Ride Review: 2019 KTM 1090 Adventure R Demo Ride

KTM 1090 Adventure R (demo Ride)

Dirt bike DNA is prevalent with this tall 507 lb wet weight bike that had me on tip toes (6’ 1”, low seat position), seated closer to the tank/instruments on a comfy mildly stepped seat & narrower bars than the S10 + shod with TKC 80s on 21”/18” tire/wheel combo that added a cushioning & confident feel on the road surface.

The shape of the low slung 23 litre fuel cell aiding mass centralization & side body panels provide good wind coverage of your mid torso down to below the knees.

The oem sound & feel begs for an aftermarket exhaust to shrug off the epa sanitized aura which is dominated by induction noise until the rpms climb to the midrange & beyond.

Once you become accustomed to living in the deliciously rewarding mid range of the LC8 75 degree v-twin (the gearing lands you above 3k rpm at most road speeds anyways + the motor is smooth & refined), it all comes into focus & is well balanced without the brute over achiever persona & heavier feel of it’s bigger brother the 1290 Super Adventure.

I have ridden the 1290 Super Adventure, 1190 Adventure & now this 1090R…the 1090 is a better balanced bike…sometimes smaller is better…the 790R may drive that point home with an exclamation mark!

The demo ride does very little to test the adjustable suspension but it always felt planted, well damped & quality kit in its oem setup providing confidence in a chosen line while remaining relatively nimble & balanced…braking was strong, linear & predictable with light effort…as was the clutch engagement.

I switched between street & sport ride modes on the fly, both of which provided smooth throttle response, but did not notice much difference between them.

KTMs dual display on the 1090 is functional, easy to use & provides what seems like enough info to do a moon landing...but feels pedestrian & pales next to the larger full colour display of the 1290 & new GS.

A trait of this series of big Katooms is excess heat from the back cylinder & large cat assembly…all of them are afflicted by it…full length boots & riding pants mitigates it to a minor issue until the temps climb & during stop & go riding.

Switch gear falls easily to hand & has a quality feel but the manually adjustable fly screen seems to be good for 1 thing given my height & that is NOISE, regardless of which of the 2 positions it is in.

My impression is that this is a bike that encourages/wants to be ridden on the aggressive side of the equation to fully experience/appreciate its mission/capability. Chris Birch & others have demonstrated just what CAN be done with these bikes with the right skill set!