Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1186100
VOLUME 56 ISSUE 46 NOVEMBER 19, 2019 P85 of flywheel effect, with a long- legged feel to its performance which is unexpected for an en- gine with just 375 cubes, thanks to what seems to be a very flat torque curve. Roll-on response in the higher gears is quite good, and immediate, without needing to hook down a ratio and rev it hard to get any sense of zest—a crucial feature in many markets, where riders resist using revs to save fuel, and so get used to short-shifting all the time. This super-flexible eager- revving engine's performance makes the 390 Adventure invigo- rating to ride, with it literally pull- ing off its 1300 rpm idle speed mark without excessive use of the light-action clutch—this is an excellent town bike. It's pretty forgiving as well as torquey, with a totally linear acceleration all through the rev band, with that extra little kick above 6000 rpm when revs start to pick up a bit faster. There's no vibration at any speed, thanks to the counterbal- ancer doing its job, and also no need to flirt with the soft-action 10,200 rpm limiter—I shifted up at 8000 rpm in the gears, and didn't seem to sacrifice momen- tum. But this is also a surprising- ly fast 373cc motorcycle—8200 rpm in top gear produced 93 mph on the digital speedo, tracking dead straight and still cast aluminium wheels specifically designed for off-road use. The large 320mm single front brake disc with four-piston radial caliper speaks clearly to the bike's dual purpose nature, with a 230mm rear with twin-piston float- ing caliper. These are street brakes produced by Brembo's Bybre Indian subsidiary, so the Offroad ABS will be a welcome feature for less experi- enced off-roaders. However, for an entry level go- anywhere bike the 390 Adventure's specially-developed WP APEX suspension is pretty upmarket, with the direct-action cantilever rear shock that's adjustable for spring preload and rebound damping delivering 6.97 inches of wheel travel. Up front, the 43mm upside-down fork set at a 26.5° rake with 3.86 inches of trail and giving 6.69 inches of travel is fitted with compression damping only on the left and rebound on the right, each adjusted via a dial on the top of the leg. This overall package delivers a 33.66-inch seat height, although there's an optional suspension lower- ing kit including a shorter side stand (there's no center stand) to reduce that by 25mm, as well as two choices of seat options (including a one-piece Rally design) which lift it either 10mm or 20mm higher. The standard seat comes in two parts for extra passenger space, with a small storage compart- ment beneath the rear section. There's heaps of luggage options for city or dual purpose use, while the crash bars fitted to my test bike are standard in India (same as the missing sari-guard!) but optional elsewhere, though the hand guards are standard everywhere. The very high spec for an entry-level model also features LED lights front, rear and for all direction signals, with the headlight incorpo- rated in KTM's distinctive 'mask' styling for the bike's front pod. This incorpo- rates a two-position adjustable screen, though you need a screwdriver to vary it by 40mm either way. The 390 Ad- venture also comes equipped with an easily readable full-color five-inch TFT dash which automatically adapts to variations in light conditions. The menu switch on the left side of the taper- section aluminium handlebar lets you change ABS or TC settings and scroll through the screen info, while you can connect your smartphone to the bike via the optional KTM MY RIDE system, as well as select turn-by-turn naviga- tion via the app. Nothing stays still, of course, but at present this makes the 390 Adventure likely to stand out as by some way the best equipped entry- level dual-purpose model from any manufacturer.