- 5 weeks ago
A Street Bike That Belongs on Track
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🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00KTM 990 Duke R is the type of motorcycle that tells you exactly what it wants the moment you
00:05get on it sharp stiff aggressive and super polarizing the question here isn't how much
00:10performance this bike has the question is does this level of intensity make sense on the street
00:15or only on the track let's find out okay but before we get going let's talk about the features
00:21of this bike and what separates the R model from the standard model starting off with the engine
00:26this is the same power plant as the standard model nothing really different here except this bike
00:30makes a little more horsepower acclaimed 130 about seven horsepower more than the standard model
00:35KTM has done that just through mapping the chassis is the same as well the frame and the subframe are
00:41unchanged from the standard model but the suspension the brakes and the electronics package are different
00:47so starting off with the suspension the standard model comes with a 43 millimeter fork this R
00:51comes with a 48 millimeter inverted WP apex fork that is fully adjustable KTM says that this fork
00:58is 38 stiffer than the 43 millimeter fork on the standard model this also gets its own tuning
01:05the shock is different as well right here look at that this is the first dupe to use linkage so
01:10this
01:10is a WP apex shock with linkage and a linear spring rate other chassis upgrades include these Brembo
01:17stylima monoblock calipers with the Brembo mcs master cylinder major upgrade to the braking package on the
01:24R model versus the standard model and the wheels are upgraded as well these are pulled off of the
01:29super duke evo so they're a little bit lighter than the standard model and of course the electronics
01:33package and 8.8 inch tft display is unique to the R model versus the standard model this is a
01:40pretty
01:40extensive electronics package especially if you opt for the tech pack which will give you things like the
01:46optional cruise control the optional quick shifter and all the other fancy modes like track mode launch
01:53control wheelie control all types of stuff that we'll jump into a little bit later rubber has been
01:58upgraded as well these are michelin power cup 2 tires according to michelin this tire is rated for 90
02:03track use we're going to be using dunlop slick tires tomorrow so we're not going to get an opportunity to
02:08see what these are like on the track another cool unique feature is that the air box is integrated
02:13into the subframe not only does it look cool but it's functional as well make your air filter changes
02:18just a little bit easier and then of course as you can see led lighting all the way around this
02:23bike
02:24also has bluetooth connectivity so you can hook up your smartphone and receive phone calls stuff like
02:28that so essentially this is ktm's new 990 rcr but completely naked without clothes so this thing promises
02:35super sport performance in an accessible naked bike package let's go see if this thing lives up to what ktm
02:41claims
02:47a unique feature about this 8.8 inch horizontally mounted tft is uh this bike has turn-by-turn navigation
02:56you got to unlock it with the tech pack if you get the full tech pack that includes the track
03:01pack
03:01the quick shifter cruise control more adjustments with the electronics as far as slip control and all
03:09those types of things that's the tech pack if you buy the full tech pack it includes everything it's
03:14going to cost you 900 bucks and all of all the bikes we're riding today include the tech pack and
03:19everything all the add-on accessories but for 900 bucks so far it seems like it would be worth it
03:24if i
03:24was buying this bike it'd be hard to imagine not getting the navigation the additional track packs and
03:30stuff like that obviously we will be going to the track tomorrow where the track pack and the performance
03:35pack and all the stuff that goes along with the add-on electronics should really shine tomorrow in the
03:43street on your morning commute the quick shifter will be very beneficial something like navigation
03:48turn-by-turn navigation will be very beneficial um adjusting ride modes cruise control so you know
03:56they kind of twist your arm a little bit with uh the tech pack the price without the tech pack
04:0113 500 bucks or 13 400 bucks another really cool thing about this new dash is it seems to be
04:09the
04:09first dash that i've used that really works like a smartphone or a computer because you can just drag
04:15and adjust it's pretty spiffy we'll go through some of the menus later but it kind of reminds me of
04:21like
04:21a video game loading screen the way you select your modes and all the options when you get into the
04:26dash
04:27through the menus it's it's pretty impressive looking and something else ktm has done with this dash is
04:32they have uh improved the readability a little bit more crisp a little bit more clear than uh the
04:38five inch tft that they've had on the standard 990 and other bikes for a long time the seat height
04:44is
04:44right around 33 inches and i will say at five foot seven it's a little bit tall i can get
