Bikesrepublic

1290 Super Duke GT

  • The 2019 KTM 1290 Super Duke GT has arrived in Malaysia.

  • It features many revised cutting-edge technologies and a new styling.

  • It is priced from RM 124,800 (basic selling price with 0% GST, not on-the-road).

The 2019 KTM 1290 Super Duke GT has arrived in Malaysia. KTM engineers made the new bike smoother and refined, while retaining its big performance character.

The highlights are:

Smoother engine power delivery:
  • The latest-generation 1301cc 75LC8 V-Twin engine is revised further for a smoother ride.
  • KTM added new resonator chambers, titanium inlet valves and a new mapping.
  • The revisions netted the same 173 hp and 141 Nm of torque.
  • But the engine is now smoother in low RPM and provides power everywhere.
  • The optional Quickshifter+ function can be added for effortless upshifts and downshifts with auto-blipper function.

New TFT screen:
  • New and improved 6.5-inch TFT screen.
  • The award-winning full-colour screen is visible even in direct sunlight.
  • Scrolling through the menus is easily performed through the illuminated menu switch on the left handlebar.
  • The cruise control switch was moved to the left handlebar, also.
  • KTM RACE ON remote key system, which allows keyless operation of the bike.
Lean-angle sensitive traction control:
  • IMU-assisted lean-angle motorcycle stability control (MSC) with combined ABS.
  • The IMU also allows for the cornering lights feature.
  • The rider can add the optional “Track” mode to unlock the full capabilities of the LC8 engine and chassis.
  • Also optional are hill hold control (HHC) and motor slip regulation (MSR).

Latest WP semi-active suspension:
  • The new sensors analyse more parameters now to adapt quickly and correctly to changing surface conditions.
  • The suspension’s preload (ride height and chassis balance) to suit rider, passenger and cargo weight can be adjusted via the push of a button.
  • The rider can also choose his preferred damping rate: Comfort, Street and Sport.
New styling:
  • The 2019 KTM 1290 Super Duke GT now features the instantly recognizable DUKE family “face.”
  • The central aluminium heatsink includes six ultra-bright LEDs.
  • Additional LEDs are utilized for daytime running lights (DRL).
  • There are also LEDs embedded in the fuel tank’s flanks to provide cornering lights to illuminate the inside of corners.

New KTM MY RIDE:
  • The optional KTM MY RIDE smartphone connectivity suite adds a navigation feature for on-screen turn-by-turn directions.
  • Navigation  audio prompts in 5 languages via a separate app.
  • Other functions allow the rider to scroll through his favourite music playlist, besides receiving or rejecting phone calls.

Please click on the link below to watch the official video of Michael Rutter riding the 2019 KTM 1290 SUPER DUKE GT around the Isle of Man.

The new 2019 KTM 1290 SUPER DUKE GT is fully CBU and priced from RM 124,800 (basic selling price with 0% GST and not on-the-road).

Follow KTM MALAYSIA for the latest news and updates at https://www.facebook.com/ktmmalaysiaofficial/

Artikel oleh: Wahid Ooi Abdullah

  • Rangkaian KTM 1290 Super adalah rangkaian utama untuk KTM.
  • Dijana oleh enjin 1301cc, DOHC, sejukan cecair V-Twin 75 darjah dengan beberapa talaan yang berbeza, motosikal-motosikal ini adalah jentera yang amat mengujakan untuk ditunggang.
  • Keluarga 1290 Super terdiri daripada motosikal lumba naked, sport-tourer, dan adventure-tourer.

(more…)

  • The KTM 1290 Super family is the flagship range for KTM.

  • Built around the 1301cc, DOHC, liquid-cooled, 75o V-Twin in different tuning they are exhilarating to ride.

  • The 1290 Super family consists of a naked sportbike, sport-tourer and adventure-tourer.

KTM’s 1290 Super family represents the pinnacle of motorcycling, not only in terms of engineering but also in design. But most of all, it’s the thrill of being on two wheels that they provide, never straying from the Austrian giant manufacturer’s “Ready to Race” philosophy.

Apart from a fully-faired sportbike, the 1290 series consists of the types of stupendous motorcycles that not only provide entertainment and smiles every kilometre, but also practicality in virtually any situation.

With the assistance of KTM Malaysia, we’ve assembled the power family for Christmas and the new year.

