KTM 1090 ADVENTURE R VS. HONDA AFRICA TWIN
SHOOTOUT
P92
1290 Super Adventure, and it's
a pain in the ass to use if you go
from road/dirt/road and require
different TC setups, since you
have to stop and go through the
modes.
The KTM's dash is the same
as the old 1190's and KTM clearly
felt that, as the electronic aids are
the same as before, there was
no need to upgrade the dash—it
would have caused a further price
hike if they did, anyway.
Considering the Honda has one
riding mode and the KTM has four,
with the Sport mode comparable
to the Honda at 125 hp (Honda
won't divulge hp numbers for the
Africa Twin, but seat of the pants is
about 100-110 horsepower on tap),
we kept the KTM in Sport all day.
Once you get moving on
tarmac, the Honda just seems
to glide along. The parallel-twin's
power delivery is ideally suited to
highway cruising, and it's clear
the Africa Twin has been designed
more as a world traveler capable
of going into serious off-road areas
than just being a rocky trail warrior.
The Honda is more comfortable
than the KTM at speed, even if the
The face of a
winner: The
HRC paint
scheme looks
awesome, too.
The KTM is good
on the road but the
Honda is better.
