Thread: KTM Motorcycle

We see it time and again even at the cutting edge of motorcycle design there is no substitute for experience and tradition. Modern BMW makes all sorts of bikes these days, but still it's best at touring ones. The core of Austrian KTM meanwhile is in off-road bikes with single-cylinder engines, and sure enough its three latest machines, the 690 Duke, 690 Enduro and 690 supermoto, are powered by the best road-going single you'll find from any manufacturer.

The sheer power of the engine is genuinely astonishing. Ignore the 690 designation as the capacity is just 6s4cc, so there's just one 102mm piston pushing you along, yet the engine revs freely and happily into its 8000rpm red zone, in top gear enough for almost 200kph. That's a huge advantage over most singles in this class which usually struggle to top 160kph, making them breathless at motorway speeds. Not the Duke, which backs up the top end hit with a muscular midrange and pretty impressive low rev pull too. It's also surprisingly smooth, considering that sole piston hammering up and down, although the vibes might still get to you at sustained high speeds.

The Duke name is important to KTM as it dates back to 1994 when the company released the first version, a milestone as its debut pure road bike. Until then the factory had specialised in off-road machinery, but decided its future would be more secure, and lucrative, if it dipped into the road bike market too. The Duke was, and still is, very much a niche model in many markets, but for those riders it suits, it suits them very well indeed. Primarily it's a bike for back road fun, charging up mountain passes, chucking around tight country lanes, practicing your wheelies and generally doing stuff your mum wouldn't approve of.



But it does double up as a handy commuter, agile and easy in traffic, and despite its wilder side, it can readily be tamed for inexperienced riders as beneath the seat is an adjuster which selects from one of three engine management maps. The gentlest one cuts maximum power by around 30 per cent and softens the power delivery, although realistically this has limited use on the road as the bike is perfectly manageable anyway the setting is much more useful on the 690 Enduro off-road. The third setting gives the same maximum power but with a much more aggressive delivery, boosting excitement certainly, although when you're tired it can be hard work, and it might be a handful in the wet.

It's a pretty sharp handling machine, thanks partly to its light weight of 149kg and also the decent quality suspension KTM owns prime suspension maker WP, and makes full use of this. But I wasn't always completely comfortable pushing the bike very hard in corners as it does lose some of its feedback and the steering becomes a touch vague compared with a dedicated sports bike. At the other end of the spectrum, comfort is better than I was expecting - dirt bikes often have near-vestigial seats and KTM's lack of experience in bottom cosseting has often showed on its road bikes, but despite being quite narrow the Duke's is not too bad. You'd even consider a short tour on one, the 1 3-litre tank being adequate if not great for this if you find the resolve not to wind the throttle open to the stop all the time.

It's a real head turner as far as looks are concerned. KTM is the only bike manufacturer to make a success of this sort of angular styling, and on the Duke it lean and aggressive yet well balanced and attractive too, as well as being unmistakably a KTM. For your money you also get good quality equipment, including in addition to the suspension, British-made Renthal handlebars, Brembo brakes and Marchesini wheels, which all go some way towards justifying the price. But it's still costly, and despite the performance, it's still a single, and there are many, many exciting Japanese and Italian machines available for much less, and most are a lot more versatile.