[kaushalswarup]

Originally Posted by Shankar.R

After some months of contemplation, I find myself faced with a dilemma: choosing between the KTM Adventure 390 X, KTM Adventure 390 Standard, and a pre-owned Kawasaki Versys 650.

Any update on your dilemma?

Adding to my previous post on this thread, I had the chance to ride the versys 650 again, on the beautiful twistes of Valparai.
I must say, the torque is addictive! And such a boon to use. Stick to a gear, and just enjoy the ride. That’s what the Versys allows you to do.
Reiterating that the Versys will definitely make you a sedate rider, knowing that the power and torque are on tap, and available down low.

[ebonho]

If a used Versys is in the picture, then why not the excellent ER6N naked. Its a lot more fun and direct and nimble to ride, and being older, and cheapest of the 3 stablemates brand new, it will be available a lot cheaper as well. And its much lighter. Than both its stablemates. At 204 kilos vs 211 for the Ninja and 216 for the Versys. And yes, it will gobble miles the way no single, including the excellent KTMs, can. And being a naked, and your need for an "Adventure" bike, it has less to no plastics to break in case of a fall.

Cheers, Doc

[ExOblivione]

Originally Posted by ebonho

If a used Versys is in the picture, then why not the excellent ER6N naked. Its a lot more fun and direct and nimble to ride, and being older, and cheapest of the 3 stablemates brand new, it will be available a lot cheaper as well.

There are a few problems with the ER6N, IMO.

Biggest being that India never got it with ABS as far as I am aware. Can't say about others, but ABS is an absolute must for me, as much as wearing a helmet is. Literally a life saver.

And at 130mm, its ground clearance, the same as the Ninja/Z650, isn't adequate for someone wanting to go the ADV-ish route. People talk about scraping the Ninja 650 on some over-optimistic speed breakers.

Lack of protection from wind blast at higher speeds, and a not-as-upright-as-adv riding posture could hamper comfort over long riding days. This is more of a personal choice. The first two shortcomings are more of concern.

I have taken the Versys off-road, on some bad trails. Even though it's not very suited for the task, it can be done. I did it on Road 5 tyres. Some more off-road biased tyres would have gone a long way in dealing with bad surfaces, where traction was the problem. However, it's still something I would prefer avoiding, since I mostly tour alone, and the thought dropping a 220kg bike on sloped, rough terrain while alone in the middle of nowhere is a cause for anxiety.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by ExOblivione

And at 130mm, its ground clearance, the same as the Ninja/Z650, isn't adequate for someone wanting to go the ADV-ish route.

I have taken the Versys off-road, on some bad trails. for anxiety.

Good point on the ground clearance ... that could certainly be a bummer.

I've ridden a Z800. In north Sikkim. At night. In shin deep slush (dam construction runoff) and rocks and zero roads. Up to Yumthang from Mangan. Road slicks there too. And I had a blast doing it. It certainly can be done. I've said it before, but it certainly bears repeating.

I don't buy into pigeon holing or categorisation if bikes at all. A bike will happily do what its rider can make her do.

But a bike cannot and will not ride itself.

220 kilo soft road sports tourers or 200 kilos of the new age hot Adventures or 180 kilos of our old standard Bullets. They will all hurt if you drop them on your foot. I've dropped my LB racing in red slush in the monsoons in rhe backwaters around Poona and broken my foot pinned under the footpeg. It happens. And unless there is someone to pick your bike off you sometimes, you will remain pinned underneath. As it happened 2 of us were in the lead, far in the lead, pushing hard, and both if us went down, as is natural when riding so close, and both were pinned on either side if the trail, under our bikes. Abusing each other! Lol Good days.

That's why people love WRs and DRZs and KLXs and KTMs.

Cheers, Doc

[ExOblivione]

Originally Posted by ebonho

I don't buy into pigeon holing or categorisation if bikes at all. A bike will happily do what its rider can make her do.

Absolutely. Any bike can handle almost any of the terrain a "normal" rider is likely to encounter, within reason. Pretty sure none of us are really riding routes that require trials riding skill and machine.

