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This can be a 12 months of milestones. The AMA is celebrating its a centesimal anniversary, Rider is celebrating its fiftieth, and KTM is celebrating “30 Years of Duke.” What began out as one bike in 1994 is now a seven-model lineup, together with the 125 Duke, 250 Duke, 390 Duke, 790 Duke, 990 Duke, 1290 Tremendous Duke GT, and 1390 Tremendous Duke R Evo. We examined three new/up to date fashions just lately – the 390, 990, and 1390 – and we’ll begin off with our KTM 390 Duke assessment.
Thirty years in the past, KTM – then a small Austrian producer of dirtbikes – launched its first street-focused motorbike, the Duke 620, a supermotard-style bike that was the brainchild of KTM engineer Wolfgang Felber. Beginning with a KTM 620 R/XC dual-sport, which had a kickstart-only 602cc Single that made 56 hp, Felber shortened the suspension and gave it 17-inch spoked wheels shod with sticky road tires. Weighing simply 315 lb, the flickable, wheelie-happy Duke – named after Geoff Duke, a British GP racer who received a number of world championships – grew to become a cult favourite, a hooligan bike that inspired a rowdy driving fashion.
At the moment, KTM is the largest model within the Pierer Mobility empire – Europe’s largest motorbike producer that additionally consists of Husqvarna, GasGas, and MV Agusta. Though the “Able to Race” model says it prefers to sit up for the long run than dwell on the previous, KTM just lately honored the Duke legacy by internet hosting a press launch in Almeria, Spain, for 3 new/up to date fashions: the 390 Duke, 990 Duke, and 1390 Tremendous Duke R Evo. The launch started with a half-day trip on the 390 Duke, which is the main focus of this assessment.
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Associated: 2024 KTM 990 Duke Evaluation | First Look
Associated: 2024 KTM 1390 Tremendous Duke R Evo Evaluation | First Look
What’s New | 2024 KTM 390 Duke
Launched in Europe in 2013, the 390 Duke made its technique to our shores in 2015 (learn our street check assessment). Together with the 125 Duke and 250 Duke, the 390 Duke is made in India by Bajaj below the scrupulous supervision of KTM engineers. Simply as KTM’s 790 Duke and 790 Journey fashions are made in China by CFMOTO, these strategic partnerships permit KTM to extend its manufacturing capability, preserve a lid on ever-increasing labor prices, and acquire in-country entry to the 2 largest motorbike markets on the earth.
Whereas the 390 Duke has developed steadily over time, the 2024 mannequin represents a significant leap ahead. In comparison with its predecessor, KTM says it’s 90% new. Displacement of its liquid-cooled, single-cylinder engine has elevated from 373cc to 399cc, contributing to a small enhance in horsepower (45, up from 44) and torque (28.8 lb-ft, up from 27.3). The up to date engine is lighter, has improved cooling but additionally warms up quicker, and has longer oil-change and valve-inspection service intervals. A bigger airbox is positioned below the seat, and the gas tank now holds 3.9 gallons, up from 3.6.
The 390’s tubular-steel trellis body was made stiffer and now has an higher mount for the rear shock, which was moved from the middle to the proper facet and positioned at a extra horizontal angle, reducing the seat peak from 32.7 to 32.3 inches. A brand new strain die-cast aluminum subframe can also be stiffer, and the brand new curved, open-lattice cast-aluminum swingarm has a decrease mount on the proper facet for the shock and is curved to accommodate the tucked-in exhaust.
As earlier than, the 390 Duke’s suspension is made by KTM-owned WP, however for 2024, it’s upgraded to higher-spec Apex parts. The 43mm inverted fork, held in place by new triple clamps, now presents rebound and compression adjustability with five-position clickers atop the fork caps. The Separate Piston rear shock has five-position rebound adjustability along with adjustable preload (each simply performed with toolkit saved below the seat). Suspension journey has elevated from 5.6 to five.9 inches within the entrance and stays 5.9 inches out again.
Revised 17-inch cast-aluminum wheels are shod with new Michelin Energy 6 tires, and the combo sheds a outstanding 9.5 lb of unsprung weight. Claimed moist weight for the bike, nonetheless, stays the identical at 364 lb. Single-disc brakes entrance and rear are made by Bybre, with a 4-piston radial entrance caliper pinching a 320mm disc (up from 300mm) and a 1-piston rear caliper with a 240mm disc (up from 230mm). ABS with a rear-off Supermoto mode is normal.
The 390 Duke has a brand new LED headlight with a DRL encompass that’s formed like the brand new headlights on the 990 Duke and 1390 Tremendous Duke R Evo, and all three bikes share a 5-inch colour TFT show. With an MSRP of $6,299, electronics are sometimes restricted on this value vary, however the 390 Duke has throttle-by-wire with two trip modes (Road and Rain) that alter throttle response and lean-adaptive traction management, in addition to new launch management. New switchgear and revised menus on the TFT are simpler to make use of, however a number of buttons should be pushed to alter trip mode and different settings. We’d desire a single button to alter trip mode on the fly.
