience so far
Since taking delivery, I have so far ridden about 150+ kms, all within city limits (prior to the Covid-19 lockdown) Below is my initial take on the various aspects of the bike.

Engine
The bike wants you to open up the throttle, as simple as that. You are never in doubt that there is more power in reserve should you ever feel the need to use it. It sounds absolutely glorious, even on the stock pipe - the fizzing, gurgling, banging overrun sound is really nice, rolling off the throttle is almost as enjoyable as rolling it on.
The stock exhaust system is fairly silent until 4000 rpm but the hooligan rears its head when you go higher up the rpm band. Cross 6000 rpm and the 'braap' notes come dime a dozen. Overall, the engine is fun. The clutch is very light and is very effortless to use. The gearbox also feels very smooth (unlike the 2012 KTM 200 Duke that I owned) You are also provided the choice of clutchless upshits/downshifts which I am happy to report work flawlessly.

Brakes
The bike is well equipped in the braking department. The bite & feel are top notch & the ABS is not over intrusive. I can wholeheartedly vouch that the brakes are confidence inspiring for our Indian traffic.

Suspension & Ground Clearance
I've read a lot of reports online of people bemoaning the non-adjustable suspension setup. So far, I have found the suspension to be quite good for the various types of roads that I have ridden on. The ground clearance is also a blessing for our scientifically formulated speed breaker's, so you are not really trying to baby the bike over the 'hills' on our roads.

The seats is spacious & offers a lot of room for you to move around. Once I have clocked some more time with my wife riding pillion, will update the post on her feedback. For now, she is quite happy with the cushioning & size of the seat. Admittedly, she is on the petite size.

Tyres
The bike comes shod with Maxis Road Sport tyres both front and rear. They are adequate both in dry & wet conditions. I do not intend to push the bike to its absolute limits so I will try to eek out as much life out of these tyres as possible (Indian road conditions notwithstanding).

Lights
The front headlight offers a breadth of lighting that reaches directly in front, but most significantly to each side of the motorcycle. The High Beam throw is also very good. Likewise, the TFT dashboard is easily readable.

Riding Impressions
Overall, the bike is a joy to ride. You do not feel the bike is big or unweildly. The bike is nimble enough to weave through our (dis)organized traffic & the engine does not require downshifts too often. Should you however find an open road, the bike urges you to let her go higher up the RPMs. I assure you that you will find it hard to wipe the grin that will be plastered on your face.
It's not all a bed or roses though. The engine heat is going to be an issue in our stop & go traffic. The exhaust pipe is very close to the pillion legs so one should be careful while mounting/dismounting the bike. The bike will be mistaken for the 390 Duke (which could be a blessing or not as per your POV).


In Conclusion
Overall, I am enjoying this bike and I intend to use it as my daily driver. While these impressions may come across as far too early in the bike's life cycle - I am happy to report that both my mind & heart are at ease with this purchase. Let's not forget that the better half keeps urging me to take her out for a ride. The rear really looks quite bland and I wish the 390-style LED headlight and mirrors had their own identity.

Happy Riding