I disagree that this bike is not suitable for serious long distance adventures. I also don't think this bike is "ready to race", and that it is meant for travel and definately not racing.

Sure the 690 could be kitted to a better ride for this purpose - but it is a poor comparison - it is a much more expensive bike. When lookimg at the price bracket that the 390 Adv falls in, it is comparatively awesome to a lot of other adv and dual sport bikes out there - for long distance adventure motorcycling. The 690 is in an entirely different bracket - and would for me for that reason also be kittet differently. For me personally, the KTM 690 Adv and the Husqvarna 701 was at the top of my list - until the Tenere 700 came about... After adding up all the mods I would have put on the 701 to get it the way I would want it, the added cost alone would equal that of a decently kitted 390 Adv. Now; I've so far spendt probably close to 4 or 5k USD in kitting my T7, but I find it more justifiable when conscidering the resale of the bike.

Yes, the bike does lack in power below 4000 rpm and stalls quite easily - then again, if this is a serious concern, some of this issue can be remedied through canging sprockets (KTM offer it as an OEM powerpart) - without killing the bank. Turn off the traction control, and with some grippy tires and feathering of the clutch - you will with the stock sprocket get through anything I'm sure. And if you go for a new sprocket - do you really want to do +150 km/h on this bike anyways?

It might not be great at riding long steep slopes with very little grip - but on a long trip, there won't be much of that - and the bike will endure it just fine. Torque is mostly relevant when you have grip and wheels don't spin. So in mud and sand you will mostly be ok. Rock beds, or very slow speed navigation, etc - torque is required. Then again, on a long trip - how much of this will most riders have to endure? We are most often talking about sections where with the stock sprocket the feathering of the clutch will serve you just fine (PS! I have not tried it with this bike yet). But on ok gravel roads and tarmac - the sportyness of this bike will make it shine. Cosncidering the typical mix of riding conditions for most o an RTW, many will prefer to sacrifice the bottom end torque for some a bit higher up - as this will serve you better most of the time. There are many reports of adventure riders that change back to the origibnal sprocket - because they think it is a better trade off. And, going RTW - what percentage of total hours spendt on the bike will be on the really narly stuff? More than 1%?

Like I said in the initial post. These are early days and first impressions only - I may very well change my mind after seeing the bike getting put through its paces. So far though the bike seems to manage quite well at 3000 rpm, and barely manages at 2500 - but I agree, it is at 4000 Rpm it starts happening. From 5000 it starts getting fun. At riding with a lot of varied speeds and shifting - I've so far found that I like it best between 5 and 6k rpm, especially in fourth and fifth gear. I've yet to ride it hard as it is being broken in though. Time will see.

Still - my first impressions need to be way off for me to write this bike off as an unsuitable as an RTW adventure bike. The ammount of adventure bike you get for your money has blown me away. Does that mean it is for me personally? No! I've got other needs and more money and experience to fulfill those needs. If I didn't have the means to get exactly what I wanted - I would have been content with being stuck with the 390 Adv.

__________________
Blog: www.bamakobyvespa.no
My Youtube Channel