04:51one foot flat
04:52footed but i cannot reach both feet i can't flat foot on both feet the seat height is slightly taller
04:58than the standard model and that's from suspension and these different tires so there's a tons of
05:05different ways i still haven't figured out every way but there's tons of ways to configure this dash
05:12um it's you know very customizable it seems and how you can navigate the dash you can use the joystick
05:18you can use it as a touchscreen there's this mode dongle that you can switch through modes and as
05:23we'll talk about tomorrow on the track in track mode with the tech pack included you can use the
05:31cruise control switch up here to select different traction control settings on the fly so in track
05:38mode you can use this button as a quick traction control button which is super sporty and racy super
05:45cool so just honestly i'm still figuring out all the ways that you can configure and navigate and
05:51play around with this dash it seems like a new smartphone or something that takes a couple days
05:56to fully familiarize yourself with all the settings and adjustments and how to navigate and all the
06:02different ways you can kind of personalize the interface of this 990 duke r in rain mode this is very
06:09relaxing that was one of the big questions i had for the 990 duke r coming into this is i
06:15figured the
06:16performance would be there as with almost all our models that we've ridden they're pretty sporty and
06:21they're pretty spicy and they're a lot of fun to ride but they're not always enjoyable when you're not
06:27you know trying to be a hooligan but this motorcycle has proved to be very relaxing and comfortable
06:33when you're just riding like a normal civilian riding through the city commuting not trying to
06:38lift the front wheel everywhere this is a easy motorcycle to ride it still has a good character
06:44of this lc8c engine but very usable for casual and city riding
06:52as you'll see pulling away from a light right there in rain mode
06:59got the quick shifter you have a cable actuated clutch i will say that the quick shifter it works
07:04really great when it works really great other times it's a little bit sloppy just depending on
07:10where you are in the rpm range where the the throttle position is you can't kind of ham fist
07:16it up a little bit but when you're really screwing into the throttle and upshifting it works really
07:20well the quick shifter on the yamaha mt09 sp is one of the best quick shifters i've used in recent
07:27years
07:28that's the same quick shifter that'll be on the r9 and that's really what this bike
07:32this package from ktm is competing against the 990 duke r and the 990 rcr are competing against
07:40yamaha's mt09 sp and the new yzf r9 if you're looking at this bike or that bike you're definitely
07:47looking at the yamaha's so i will say that the quick shifter on the yamaha from what i remember
07:52feels a little bit more refined it can be a little bit sloppy with your your shifts up and down
07:57and it's
07:58more forgiving the quick shifter on the yamaha this one on the ktm when you get it right it works
08:03really well and it has a really nice note to it when it cuts the ignition real quick to allow
08:09that
08:09next gear to grab it sounds awesome so right now we've got cruise control set to 71 over here
08:16obviously that's that add-on accessory but it's really nice this bike is comfortable we're going
08:2171 miles per hour let's see let's slowly adjust it 80
08:30easy riding i don't know why but i expected this bike to be not as comfortable even though it is
08:35a
08:36naked it's all the material that ktm provided us with talks about how this is a compact package and
08:42a more sporty on its nose style naked bike the ergonomics on this bike are comfortable i mean it's
08:50naked bike that's the whole story here with this 990 duke r is essentially it's the new ktm 990 rcr
08:58but without body work in a flat handlebar and uh that's exactly what makes naked bikes especially
09:04high performance naked bikes so exciting that's why at cycle world we've always loved naked bikes
09:09especially ktm naked bikes because they push that envelope of performance in the naked bike class
09:14the seat is flat and wide it's got tons of room to move back and forth on the handlebar reach
09:20is
09:20it's comfortable it's lower it's not too far above the triple clamp but it's flat in the bend it doesn't
09:26put a lot of weight on your wrist and although there's not a whole lot of wind protection as
09:30this is a naked bike i have to say my body feels pretty well protected with the the big led
09:37headlight in this eight and a half inch dash it uh i really am just feeling wind probably right where
09:42this gopro is mounted and above so hopefully it's not too windy but so far i think this is a
09:48bike with
09:48cruise control with this comfortable ergonomics package the bend of my legs it's not too aggressive
09:55i think i could throw a cruise control on and ride back to the office for a couple hours and
09:59be totally
09:59fine i wouldn't prefer any other middleweight naked bike to ride on the freeway for two hours over this
