2024 KTM 890 Adventure R Review
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Here's my thoughts on the 2024 KTM 890 Adventure R, after putting almost 2,000km on it, in a variety of conditions - mostly offroad.
Overall, it is impressive, but let's go through the good, the bad and the ugly.
The ugly
The ugly or the downright stupid things about this bike start with KTM not firing a while ago the team in charge of UI design and approval. It is now much slower to respond than the 790's UI and it ignores clicks because it's too busy drawing some animations that exactly nobody cares about while riding.
I mean if this was a slow moving Trabant or a straight highway bike like a Harley, sure - the screen animations may amuse you while you're not doing much else - but it is not meant to be that. Going from tarmac to dirt and back to tarmac to get to the next dirt section, you want to switch modes between rally and street and it takes 7 (seven) actions to do that, every bloody time. It is beyond stupid, especially as you have to look down because the screen will usually ignore the first couple clicks while it thinks whether to wake up - kind'a like a stubborn German Shepperd, but much stupider.
Even BMW woke up and understood usability and apparently on the F900 there's physical buttons to do stuff like that quickly.
KTM loves to create the best candy and wrap it in poop. Sometimes putting an idiotic seat on a bike designed to get you to the dirt and back (like a 690). Sometimes making you do a song and a dance to turn off traction control (690). Sometimes to make you do two songs and two dances while risking your life to look down and switch 7 freaking menus just to put it in street mode - so ABS and TC turn back on.
I cannot begin to criticise the new UI. It's not even consistent - you start on the left and work your way in and at some point you end up selecting from a red dropdown somewhere on the right, with a smaller font and with no visibility where the next items on that drop down are, you only see them as you scroll through them - on the 790 at least you had a hint of where the other ride modes where, since more of that list was visible. And it was more predictably placed on the screen. Don't they know that the most likely buyer is an older dude who saved enough to buy these bikes, likely needing reading aids? Well, no. Obviously.
At least on the 690, the ride modes each have a single button press to activate and a throttle roll off. Easy peasy and they change both TC and ABS and throttle response etc.
The bad
Well, this list is not long. Uhh, the suspension is stupid stiff, at least in the beginning. Their factory tire choice doesn't help, having a harder compound - but with lighter riders, the bike wants to destroy itself and beat the snot out of the rider - that's how harsh the suspension is initially. It seems to get a tiny bit more mellow as you ride it in rough terrain, after a few thousand miles.
The good
That is the good - this bike is stupidly capable off-road. The rougher it is, the better it gets. Maybe it is my size, but the knees and heels lock in well like on a motocross bike and it doesn't feel much different once you get going.
Ergonomics
The little windscreen is decent. You get some air over it, of course, but clean. I am 5'7" so taller riders: ymmv.
The seat is decent. Not as stupid as say a 690 but not as comfy as an S. You can go on half-day trips and day trips as well - I guess depending how much you ride standing up.
The tires are quite decent, although harder compound, but good traction on both road and off.
The cruise control is really a good addition. Now I can't live without one of those - when you come back tired, after a long session off-road, it makes getting home that much more relaxed.
The quick shifter is good. During the first 1,000km you seriously doubt it as it has brainfart after brainfart, but after the first maintenance, it becomes very predictable.
Power and street
Yes, there is obviously more power than on the 790. It is also more consistent throughout the rev range, but the more impressive difference is the street performance - where it rocks. It is very stable and confident at high lean angles - where the knee lock inspires confidence and you got enough power to do pretty much whatever you want.
The only reason to get a 1290 would be comfort for really long rides, I think.
Offroad
It is very competent offroad! It's so close to the 690 in offroad performance, while excelling at road riding, that you start doubting the reasons you keep the little monster!
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