On my Bhutan trip, my friend and I had rented motorcycles in Gwahati. A Karizma in unbelievably bad condition and an Avenger 220, as they were the only ones available at the time. The Karizma would make no power at all below 5000 RPM. I don't mean lack of torque, it was like revving it in neutral. The Avenger is of course a feet-forward cruiser.

On that trip we did plenty of off-roading, including multiple days where we were riding for hours in calf deep, soft, greasy mud. Not a pleasant experience, but we managed it.

But there is something to be said for having the right tool for the job. Sure you can ride off-road on a feet-forward cruiser. Sure you can take the Activa to Ladakh (which people have done). Sure you can long distance tour on a supersport with full committed racing position. Sure you can solo ride a 250kg GS on tough technical trails, buuuuutttt... do you want to?

Unless one is trying to unlock a specific "bike/location/event" achievement, it's best to at least try to fit bike and purpose. Going outside the area of competence for a machine is fine on occasion, and inevitable, but doing it over and over will not be a pleasant experience.

That's why I went for a sports-tourer in ADV format. My aim is touring/twisties carving. Something that will let me ride 16 hours non-stop if I wanted, without vibrating me to bits. Something roomy and fully upright. Something that's very good at cornering too. Since I live in Uttarakhand, most of my riding is mountain twisties.

This is Versys's forte. Engine is smooth and calm at low RPM or as rowdy as you want it to be when you rev it out. Its short wheelbase and steep rake makes it very agile in corners, quick to change direction, and carrying lean angles beyond what I can even attempt on public mountain roads. But this (along with the weight) make it a mediocre off-roader, which I am fine with, since that's not my intended purpose. The average off-road section I am likely to encounter on occasion, I and the bike will just have to handle.

The 390 vibrations were the breaking point for me. It would have been ok for shorter rides, but they were getting very, very tiring over long rides. As a point of comparison, I did a 11+ hours ride in the mountains, then another 10+ ride just 1 month later, but this time after buying the Versys. The difference was night and day. In the former trip (as on my earlier long trips), I was exhausted by the end, had a headache, upper back pain, hands were numb and tingling, and arms were aching. The latter, which I was riding as hard as the previous one, had me just very mildly tired at the end of the day.

I guess the point of this rambling post is; best to buy the bike that fits your purpose to the extent possible, and then deal with the outliers as they come.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by ExOblivione

I guess the point of this rambling post is; best to buy the bike that fits your purpose to the extent possible, and then deal with the outliers as they come.

Agreed. That's the bottom line.

YOUR purpose. And what YOU like to ride and own.

Not the tags industry and the new-age rider fraternity has split-haired bikes into.

That said, all other things considered, I'd still take a 160 kilo bike over a 180 or 200 or 220 kilo bike. For any sort of riding. But especially off the trodden route. And I'm a reasonably big 180 cm 90 kilo guy.

Even 180 is on the heavier side, having ridden Bullets most of my life. I'd personally say my invisible mental line is around 170.

150-170 kilos. Smack dab in the meat of dual purpose 400s. 160 kilos or 350 pounds being the happy median.

Cheers, Doc

[Shankar.R]

Thank you for all the inputs and apologies for not updating the post regularly.

After almost 7 months of test riding, overthinking, test riding again, and financial calculations, I went the pre-owned route and caught hold of a 2021 Vstrom 650 from Suzuki Delhi.
It is surreal to say the wee chose me, but it felt that way. I rode three wees before this and never felt "this is it". Something did not feel right every time.
I test rode this V-Strom 650 thinking it might be my last try with the two popular 650's, and if it doesn't click, I'll go for the ADV 390 with a far better clarity.
When I saw the wee parked outside the showroom, I asked the SM isn't the seat lowered, to which he replied, "it is but will suit you best" (aap ke liye sahi yoga). I was surprised at his response as I am 185cm tall on the heavier side.

I don't know if it's the low seat height or the handlebar riser or the smooth engine or the combination of all, but this one gave a totally different experience from the other v stroms that I had ridden.
I felt "this is it".

I just didn't want to get off the bike.