All Tests – KTM 1290 Super Adventure Test: monumen-trail! – Always more, never too much?

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KTM 1290 Super Adventure test: monumen-trail !

All Tests - KTM 1290 Super Adventure Test: monumen-trail! - Always more, never too much?

Maxi-trail motorcycles pour into mechanical and technological outbidding, to the detriment of their off-road skills … The KTM 1290 Super Adventure is part of this dizzying trend with its 160 hp of fire and its plethora of equipment. Test.

Always more, never too much ?

The category of trail bikes has changed since the mid-1970s: at the time, playful "gromonos" were all the rage, notably the Yamaha XT 500 and its modest – but valiant – 32 hp for only 139 kg dry. Under the cobblestones of its narrow tires, the beach. But also – with a little imagination – the Paris-Dakar, which started from the French capital towards Africa…

Today, the "King of rallies" takes place in South America and the trails have become road on stilts … Suggested by their look, their off-road capabilities are a marketing argument. Escape from bitumen? Why not … But on a motorable path, well installed behind an adjustable screen and on an ultra-comfortable saddle, hands resting on heated grips and the body protected from shocks via semi-active suspensions !

As for their engine and their weight, it is climbing: two cylinders in most cases (V, flat, parallel: take your choice!), "3-legs" for the and even a V4 for the and its 277 kg! The performances follow this higher bid, with for example some 160 hp for the, new spearhead of the KTM trail range launched this year..

Intimidating with its enormous 30-liter tank and original engine guards, this Super Adventure takes on the common framework of the "small" 1050 Adventure – 95 hp and 230 kg, all the same! – and the standard and R versions of the. Either a compact and lightweight tubular steel trellis frame (9.8 kg) connected to an aesthetically hollowed out swingarm and an aluminum rear buckle. This includes as standard a luggage rack and integrated supports, on which the optional luggage is attached (top case and suitcases).

Modeled on the 1190 Adventure at the aesthetic level, this "king size" version differs mainly by its engine: as its numerical prefix indicates, the 1290 Super Adventure receives the twin-cylinder of 1301 cc (1.3 liters!) the 1290 Superduke R, nothing less than the most impressive roadster of the moment with its 180 hp (read our and our) !

This V2 open to 75 °, originally derived from the hypersport, has been thoroughly reworked to "round off" its behavior and gain in pleasure. Among other things, it adopts a heavier flywheel and a slightly lowered compression ratio, although still high: 13.1 to 1 (13.2 on the Superduke R).

The cylinder head, crankshaft, pistons – 108mm in diameter! – and the camshafts are also specific to the Super Adventure, just like its injection controlled via a ride-by-wire and configurable in four modes from the left stalk: "Rain" and "Off-road" flanged to 100 hp , "Street" and "Sport" with which the 160 hp land more or less vigorously.

In the end, the maximum power drops by 20 horsepower and the torque peaks at 140 Nm at 6,750 rpm. Usually, "deflated" sports engines deliver more torque, but this is not the case here: the Super Adventure comes out 4 Nm less than the Superduke R, whose 144 Nm land moreover 250 rpm earlier ( 6500 turns).

However, the mechanics of the Super Adventure does not lack vigor … It even overflows, to such an extent that good acceleration in third joyfully lifts its 19-inch spoke front wheel (17 at the rear)! By comparison, the engine of its designated rival, the, delivers 15 Nm less (125 Nm). And the German "Fleet-twin" already has quite a punch !

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