Off-roading has everything to do with 'off the beaten path' allowing for exploration of the undiscovered bylanes of nature. Decades of innovation have gone into creating versatile machines to traverse these challenging terrains, and KTM is no stranger to the process. With a rich history of creating extremely capable off-roading instruments, and close to two decades of back-to-back Dakar wins under its belt, it showed a sliver of promise when it launched the 390 Adventure back in 2020.
Sure, back then the lack of wire-spoked wheels was quite a hot topic for discussion, and a lot of enthusiasts made it clear that it would have been a fitting inclusion, along with a few other things. Come 2023, KTM launches the much-awaited 390 AdventureSW, featuring wire-spoked wheels, adjustable suspension and dedicated off-road modes and settings. With wire spokes, the rims are designed to bend, flex and handle impacts to a certain degree, letting the rider tackle rough terrains with ease. Spoked wheels are also easily repairable, as replacing individual parts is simple and inexpensive.
Coming to the adjustable suspension, the setup allows the rider to tweak the compression, rebound and preload characteristics of the suspension depending on the surface conditions. This means that the rider gets to customise exactly how the motorcycle reacts to the surface being ridden on, with consideration of the rider's weight, reactivity comfort and so on. The upside-down front forks get 30 settings for both compression and rebound, while the rear mono-shock gets 20 rebound settings and 10 preload settings.
This story is from the July 2023 edition of Motoring World.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the July 2023 edition of Motoring World.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
STRENGTH TO STRENGHT
What's New for 2024? We dive deep into the redesigned Mercedes-Benz GLE 450
BUILDING BLOCKS
Harley-Davidson takes us on a tour of the Hero Motocorp garden factory plant in Neemrana
PRACTICALLY SMART
The Jupiter 125 was already a comfortable and practical family scooter; what has changed this time around?
SEDAN CHIC
The Mercedes-Benz A200d has style and function and makes a compelling case for sedans
SOFT LANDING
City slicker by day, off-road warrior by weekend: Land Rover's Discovery Sport tackles it all.
MORE IS MORE
And less is a bore seems to be BMW's philosophy with the iX. Does it work?
BAVARIAN BOOST
The BMW iX1 offers thrilling performance and luxurious comfort in a compelling all-electric package
URBAN SPRINTER
From school trips to boardroom meetings, the Force Urbania reimagines the van experience with surprising comfort
N LINETENMENT
Pardon the dad joke, but the Creta N Line is worthy of its price tag, even if doesn't quite take you to motoring nirvana
THE ROADS AHEAD
Volkswagen India's Annual Brand Conference revealed what's in store for India this year.