1290 Super Duke R

The 2014 KTM 1290 Super Duke R broke new grounds in providing a real kick to any rider, be they new or seasoned ones. Even veteran motojournalists who have ridden hundreds of bikes in their careers and lifetime swooned over it.

This was the start of “The Beast” and the “super naked sportbike” category.

But as if the 1290 Super Duke R could not be improved further, KTM went ahead and bettered even themselves. For 2017, the 1290 Super Duke R was built from the ground up.

The first thing anyone notices about the 2017 model is the fierce and distinctive split headlamp. The channel which splits the two sides actually performs as a cooling duct to reduce the temperature of the LED headlamps. Additionally, the main beam will come on automatically when the motorcycle is coming to a stop during daytime running.

The 1301cc, 75-degree, V-Twin engine was reworked and retuned for more power, yielding a horizon-bending 177 bhp and 140 Nm of torque. Specs on paper doesn’t reflect on the true character of the new 1290 Super Duke R, however.

While the 2017 model is faster than ever, it builds its speed in a smoother and controlled manner. Riders will not find a sudden burst of speed as if the bike has a hidden NOS injection system. This encourages confidence and smoother riding for even greater enjoyment. KTM did this by designing resonator chambers on the cylinder heads to smoothen the torque output.

The frame, chassis and riding position of the new 1290 Super Duke R have likewise been revised. The new frame is stronger yet lighter, the state-of-the-art WP suspension is fitted for total control. The brakes are Brembo all around, with M50 Monobloc four-piston calipers up front for maximum safety.

The new handlebar is 20 wider, 5 mm lower and 18.5 mm more toward the front. It also features a 22mm adjustment range to fit riders of any physique. Such placement puts more weight onto the front wheel for maximum control, besides provided better wind protection.

What’s a powerful motorcycle if not to be enjoyed in safety, correct? The KTM 1290 family are technological wonders and the 1290 Super Duke R is no exception. Gracing the bike are a plethora of electronic aid including Motorcycle Stability Control (MSC), Ride-by-Wire throttle, Ride Modes, Motorcycle Traction Control (MTC), ABS, Race On System, Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), and Cruise Control, among others.

Owners can also upgrade the bike with the optional Quick Shift +, Motor Slip Regulation (MSR), My Ride connectivity suite, besides the Performance Pack and Track Pack.

1290 Super Duke GT

The 1290 Super Duke GT is KTM’s answer for a big bore sport-tourer that not only gets you places but flies to your long-distance destination while blasting other sport-tourers into the paddy fields. Yes, a bike has that effect when it’s built on the 1301cc 1290 Super Duke R’s engine platform.

 

However, the 1290 Super Duke GT differs from the 1290 Super Duke R in terms of comfort. The GT features a large frontal bodywork with an adjustable windscreen for wind protection on long rides, while mounting points for the panniers have been built in.

Likewise, the suspension uses the WP Semi-Active electronically adjustable variety, which varies its damping rates on the go. You could choose between Sport, Road and Comfort damping modes, besides the load for one rider, rider with cargo, rider with passenger, and rider and passenger with cargo. The system will keep the bike in optimum chassis balance for optimum handling at all times.

And handling (besides the speed, of course!) is where the 1290 Super Duke GT truly excels.

If there’s a bike in this world that seem to self-steer through a corner at blinding speeds, this is the one! No other large capacity sport-tourer has the propensity to steer into a corner and blast away like it, while remaining superbly composed over anything the road throws at it – all the while you’re seated comfortably on it.

Just like its 1290 brethren, the 1290 Super Duke GT is laden with the some of the best motorcycle technology available to the public. The electronics suite includes Ride-by-Wire, Ride Modes, the aforementioned WP Semi-Active Suspension, Motorcycle Stability Control (MSC), LED Cornering Lights, Motorcycle Traction Control (MTC), Quickshifter, Cruise Control, Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), ABS and many more.

You could upgrade your 1290 Super Duke GT by adding the optional Hill Hold Control (HHC) and Motor Slip Regulation (MSR).

1290 Super Adventure S

Along with offroad bikes, adventure bikes have been the hallmark of KTM.

The 1290 Super Adventure S and its more offroad-oriented 1290 Super Adventure R brother are the flagship KTMs.

Although the 2017 model had evolved from its predecessor, the 1290 Super Adventure T, KTM had almost entirely revised it.