10:06one that the vibrations are not extreme you know this engine is riding very relaxed we're going almost
10:1380 miles per hour and we're below 5000 rpm it's got a real fat mid-range so if you got
10:19to get on the
10:19throttle to pass the car so far this 992 car is proven to be a good street bike all right
10:26rolling onto the
10:27freeway what's it like fat mid-range to get you up to speed with top gear i'm starting to like
10:35this
10:35992 car as much as i like the super duke and for similar reasons comfortable good performance and an
10:42engine with a fat mid-range perfect for passing cars having fun at 80 miles per hour this bike has
10:51very
10:51little vibration i mean very little i'm squeezing on the handlebar pushing into the seat and the foot
10:58pegs and i barely feel the engine pulses just like good character i think this thing would be about just
11:04as comfortable for slaying highway miles at this speed as yamaha's mt09 sp buttery smooth yamaha engine
11:12i think this thing could go toe-to-toe for smoothness at this rpm anyways we're headed up into the
11:17mountains
11:18to ride some twisty roads let's throw it into sport mode this bike feels so planted on the side of
11:27the
11:27tire wow all right so we're going to just stay in fourth gear for a little bit show you what
11:40this fat
11:41meaty mid-range is like just screw on the throttle and
11:49with this upgraded chassis upgraded suspension this thing really follows the road really well wow this
11:56thing has no problem getting its thrills out here in the twisties i can't imagine needing much more engine
12:05than this out here this mid-throttle right here spot your exit
12:13woo
12:22this is fun these tires are providing good grip the suspension and the chassis is just giving really
12:28good feedback on this road i can feel every little bump but it's not overwhelming we just spent a little
12:34bit of time flogging these things on that twisty road and i have to say when you ramp it up
12:39to 11
12:39when you want to ride at a spirited pace this ktm 990 duke r really responds that's not that surprising
12:47that's what this whole package has been built around that's why it's an r unlike the standard model which
12:52would be less willing to go that speed safely at least and comfortably on these back roads with the
12:58standard model where this one the upgraded suspension a little bit more horsepower more extensive
13:03electronic sweep better braking package better tires better wheels a lighter package this is the bike
13:09designed for riding at a spirited pace on these back roads so i will say for the viewers that are
13:14maybe hesitant that this bike is too on edge so far we have not experienced that on the 990 duke
13:20r
13:20this bike is light one of the things ktm mentioned is that they are aiming for a middleweight naked
13:25that has best in class power to weight ratio i have to say this thing's very powerful and it feels
13:31very light
13:32ktm claims 130 horsepower about 76 pound feet of torque and a wet weight of 419 pounds this lc8c engine
13:42is a perfect example of why we love parallel twins because they're so usable you have a lot of torque
13:48in a meaty mid-range which works great in the city or to get you out of a hole like
13:53that you can be a gear
13:55high and roll under the throttle and it has no problem getting up to speed it's a it's an engine
14:00that's very
14:01flexible you can kind of set it in fourth gear and forget about it as we've done a lot today
14:05it works best if you shift it in the mid-range around 7 000 rpm but on these twisty corners
14:11when
14:11you need to connect one turn to the next this thing doesn't have an issue running right up to the
14:16rev
14:16limiter but what this bike has going for is that it really is a jack of all trades so far
14:21very sporty
14:22but also very comfortable and usable for a day-to-day street bike this is a motorcycle that's going to
14:28compete against yamaha's mt09 sp ducati street fighter v2 or maybe even bikes like aprilius tuono
14:36660 factory or triumph street triple rx these are middleweight nakeds but with an emphasis on
14:44performance if you're looking for something more standard maybe the 990 duke the standard 990 duke
14:50is the way to go save a little bit of money that bike's a little less expensive more around the
14:5511 12 000
14:56price range where this one's going to cost you more than 13 but you get a lot of performance for
15:01that extra couple thousand dollars as we'll get to find out tomorrow when we get to the racetrack
15:05we're out here at chuckwalla raceway is this our bike really ready for the track let's go find out
15:18all right here we go we're at chuckwalla we're in track mode right now which is included in the tech
15:23pack like we talked about yesterday this is our slip adjuster we're at level three right now zero is
15:30off nine is the most intrusive we're at three and using the cruise control hardware you can
15:38on the fly cycle through your level of slip so nine being the most intrusive
15:46we're gonna go we've been doing mostly three so let's go
15:56this engine is so flexible both on the track and on the street as we experienced yesterday third gear
16:03whoa hard on the brakes these brakes are very responsive very strong great feel great modulation
