THE KTM 390 Adventure is probably one of the most serious of all the small capacity adventure motorcycles. With around 43bhp from its punchy single-cylinder engine, riding modes, cornering ABS, there isn’t much this A2 ADV bike can’t handle.
But you don’t get anywhere while sitting still, and KTM looks to be taking the 390 into new territory, with Dakar-inspired styling seemingly making its way onto the model.
The images come hot on the heels of the 2022 KTM 390 Adventure unveiling, making the likelihood of this bike being released anytime soon unlikely. So what exactly is the machine we can see above?
It’s hard to say, but it looks to be a more off-road biased version of the 390. The main changes seem to centre around the front end of the bike, with a new Dakar-inspired front end. The screen is all-new, and runs from below the bottom yoke of the front fork and ends much higher than the current machine’s adjustable item.
The existing KTM 390 Adventure is already a very capable off-road machine
And it’s not just the screen that has changed either, the whole front end is taller, with the TFT dash of the bike being mounted much higher than before. This design is typically used on rally bikes, as it brings the dash into the rider’s field of view without them having to look down from the trail ahead. Alongside that, the bars of the bike seems to be mounted higher than the 2022 390, all pointing to this being a better performing off-road biased adventure machine.
From the front end down, it doesn’t really look like much else has changed, the engine, frame, and swing arm all look to be as per the existing bike. It could have some upgraded suspension, although given that the 390 Adventure already features WP fully adjustable kit, there isn’t much room for improvement.
Is the KTM 390 Adventure about to get the ‘R’ treatment?
Taking all the changes into account, it seems to be that KTM is doing what many riders have been asking them to do since the launch of the 390 ADV – give it a more off-road biased R edition of the bike. If that is the case, KTM might be about to announce the hottest ticket for lightweight and A2 compliant off-road riding ever.
And we can’t wait for that!
Images from ZigWheels
