Dirty Dreams Come True For Desi ADV Enthusiasts!

[UPDATE: KTM Has Launched The 390 Adventure In India!]

• The KTM 390 Adventure shares its powerplant with the 390 Duke.
• But this ADV gets lean-sensitive traction control and cornering ABS.
• KTM will launch the bike in January 2020.

The KTM 390 Adventure has been unveiled in the country at the India Bike Week in Goa after its global debut at the 2019 EICMA. The Austrian brand says it will launch the bike in January 2020. The 390 Adventure is likely to be priced at around Rs 3 lakh (ex-showroom), and bookings for the baby ADV have already commenced, unofficially. KTM also plans to organise Adventure Day, which is a single-day event to teach customers about the nuances of off-road riding. It is planned for about eight to ten cities across the country for now.

The KTM 390 Adventure’s engine is shared with the 390 Duke, but it is BS6/Euro 5-compliant. Despite offering cleaner emissions, it makes the same output figures as the Duke (44PS and 37Nm). The engine works alongside a 6-speed transmission with slipper clutch and a standard bi-directional quickshifter. For better dynamics, KTM has equipped the motorcycle with lean-sensitive traction control and cornering ABS.

The KTM 390 Adventure’s trellis frame is suspended on WP suspension on both ends. While the front inverted fork in the bike unveiled abroad features compression and rebound adjustability, the India-spec bike gets non-adjustable USD fork. That said, the rear monoshock is adjustable for both preload and rebound like the international model. With 170mm travel up front and 177mm rear wheel travel, you should be able to go over rough terrain with ease. However, the bike rolls on alloy wheels (19-inch up front and a 17-incher at the rear) wrapped in Metzeler Tourance dual-purpose tyres. We’d have liked it if KTM offered spoke wheels of the same size instead as they can take up shock loads better than alloy wheels. Interestingly, the international-spec bike comes with Continental TKC70 dual-purpose rubber on both ends.

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Other notable features include an all-LED lighting system, a windshield and a TFT instrument console with smartphone compatibility. It also gets a slightly larger fuel tank than the 390 Duke at 14.5 litres. To know more about the finer details of this baby ADV, head here.

In terms of competition, the KTM 390 Adventure falls right between the more affordable yet capable Royal Enfield Himalayan (Rs 1.80 lakh) and the more premium BMW G 310 GS (Rs 3.49 lakh). Another notable rival is the Kawasaki Versys-X 300, but it costs an eye-watering Rs 4.69 lakh.

All prices, ex-showroom Delhi.