16:15whoa
16:19this bike is so agile it has a low claimed wet weight
16:26around a 58 inch wheelbase and tons of power
16:36whoa
16:39it just leans into the corner so easily and changes direction no problem
16:45wp suspension is taught and it allows you to unleash
16:52full performance of this r bike fully adjustable we've made adjustments already we're running the
16:59sport setting recommended by ktm i have added one turn of preload to the shock and that has made a
17:05world of difference getting this bike a little bit more up on its nose the front wheel is so planted
17:17quick shifter working amazing watch this double down shift
17:26oh this bike is glued it sounds awesome
17:34i can ride this chuckwalla racetrack almost completely in third gear just using fourth and fifth on the
17:42straights third gear
17:47this engine for a parallel twin has impressive top end power obviously the mid range is super meaty
17:54which we've expect which we expected from this bike as we know this engine
17:59this engine's been around for a while and the 790 the 890 and now this 990
18:05is the end is pretty cool and the front end is still in the corner the front end is stiff
18:10and hot
18:11and it has amazing feedback you can just trail brake real hard
18:16even when i make mistakes and overcook a corner i can just really get hard on that front brake to
18:21get
18:21it back in and this bike handles it so we're not running stock tires we have dunlop slicks
18:31r7 front r8 rear and these things are hooking up
18:39the electronics package has saved me a couple times today when traction control kicks in
18:47oh hard on the brake there these brakes are very powerful we have multiple levels of abs we're
18:56running supermoto abs now so we can lock up the rear the chassis feels so planted this bike when
19:06it's under load whether it's on the throttle or on the brakes miss my apex
19:13this bike is just easy to ride whether you're going fast trying to catch guys on the track going
19:19fast in the canyons having fun with your buddies or you're just trying to get to work this bike just
19:25allows you to focus on what's ahead all right that's a wrap on the new ktm 990 duke r coming
19:32into this we knew the bike would be sportier than the standard that's the whole idea behind this r package
19:36better suspension more horsepower a more extensive electronic suite more powerful brakes this is
19:42essentially a naked version of ktm's new 990 rcr motorcycle we loved when we rode it last year out
19:49of the launch in spain for the same reasons that we love this duke it has tons of performance for
19:53the
19:53middleweight class it's super comfortable performance is easily extractable whether
19:58you're on the street or on the track it's a 900 plus cc parallel twin with a meaty mid-range
20:04an extensive electronic suite that allows you to extract the performance anti-wheeling control
20:09slip adjust traction control multiple levels of abs these are electronic rider aids that will keep you
20:15safe on your morning commute but also allow you to come out here on the racetrack and push a sporty
20:20pace and that's why we could argue that the duke r is even a better motorcycle than the 990 rcr
20:25because it's even more accessible more comfortable with almost the same level of performance
20:30i didn't get to ride the rcr today or at the launch in spain what i can tell you is
20:35that this 990
20:36duke r offers a lot for thirteen thousand four hundred dollars you have a motorcycle that truly is
20:41race ready off the dealership floor we were using dunlop slick tires today the r7 for the front
20:47r8 for the rear so of course take that into consideration that's the only aftermarket part or
20:52feature that we had today on the bike but other than that the brakes the suspension the electronics
20:58this is a motorcycle that allowed me to probably go the fastest i ever have at this track or on
21:04any
21:04track because for me with a dirt background and not a whole lot of sport bike experience the upright
21:09flat handlebar neutral ergonomics of a naked instantly give me confidence and comfort when i swing a
21:15leg over it this engine is just so flexible third gear fourth gear it doesn't really matter i was
21:20able to just kind of throw it in third or fourth gear and get around this entire track so this
21:24is a
21:24motorcycle that offers high performance and it's super accessible because of its level of adjustability
21:28as we talked about on our street ride soften up the suspension throw it in street mode or even rain
21:33mode which i really preferred riding around on the street and it rides like a standard motorcycle similar to
21:39an mt07 soft comfortable but still a little spicy that's how this ktm 990 r is you can really tune
21:47it
21:47to your level of spicy sporty or comfortable so that's going to wrap up this review of the new ktm
21:52990
21:53duke r of course if you enjoyed the video hit the like button comment subscribe and check out the link
21:58in
21:58the description where you can find my full written article on this bike and really dive deep into all the
22:03features and adjustability of the smarter cycle thanks for tuning in and we'll see you in the next one
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