The most obvious change is to the design. KTM had wanted a look that doesn’t replicated other bikes in the market and something that’s unmistakably KTM. When the designers split the LED headlamp to incorporate the cooling channel in between – voila! – the result was something never seen before.

The engine is based on The Beast but retuned for overall smoothness and absolute reliability such as DLC coating on the cylinder bores and a long service interval. It still punches out 160 bhp and 140 Nm of torque. But to demonstrate its flexibility, 108 Nm are already available from as low as 2500 RPM!

Its chrome-moly steel trellis frame is again, strong and light, weighing only 9.8 kg. Both ends are suspended by WP’s Semi-Active Suspension, update for this bike to carry almost any load you wish.

The 1290 Super Adventure S is also a technology-laden adventure-tourer, but has additional features specific to it. In addition to the usual fare, the bike has Offroad Ride Mode, Offroad Traction Control, Offroad ABS, lean angle sensitive Cornering ABS and Combined Braking.

You could upgrade your 1290 Adventure S with a suite of features as part of the optional Travel Pack which includes Quick Shift +, Hill Hold Control (HHC), Motor Slip Regulation (MSC) and My Ride.

  • The KTM 1290 Super Duke GT has electronics that make you feel like a hero, it is so fast that you could hunt down R1’s, RR’s, Panigale’s and the other usual suspects.
  • The engine is a 1301cc, liquid-cooled masterpiece that also powers the 1290 Super Duke R, the latter fondly known within the industry as ‘The Beast’.
  • Besides the manic engine, the suspension is the other best part about this bike.
  • It is the type of bike that lets you get your elbow down on a fast circuit on one day, and will happily take you to Phuket the next day.

The KTM 1290 Super Duke GT is the very definition of what some people like to call a crotch rocket – it is fast, somewhat comfortable, looks great, and it is makes you feel like a hero. Despite all that it does not look like your typical mentally fast bike. It is a cross between a track bike, a supermotard and an adventure bike and though it is KTM’s first attempt at making such a bike, they have done a super job because the bike is fantastic where ever and how ever you ride it. So if you have RM125,080 and want a fast touring machine, go out and buy this bike and you will be happy for a very long time.

If motorcycle reviews were simple straight to the point articles, that would be how I would review the 1290 Super Duke GT. It is such a brilliant bike that there is almost no point in beating around the bush with it, you should buy it if you have the money and want versatility more than anything else. It has electronics that truly make you feel like a hero, it is so fast that you could hunt down R1’s, RR’s, Panigale’s and the other usual suspects. It is also good enough to ride long distances with and is quite versatile. What else could you actually want in a motorcycle?

But motorcycle reviews do not work that way and so I will explain why the 1290 Super Duke GT deserves your precious dollar.

It is a handsome motorcycle for starters. It really is. That edgy overall design makes it look like it is going somewhere quick even when it is standing still. You know it is a serious machine simply from its stance alone, the way you know a cruise missile will create some serious destruction just from the way it looks.

But the idea of a bike like the 1290 Super Duke GT is nothing new, it didn’t create this sport touring segment but it is currently the best at creating a sports touring machine.

Ducati and BMW both have bikes that bridge the gap between superbikes and touring machines, and both do it really well, but this KTM is just pushing the boundaries of what is capable with bikes in this category.

The engine is a 1301cc masterpiece that also powers the 1290 Super Duke R, the latter fondly known within the industry as ‘The Beast’. The engine puts out an almost mental 173hp and 144Nm of torque, which is a lot for a bike in this segment. Fast is this bike’s first nature, and just in case you were wondering, it produces more power than the ‘already very fast’ BMW S1000XR and the ‘also very fast’ Ducati Multistrada 1200S.

But it is the combination of the engine and electronics package that allows this bike to do what it does. And though I did not try it for myself, but this is a bike you could slide into corners and come out sideways with. It even has a riding mode dedicated to riders who like to lock their rear wheels and slide around, the ‘Supermoto Mode’ allows the rider to lock the rear wheel for a deliberate slide. KTM makes some of the best supermoto’s and superbike’s in the industry, it is rather normal then for them to try to combine the two into a touring package, and the result is simply superb.

There are other intelligent electronics like the Motorcycle Traction Control that calculates the lean-angle of the bike to the rotational speed of the rear wheel and immediately kicks in should it detect something amiss. It does so by intervening at the throttle valve level to minimise engine output. The rider too can decide how much electronic interference there should be by selecting one of three modes – street, rain or sport. And of course, because people who build KTM’s are supposedly wild riders, you can trust them to include the option to completely turn off the electronics package. And yes it shuts off completely.

