Am I an idiot to make the same mistake as my 2manybikes colleague when he bought his KTM 990? Well, he found me a very cheap, and probably broken 790 Adventure R.
This KTM bike was not yet for sale on a site, but was tipped in a Facebook group called Flemish Off-Road Riders or FORR for short. There was a user who was promoting his 790 adventure R, but in the comments another user was mentioned who was selling his same model for a very low price. So it was important to act quickly. During the exploratory talks with the seller it became clear that it was indeed a real 790 and not a scale model and that quite a few accessories had been mounted. We hooked the trailer behind the car and went to see it for ourselves.
The KTM 790 Adventure R is a model introduced in 2019 in the desert in Morocco. The international press was full of praise and quickly named it THE reference in this segment.
They were especially enthusiastic about the suspension of the R version.
Well, this 790 is one from 2020, has run about 30,000 km and has been completely mine for a few days for the sum of 5000 euros - which makes it a real bargain / or not?
From the initial interaction with the seller it became clear that the KTM had to go because the now ex-KTM rider could not bring himself to let the bike waste away. "It has to be driven, otherwise it is a waste" - and we can confirm that. After a short test drive, looking at the documents and rigorously looking at wear parts we quickly came to an agreement. As you can see the 790 has been used for what it is intended for, off-road driving, as evidenced by the pretty aggressive stubby tires that have been mounted.
Let's show you all the modifications were made on the bike:
At the front we start with the yellow foil over the headlight, which will undoubtedly have to be removed for the inspection of this motorcycle, the higher wind protection, extra lighting from 4XLED, a mounting point for a DMD navigation device, both at the front and back the suspension is slightly lowered and set to 85kg with springs from the brand Hyperpro. The KTM quickshifter and rally mode are also checked in the options list when ordering. A lowered saddle is mounted, different footrests, a Rottweiler airbox instead of the original, an Akropovic exhaust with the DB killer removed. The standard clutch was replaced by a Rekluse one as the original one failed way too often.
The KTM has also already received the expensive 30,000 km maintenance service at an authorized KTM dealer.
A possible problem was reported by the buyer: the KTM does not start smoothly, a problem that was discovered shortly after its maintenance service. Installing a new battery only briefly solved the problem, which led the seller to conclude that it was the alternator that had to be replaced. During the initial start just before the purchase, our eyes were focused on the extensive dashboard of the KTM where the battery voltage can be consulted. This reported a smooth 14 volts and the 790 also started without any problem. The buyer himself was surprised. Also during a second start shortly after the small test drive, there was no problem to be found, and during the test drive the battery was clearly recharged at a higher speed.
Did we really buy a fully functional KTM this time?
Or is there something more going on - will become apparent in the coming days/weeks.
The 790 also came with all the standard parts, such as the exhaust and wind protection.
As you can see, it has always slept outside and that results in various rusted bolts found all over the motorcycle.And if every sticker would add 5 horsepower, this was the fastest 790 ever known.
A thorough cleaning will hopefully make it look a lot better, but the first test will be getting it through the inspection. For this, the following things need to be addressed: as mentioned before, removing the yellow foil from the headlight and of course replacing the original exhaust. The akrapovic exhaust does indeed make the 790 roar nicely, but a bit too loud according to my standards, and it will be rejected by the inspection center anyway.
Keep your eyes on the site for new developments on this KTM, will it work, will it pass inspection, will it start? Answers to these questions and more will be shared soon!