The KTM 1290 Adventure sits at the top tier of the Adventure food chain. Since Ducati rolled out its Multistrada V4, it was only necessary for its rivals to upgrade their offerings, in order to give the Red Italian a tough fight. And KTM did jus that when it rolled out the 2021 1290 Adventure S. To make the package even more enticing, the Austrian marque has now taken the wraps off its more hardcore version – the new off-road centric KTM 1290 Super Adventure R.
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While it gets a lower centre of gravity, revised chassis, fresh electronics package, lighter engine internals, new gearbox and more, it misses out on the radar-guided adaptive cruise control system, which made its debut on the S model.
Specs and features
It is powered by a 1301cc, liquid-cooled V-Twin belting out 162PS at 9,000rpm and 138Nm at 6,500rpm. The new KTM 1290 Super Adventure R boasts the highest power-to-weight ratio in its class. The new LC8 engine is claimed to be 1.6kg less than that of its predecessor, thanks to the use of lighter internals. Service intervals come at 15,000 km, with a claimed fuel consumption figure of around 21 kmpl. According to KTM, the gear-shift mechanism has been reworked as well, for faster and slicker changes, although a quickshifter is not standard, and is an optional extra.
As the ‘R’ in the model name suggests, the bike will come kitted with a number of more performance-focused accessories and parts. The bike also adorns new bodywork which is said to improve its overall aerodynamics. At the front, the motorcycle now features a smaller and sharper fascia, which goes along with the slimmer geometry of the bike.
The new Super Adventure R gets a fully adjustable WP XPLOR 48 mm front fork (220 mm travel) paired with a WP PDS rear shock. It rolls on Alpina spoked aluminum wheels which come shod with Bridgestone tyres.
The equipment list on the bike includes a new 7-inch TFT dash which can be paired to a smartphone via Bluetooth and communicate with the free KTM My Ride smartphone app. The electronics package on the new ADV includes six-axis IMU, traction control, motor slip regulation, offroad ABS, stability control and five riding modes – Rain, Street, Sport, Offroad and one personal Rally mode.
While the chances of us getting the 1290 Adventure R or the S for that matter, are quite slim but we can expect KTM to bestow our country with the 890 Adventure.