KTM’s Super Scalpels - 890 Duke And 890 Duke R Review

With the onset of the stricter Euro5 emission laws in 2020, KTM was forced to pull the plug on the 790 Duke that we so dearly liked, and replace it with the 890 Duke R. The 890 Duke R definitely has on-paper figures good enough to make it a worthy successor to the 790 Duke. So we took the 890 Duke R and the 890 Duke on a week-long road trip to see what those figures translate to in the real world.

Riding the 890 Duke R

Jumping into the saddle of the 890 Duke R and barely five minutes into riding, it felt more refined compared to the 790 Duke. The suspension, both in terms of damping and adjustability, is impressive, while brake feel and bite are outstanding. Although the riding position is moderately aggressive, it is also comfortable and functional. The 890 Duke R feels very light when you pick it up off the side-stand, and mid-corner is where you might find the biggest surprise. 

This bike loves big lean angles, and can carry massive corner speed while feeling totally in control. The stock Michelin Power Cup tires certainly help by being extremely sticky, but it is the chassis as a whole – the combination of light weight, flickability, stability and feedback – that can take a rider with average cornering skills (me in this case) and make him feel like a MotoGP racer.

Putting this bike through its paces on road through the beautiful mountain passes in Austria and on track at the Pannonia-Ring was absolute fun. You can get on the throttle early, and this bike just jumps between corners. Braking late and deep is no problem with the power and control offered by the Brembo setup.  The bike flicks into corners so easily thanks to the extra light brake discs giving it lower unsprung mass, and tight steering geometry. 

The QuickShifter system is usable in the lower gears and at lower speeds, but works best while being hard on the throttle from 3rd gear through 6th gear for upshifts, which is a blessing on track. Downshifts feel fine through all the gears. The 890 Duke R is so capable that expert riders will want to push it very hard.

Riding the 890 Duke

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The 890 Duke has slightly different ergonomics compared to the 890 Duke R. The seat height is lower and the rider’s triangle is more relaxed. For everyday riding I found the ergonomics of the 890 Duke superior–that is more comfortable. The handlebar is more upright, as compared to the one on the 890 R that encourages a more aggressive forward lean.

The engine too is every bit as good when compared to the 890 Duke R. The standard 890 Duke puts out 115PS, six less than the 890 Duke R, however, I rode both models back-to-back and couldn’t tell a difference as far as engine performance is concerned. It has a very broad spread of power, throttle response is excellent, and the uneven firing order gives it a wonderful character and feel. Outstanding!

Riding this bike through the bumpy roads in Hungary did make me wish that the suspension was a bit softer, but hey, at least this fared better than the 890 Duke R on the same road. What was impressive on the 890 Duke were the brakes. Despite offering a bit less feel and power compared to the R, they felt more than adequate on the street, and did a competent job at the track as well.

Suspension though, is a tad stiff for cruising around on public roads, but by no means harsh. However when the bike was pushed on a twisty road, the suspension started to feel a bit taxed and not stiff enough to handle aggressive inputs. Tyres were the Continental ContiRoads, a new sport touring tyre from the German manufacturer, and these served their purpose well. Compared to pure sport rubber, however, they fall short when it comes to outright grip and large lean angles.

Performance Check

Nicknamed the Super Scalpel, the 890 Duke family is powered by the KTM 790 Duke’s liquid-cooled, parallel twin engine, but its capacity has been increased from 799cc to 889cc. This has resulted in an increase in power output from 105PS to 115PS on the base 890 Duke, and 121PS on the 890 Duke R. Even the peak torque is up from 87Nm to 92Nm, with the R’s motor producing 7Nm more. 

Both the 890 Duke and 890 Duke R are raring to go at the slightest throttle input. Clutch pull is light, and as soon as you leave a stop you understand just how smooth, powerful and predictable this engine is. Regardless of the ride mode selected, fueling feels as close to perfect as it gets and power builds in a linear fashion.

Differences in the Underpinnings

This is where the 890 twins differ the most from the 790. The 890 Duke R, being the racy sibling of the two, gets a WP APEX fork and monoshock, both of which are fully adjustable (except for fork preload). It’s not just the adjustability of this new suspension that makes all the difference, but it is the way it’s been carefully tuned by KTM’s test riders. The rear shock even has separate adjustment for high and low speed compression. In the braking department, the best four-piston Brembo Stylema brakes are used that feel incredibly sharp, that even put some superbikes to shame.

The 890 Duke is very similar to the 890 Duke R with a few exceptions. The fully adjustable suspension is replaced by a non-adjustable 43mm fork and a rear shock that’s only adjustable for preload. The brakes too are not the top notch Brembos found on the 890 R, but rather KTM-branded ones similar to what we got on the 790 Duke. The front brake discs are smaller as well, at 300mm versus 320mm.

While the 890 Duke R features super sticky track-day Michelin PowerCup 2 tyres, the 890 Duke features Continental ContiRoad tires. Both bikes get a steering damper, and a series of electronic rider aids. Lean-angle sensitive traction control, cornering ABS (with a “supermoto” option to disable ABS on the rear wheel), four selectable ride modes (Sport, Street, Rain and Track) and an optional Track mode that offers nine-position adjustable traction control, launch control and wheelie control settings.

Final Words

The 890 Duke is an excellent bike, largely thanks to its fantastic parallel-twin motor. It is reasonably comfortable, fast and agile. However, the 890 Duke R is much the same, but even better in some ways. After all, this is a KTM bike and the 890 Duke R is more dialled into the ‘Ready to Race’ mentality and design. Also, I'm sure that I wouldn’t care for a pillion on a 889cc hooligan motorcycle, so it’s a no brainer that the 890 Duke R is my choice of weapon, especially considering the premium hardware on offer.