KTM 890 Adventure (2021) in the driving report

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KTM 890 Adventure in the driving report

More displacement and higher performance

More displacement, higher performance – the KTM 890 Adventure follows the 890 Duke. You can read in the driving report how it drives and where we classify it in the highly competitive travel enduro middle class.

Even the second look at that KTM hardly reveals it: As with the 790 Adventure, the bridge frame and swing arm of the KTM 890 Adventure are still almost unchanged from the Duke. Only a few attachment points for cladding and tank as well as the more stable rear frame for storing luggage had to be adapted for the new periphery. Apart from the typical tourist regalia such as the longer-stroke spring elements, 18/21 inch wheelset et cetera, of course.

KTM 890 Adventure pushes 105 PS and 100 Nm

But the spotlight shines on the 890 engine. The technicians had implanted around ten percent more displacement in the two-cylinder one year ago. A little more stroke and bore, a little higher compression, larger valves and sharper control times and, above all, 20 percent more flywheel mass on the crankshaft pepped up the two-cylinder significantly. The gracefully built twin has had 121 hp in the Duke since then. Because more flavor is important on top but neither in tourist use nor in the field, the technicians on the adventure drive did what they always do with such concepts: reduce peak power and add additional torque in the middle of the speed. In plain language: Instead of 121 HP peak power, the KTM 890 Adventure has 105 HP. But they are served at 8,000 instead of 9,250 tours. The torque remains unchanged (100 Nm), but is also 1,250 rpm earlier (6,500 rpm instead of 7,750 rpm). Or expressed from the perspective of the previous model: Compared to the 790 Adventure, the KTM 890 Adventure has an output of ten hp and twelve Nm more. It has to be Euro 5 compliant anyway. The more complex Euro 5 exhaust system, which is more voluminous in the area of ​​the front silencer, weighs six kilograms more. To classify: MOTORRAD weighed the 790 Adventure in the test with a full tank of 212 kilograms. Nevertheless, despite the exhaust upgrade, it will probably remain the second lightest mid-range travel enduro after the Yamaha 700 Tenere (207 kg).

Acoustically, the detox has no effect. Like the 790 twin, the big brother also babbles sonorous, but well muffled. But the sound remains a minor matter. Gear in. Hand on heart – on the first few meters the difference to the previous model is not immediately obvious. And that in a positive sense. Because the 890 unit also maintains the light and unobtrusive run. With the additional pressure from the combustion chambers, it seems to neutralize the packed centrifugal mass. As lively and spontaneously as its predecessor, the pampered twin pushes the KTM 890 Adventure out of the bends, and with the (optionally available) Quickshifter can be seamlessly and effortlessly zapped through the aisles. Ultimately, the 890 pushes a bit more forcefully and decisively and allows the engine speed to drop a little lower in the bends. However, there has not yet been a lot of catching up to do in this respect with the drive, which is already cultivated with two balancer shafts. More in terms of the response behavior at the apex of the curve or during constant travel. There the 790 jumped on the accelerator a bit overly motivated or jerked in city traffic. The 890 engine has not completely abandoned that either. When doing a sweeping swing or in town, the rain mode soothes nervousness – even if the maximum output reduced to 82 hp counteracts the increase in displacement and output of the KTM 890 Adventure in these situations.

Directional stability, comparatively handy and high traction

After all: the KTM 890 Adventure is not familiar with the more sluggish handling or more violent engine reactions that often go hand in hand with larger displacement and more flywheel mass. Everything stays the same. And that’s good. Because the levers of the servo-assisted clutch (now with better oil supply and new linings) and the brake (new linings, sealing rings and heat shields) are still fluffy and easy to operate, the windshield behind the disc (which can only be adjusted with a screwdriver) is sufficient or the two-way height-adjustable bench with 830 millimeters is one of the deepest seat depressions in the travel enduro category. Even if the stalls are quite thin and tightly padded for this reason. Against this background, it makes all the more sense that the shock absorber can now be easily adjusted in the spring base using the handwheel and that the rebound damping can also be adjusted for the first time.

You don’t have to explain to a KTM rider that this can also be useful off-road. The 790s already demonstrated how true-to-track, comparatively handy and high-traction the KTM 890 Adventure can be whipped through the terrain even in the basic version (R version see below). And if you want – and can – you can use the nine-stage traction control, which is now more aggressively tuned in the rally mode (subject to a surcharge), to further explore your own feelings.

Conclusion

The bottom line is that the Adventure remains true to its character through and through, even with the large engine. That means that it can’t do anything better than that because of it you have to put the 790s in the corner. But that also means that anyone who has been undecided around the Austrian will not go wrong with the new one. The KTM 890 Adventure can do everything that the 790 could – and goes one better in terms of performance and pressure when it comes to low revs.

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