just suppossin'.....

[Austin]

Ok, so just supposin' a 2007 KTM 990 Adventure had been seen for sale and appeared to be such absolutely stonking value that a staunch Honda owner was severely tempted and a credit card could be flexed to buy it.

What would the propsective buyer of such a mega deal look out for?

What about servicing costs - I see Stan's 9K service was £400, what about other services? How often, how much? Is it feasible for at least some servicing to be DIY - I hear they can be a bit a nightmare to work on.

What's the good points... what's the bad points.

The bike has not been seen in the flesh yet, but the advert is seductive.

[Dogfart]

Austin,

Just supposin' I got a 2005 950 in lovely orange at the weekend for a bargain price off of eBay. I would have no experience and am not much of a mechanic ( Computer nerd ). I would still be doing at least the small service which is basically just and oil change at home. There is lots of info and help on the KTM forums and plenty of workshop manuals with pics to be had on ebay.

had a BMW 1150 and never spent a penny on servicing, the BM service kit cost £11.50 from BMW dealer and I got the oil from B&Q for a fiver. I fully intend doing the same with the KTM.

Go for it, really nice bike Im very impressed with it.

Allan

[stanbloke]

Originally Posted by Austin

Ok, so just supposin' a 2007 KTM 990 Adventure had been seen for sale and appeared to be such absolutely stonking value that a staunch Honda owner was severely tempted and a credit card could be flexed to buy it.

What would the propsective buyer of such a mega deal look out for?

What about servicing costs - I see Stan's 9K service was £400, what about other services? How often, how much? Is it feasible for at least some servicing to be DIY - I hear they can be a bit a nightmare to work on.

What's the good points... what's the bad points.

The bike has not been seen in the flesh yet, but the advert is seductive.

.

As soon as the warranty is up on mine all the servicing will be done by me..

There is loads of help out there if you want to work on your own bike and I've had mine apart and it's dead easy..

Ride one first, just to make sure they are different to the Vara. . Not as good two up IMHO, but the Vara excels at that, (ask Nursey tho ).

Good luck tho mate. They are completely addictive!!!!..

[Wee Jack]

There are a lot of "nay sayers" out there who like to bad mouth KTMs without actually ever having ridden or owned one , and a lot of urban myths regarding HUGE servicing costs etc. Tank range is another thing that people who don't own them seem to slate.

I have had a 990 from brand new (bought Aug 2007) and it has got approx 12k on it now. It died on me once with a fuel pump failure at 1600 miles , but fuel pump failures happen even on ultra reliable Hondas too - ask most AT owners !!!!!

Servicing cost are no higher than dealer servicing of Hondas , I have mine dealer serviced to retain warranty validation , but fully intend to do at least the interim service myself after Aug 2009, once the warranty expires. I spend less on servicing the KTM than I did on the Pan European.
One interesting difference is that on Hondas and most other bikes the servicing schedule is Small - Large - Small - Large etc with KTM it's Large - Small - Large ?????? so there is a big service with valve clearance checks etc at 600 miles , then an oil change at 4500 miles etc.

Tanks range is around 180 - 200 miles and the fuel light comes on at around 140 miles . I'm into the habit of refueling at around 150 miles and to be perfectly honest , I never understood the argument that carrying 400+ miles of fuel is good when my arse has a range of 100 - 150 miles and my caffine addiction needs a fix around the same time and my 50 year old bladder needs routine maintenance afer a couple of hours anyway !!!!! But you will never win the "my knob is bigger than your knob" competition with GS riders and their 40 litre tanks !!!

They are very satisfying bikes to ride , nice low C.O.G., awesome handling for a big trailie and one of the most well ballanced bikes to ride at slow speeds. Some people have issues with the ultra responsive throttle but I and most other owners fit the G2 Ergonomics Throttle cam, that , and the very latest fuel mapping - has totally cured the "issue" - but still leaves one hell of a satisfying "urge" when you want to get cracking !!

I love my big Katoom and I am looking at this as a "keeper" , but everyone looks for different things in a motorcycle and you should have a decent run on it to ensure tis for you.

The way I look at it is - if the KTM is the sort of bike that floats your boat - then you are still a big kid at heart !!!! THATS ME !!!

Enjoy Austin - you will make the right choice for you , but be warned don't ride one unless you've got the readies to buy it , cause the big seductive bitch will reel you in like a well played Salmon!!!

EDIT : and another thing - you will be surprised at the number of car drivers at petrol stations who instantly recognised the bike and come over pointing and saying "thats the bike that Euan and Charlie really wanted to take isn't it ?"

[Chad]

Originally Posted by stanbloke

.

As soon as the warranty is up on mine all the servicing will be done by me..

There is loads of help out there if you want to work on your own bike and I've had mine apart and it's dead easy..

Ride one first, just to make sure they are different to the Vara. . Not as good two up IMHO, but the Vara excels at that, (ask Nursey tho ).

Good luck tho mate. They are completely addictive!!!!..

got to say stan i dissagree with the two up statement me and stevie did the normandy trip and she thinks theres not much to choose between the vara and the ktm ...everything else is bang on though

[Cie]

Austin, buy it!!!!

I just picked mine up and it is .... well, I don't have the words. You will not be disappointed.

[Chad]

Originally Posted by Cie

Austin, buy it!!!!

I just picked mine up and it is .... well, I don't have the words. You will not be disappointed.

hehehehehe a different world isnt it mate

[Dogfart]

Originally Posted by Wee Jack

Tanks range is around 180 - 200 miles and the fuel light comes on at around 140 miles .
EDIT : and another thing - you will be surprised at the number of car drivers at petrol stations who instantly recognised the bike and come over pointing and saying "thats the bike that Euan and Charlie really wanted to take isn't it ?

is this correct, I will be disappointed if I only get 180 out of a 22 liter tank

Dogfart

[stanbloke]

Originally Posted by Dogfart

is this correct, I will be disappointed if I only get 180 out of a 22 liter tank

Dogfart

Get used to dissapiontment then fella, these engines are built for performance not economy, if you want economy buy a transalp.



I managed to empty both tanks in 111miles trying to catch WeeJack on the longest day.. and the best i had was 63mpg (no idea how this happened tho..

[Chad]

Originally Posted by Dogfart

is this correct, I will be disappointed if I only get 180 out of a 22 liter tank

Dogfart

in reality the 990s tank is around 19ltrs because the fuel pump is inside the tank , ive regularly had around 45-50 to the gallon out of mine


what this bike gives you is well worth the loss of a couple of miles to the gallon its a beast