What’s It Prefer to Experience? | 2024 KTM 390 Duke
I like small sporty bikes, and I’ve a specific fondness for the 390 Duke. My Duke dalliance began in 2017, when KTM hosted a launch for an up to date model of the 390 Duke in Turin, Italy, the place we started our check trip by turning laps on a check observe with banked curves on the roof of the Lingotto constructing, a large five-story construction that was a Fiat manufacturing unit from 1923 to 1982. Then we buzzed across the streets of Turin earlier than making our approach into the foothills of the Alps. Cool location however, it was essentially the most enjoyable I’d ever had on such a lightweight, inexpensive bike. Its MSRP again then was simply $5,299.
A 12 months later, we bought a 390 Duke for a check on our personal turf, and I wrangled the keys away from Jenny Smith lengthy sufficient to offer it a correct thrash.
This time round, it was a chilly, clear day in Almeria, Spain, when our multinational group of journalists hopped on a fleet of shiny new 390 Dukes. I selected one in KTM orange, with the brilliant colour discovered not solely on the tank and sharply angled bodywork but additionally on the seat, body, and wheels. After I turned on the important thing, the instrument panel welcomed me with a “30 Years of Duke” animation that’s unique to 2024 fashions. Though the seat is a tad decrease, the 390 Duke doesn’t really feel dainty or undersized however moderately slender and compact.
Gear Up
The 390 Duke is an keen beaver, a fiesty machine that begs to be flogged. Its 399cc Single fires up rapidly and settles right into a mellow burble at idle, however the ’lil Duke actually comes alive when its throttle is twisted WFO. With peak horsepower at 8,500 rpm, peak torque at 7,000 rpm, and a ten,000-rpm redline, it pays to maintain the engine spinning. Let the revs drop an excessive amount of, and it may be exhausting to regain momentum on a twisty street. Although counterbalanced, the engine will get buzzy at excessive revs.
And consider you me, Spain has greater than its justifiable share of muy twisty roads.
KTM’s nickname for the 390 Duke is “Nook Rocket,” and it lives as much as the identify. With simply 53.4 inches between the axles, sporty steering geometry, and slim, grippy tires (110/70 entrance, 150/60 rear), the 390 turns virtually as rapidly as your mind’s synapses hearth off the command to your arms. Quite a lot of shifting is required to remain within the meat of the powerband, and the 6-speed gearbox with slip/help clutch does the rider’s bidding with minimal effort. The bikes we had been driving had the optionally available Quickshifter+ put in, permitting us to bang our approach up and down by way of the gears with out the clutch.
The brand new Apex suspension did a very good job of absorbing bumps in addition to the chassis gyrations of being always on and off the fuel. Since my 200-plus kilos is above common, I used the hook spanner below the seat to ratchet up the rear preload a couple of clicks. Likewise, the brakes capably slowed the bike and its outsized cargo, and the adjustable hand levers had been appreciated.
After a 75-mile hair-on-fire road trip, we returned to the lodge, the place KTM had arrange a gymkhana course within the car parking zone. Pairs of riders went head-to-head on an out-and-back slalom course, with bragging rights going to the quickest time. I’m not a racer, so although I beat the opposite rider, I didn’t trouble to ask my time. The quickest journalist was a man from Australia who sliced and diced the course in 34 seconds. Jeremy McWilliams, the previous MotoGP racer, present King Of The Baggers racer for Indian, and improvement rider for KTM, beat all comers with a 32-second time – whereas carrying denims and tennis sneakers. Try his Instagram web page to see a photograph of him dropping the entrance, which he saved on his technique to victory.
Upgrades like trip modes, cornering traction management, and adjustable suspension have pushed the 390 Duke’s value as much as $6,299, but it surely’s nonetheless a fairly priced bike that’s extra enjoyable than ever. And it’s actually worthy of the Duke’s 30-year legacy.
Try extra new bikes in Rider’s 2024 Motorbike Consumers Information
2024 KTM 390 Duke Specs
- Base Worth: $6,299
- Web site: KTM.com
- Guarantee: 2 yrs., 24,000 miles
- Engine Sort: Liquid-cooled, transverse Single, DOHC w/ 4 valves
- Displacement: 399cc
- Bore x Stroke: 89.0 x 64.0mm
- Horsepower: 45 hp @ 8,500 rpm (manufacturing unit declare)
- Torque: 28.8 lb-ft @ 7,000 rpm (manufacturing unit declare)
- Transmission: 6-speed, cable-actuated slip/help moist clutch
- Last Drive: Chain
- Wheelbase: 53.4 in.
- Rake/Path: 24 levels/3.7 in.
- Seat Peak: 32.3 in.
- Moist Weight: 364 lb
- Gasoline Capability: 4.0 gal.
- Gasoline Consumption: 69 mpg (manufacturing unit declare)
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