The electronic wizardry continues with the Motorcycle Stability Control with C-ABS, the latter stands for Cornering-ABS. It is the world’s first lean-angle sensitive cornering ABS that applies just the right amount of ABS by calculating the lean angle. And both front and rear brakes are also connected, meaning that when the front brake lever is actuated, the rear brake is automatically applied to keep the bike steady under braking. This system too can be switched off.

Then there is the Motor Slip Regulation (MSR) that works in the opposite way of the Traction Control. The MSR works by minimising or eliminating rear wheel lock or drift when the rider performs quick downshifts, a move which usually locks the rear wheel. The MSR however is also connected to the Stability Control system, and is thus also lean-angle sensitive.

So the Super Duke GT has a bunch of electronics that keep the rider safe and lets the bike perform some ridiculous tricks with relative ease (read: come out of a corner sideways with the rear wheel smoking). But it is not just the many acronyms that help it achieve that.

There is the WP Semi-Active suspension as well, the electronics package adjusts the nature of both the front and rear suspension – makes it soft for more comfort, and stiffens it up for better handling, all at the push of a button. There are three different suspension set up available for the rider – comfort, street and sport. Once that has been chosen, the suspension can then be micro-tuned via the Suspension Control Unit to adjust the damping rate in real-time depending on the situation. It gives you the option to adjust damping to accommodate a pillion, or a pillion with baggage, just the rider, or just the rider with baggage. It then adjusts the suspension to the different weights and to give you the best control possible. All at the push of a button as well.

Also contributing to the phenomenal handling is the frame and subframe. The trellis frame is made from laser-cut, chrome-molydenum steel. Smart welding concepts make this frame extremely stable while the choice of lightweight metals contribute to a frame weight of only 9.8 kilograms. This helps the bike tip the scale at just 228 kilogram’s fully fueled and ready to ride.

This KTM also comes standard with a steering damper, grippy Pirelli Angel GT tyres and a lightweight single-sided swing arm which also happens to be the lightest in its class.

Despite all of the technology and a manic engine, the 1290 Super Duke GT can be gentle and docile on the road. Because it has huge power, you just have to squeeze the throttle a little to get past traffic, no need to bother with a downshift. But should you need a sudden burst of power, there is a quick shifter that lets you bang home gears super quick.

Besides the manic engine, the suspension is the other best part about this bike. When it’s soft it is really soft, plush even, and does really well at soaking up bad roads, but it is a little too soft for corners and makes the bike feel wobbly. On the flip side, it adopts a completely different character in Sport mode where it stiffens up the entire package and the bike responds to the slightest input. Street was just the right setting as Sport becomes a little too racy and even throws you off the saddle should you not be careful over bumps and such.

Complaints there are none, well maybe the seat could do with better cushioning and the standard equipment like the plastic oil reservoir could do with better quality, or you could opt for something out of the optional aftermarket KTM Power Parts catalogue, some of which are shown in the gallery below like the front caliper protector, and the brake oil reservoir.

I have a few complaints but there is a lot about this bike I love, like the cruise control system for example, it is one of the most simple and straightforward systems in the industry, and is arguably the best too. Then there are the brakes, twin 320mm discs gripped by Brembo M50 four-piston calipers that automatically grip the rear 240mm disc via a two-piston Brembo caliper. Speed retardation is amazing on this bike, seriously the stopping power is so immense it threatens to rip off your eyebrows. And ABS does not even rear its head unless it is the most serious of conditions.

But seriously, the KTM 1290 Super Duke GT is one of the best motorcycles we have ever ridden. It is crazy fast, and yet it is perfectly happy on a slow ride along the country side. It is the type of bike that lets you get your knee down on a fast circuit on one day, and will happily take you to Phuket the next day.

If fast is synonymous with this KTM 1290 Super Duke GT, then versatility is its middle name.

[button color=”” size=”” type=”round” target=”new window” link=”https://www.bikesrepublic.com/comparison/mOQ15cx5rycV22y/”]Now click here to see how the 1290 Super Duke GT compares against its competitors from BMW and Ducati![/button]

KTM 1290 Super Duke GT launched by KTM Malaysia at RM125,080 (basic price with GST).

(more…)

Archive

Follow us on Facebook

Follow us on YouTube