Team-BHP - The KTM Duke 390 Ownership Experience Thread

Quote:

Originally Posted by Khodays (Post 3576757)

Congrats Doc, I always thought you had a 390!!!!

Now coming to your mileage part, that is amazing, I am not able to get more than 170Kms before the low fuel indicator starts coming up, any ideas???, this is really irritating for me personally.....

he he no man lepp, I had a first lot 200, delivered to me a week before official launch. :) The 390 was on loan to me by the company for field testing prior to launch.

170 is definitely very low. It actually works out to a mileage of only around 20 on a tankful to tankful method. Now I do know how you ride, but even so, that's low.

Was just going through the fuel log we were asked to maintain during the testing. Over 3000 odd kms, the lowest I got was around 22, with the best being around 28. The median more often than not was around 24-25, which worked out to about 205-210 kms before Low fuel light from tankful (not the 220 odd mentioned earlier). And on refill, the tank would take in around 8.4-8.5 to 9 or even more liters (depending on how much further you went after the Low Fuel light came on).

Which basically means my new 390 did about 40 kms more at the same point (Low Fuel from Tankful). Assuming the same amount of fuel from tankful to Low Fuel and back to tankful, aprox. 8.4 liters, that works out to around 29 kmpl.

But yes, for some stretches the two of us were cruising smooth at around 110-120 only, the engine hardly stressed. Also once it got dark, and the bike breaking potholes started, we kept the pace to 100-110 max. The rest of the time we were doing some pulls at significantly higher speeds, but the normal cruising speeds remained the same. If you take out 20-30 minutes of tea/cigy breaks from the 3 odd hours, the 250 kms took about two and a half hours and a bit more. Which means a moving average of around 100.

I still haven't gotten used to the bike, and am hoping she will open out more. I have heard mileage figures of 30 and even more for the 390. I personally would be happy with a steady 25, ride as you please mode.

Quote:

Originally Posted by basuroy (Post 3576868)

Can someone please tell me if an once repaired wound can be fixed again or the probability of further damage doesn't justifies the risk ?

As mentioned earlier, the problem now is that there are probably two tracts through the tyre now. One the original puncture, the other the new one drilled in by the repair guy. Both share the same entrance on the outside, but exit on the inside at two different places. As such only the very end (or begining) of the original puncture tract has been blocked off, and there is leakage from the rest of the original tract around the periphery of the sealing plug.

Or it could simply be a valve or rim defect.

Either way the easiest and surest way to check would be to get the wheel off and immerse it in water and look for telltale bubbles. Or paint the whole tyre with soap solution carefully and slowly rotating the wheel, and look for the same.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 3576897)

I mentioned your warning regarding the same to the chap when he was starting - to drill in the same direction as the nail , the nail was really thin and appeared quite straight and not at an angle . The hole he drilled was significantly larger in diameter and should have compensated for any mismatch in angle . Do you think those liquid sealants that are introduced inside the tire via valve will help here ? if yes , then any suggestions regarding the same will be appreciated .

Will carry out the soap solution test tomorrow without dismantling the tire( if it comes to taking the wheel off , bike goes to SVC . I am not kidding when I belittle the workmanship here , it is p*** poor at most places ) . If the soap solution finds its way to the pads , a spray of water is enough to clean it ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 3576597)

Well, I was basing my choice on the hypothetical assumptions that both bikes cost the same, to buy as well as to live with, had the same service cost, the same cost and availaibility of spares and consumables, and the same after sales support and company focus/commitment.

In such a case, the 300 would be my choice over the 390 because:

1) It is sexier
2) It is faster

Doc, your first point is well know, but I am surprised about your 2nd point. I was hearing the other way (in terms of outright acceleration, in-gear roll on figures, cornering, flicking through the narrow ghat roads, etc.,). I guess you are referring to the top end speed near the redline. Kindly correct me if I wrongly understood your point.

OT: Regarding the availability of spare parts for Kawasaki - If I am correct, the problem is only with the out of production bikes like N250.

Quote:

Originally Posted by shan_ned (Post 3576945)

Bro, one bike tops 170. Yes some claim 175, even more, but 170 is a more commonly reported median top speed.

The other bike is good for 190. Even a bit over. That there is not a small 5-6 kmph difference. It is a diference of 20 kmph. Which at that speed is really a big jump.

Such a jump can come from being a twin, which revs to 14000+ rpm and its aerodynamics, with a much improved torque curve over the 250 predecessor. Its (the 300) got grunt right from the get go. Even the 250 which is suposed to be "dead" at lower sub 6000 rpm's, I personally never once found it flat or listless. You ride it differently to a single, and even when you whack the throttle, the revs from that free revving motor rise so effortlessly, that its not very difficult to be in the meat of the power band and keep playing the throttle and gears to stay there. And if the 250 is so much fun and so intuitive, then I am sure that even without riding one, the 300 will only be better. Much better.

The 390 will probably hold the 300 off till about 140-150, which the 390 does very easily. But after that, the progres to 160 and beyond does slow down comparatively. That is where the 300 will leave the 390 behind.

And as for the spares, Ninja owners always have issues with spares. Maybe not the fast moving/consumables. But definitely so if you break something. Then your bike will be standing, waiting. In the case of the 250 the wait extends to weeks even months now. For the 300 it may not be as bad. But not as bad, and bad, the difference is all dependent on Bajaj and its equation with Kawasaki. Not so for regular production run bikes of their own like the KTMs. That is the difference.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 3576957)

The 390 will probably hold the 300 off till about 140-150, which the 390 does very easily. But after that, the progres to 160 and beyond does slow down comparatively. That is where the 300 will leave the 390 behind.

Just to add to it, even if you leave out the outright speed and acceleration from this equation. The saddle of the 300 will be a more comfortable place to be in after (say) 120kmph or so and you dont have to sit like an inflated parachute.

Quote:

Originally Posted by man_of_steel (Post 3576969)

Also shan's point about the 390 being better in the corners and flickability. I don't think the Ninja (250) is in any way inferior to the 200/390 in the corners. Maybe beter, though I never had the chance to hit my favorite set of corners with one. Flickability yes. The Dukes are supremely light, narrowm flickable beasts. Perfect point and squirt machines. The Ninja's cannot be ridden like that. But on an open road out of the city, I do not think the Ninja's will lack in any department to the Dukes. Except maybe the gc, excessive plastic, turning radius, and nowhere near as good tyres.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 3576914)

please:

How is the soap solution painted on the tyre going to reach the brake pads?

Ideally it should not but some drops can find there way there unless one is extra careful . I have never done the process before so prefer to be on the safe side , I was previously advised to take it easy regarding punctures(another issue I have surprisingly never faced before with the enfield ) but turns out they are a lot more complicated to fix than it reads on paper , any suggestions you have regarding my queries will of course be appreciated .

Quote:

Originally Posted by Khodays (Post 3576920)

Then there is something just not right, and this is not just with me, other two guys with me have the same mileage, all this bikes have been from the first lot, I will be very happy even if I see 200K for a tank, but its just not happening, any clues!!!

What gear and rpm do you guys find yourself in ?

So far my entire ownership spanning 600km has been 2nd gear for 20/30% of the time and 3rd rest of the time with 4th perhaps being limited to a grand total of 10kms because I like to keep the rpm near about 6-8k (city usage only so far so constant fluctuation in speed ). Now that is not a mileage friendly mode of riding but so far display has indicated an average of 25 and my estimates based on rough calculation turned out 22/23 (the current tankful will be calculated precisely ). My bike is sep '14 manufactured . Has your mileage figure deteriorated down to 17 or been the case since day 1 ?