Adding to KTM’s list of recent announcements, including the reintroduction of the SMT line with the 2024 KTM 890 SMT and a new generation of single-cylinder engines dubbed the “LC4c” found in the KTM 390 Duke and 250 Duke, the company has released details on the 2024 KTM 790 Adventure, redesigned in Mattighofen, Austria.
KTM calls the bike an ideal “first taste” for riders who are looking to try out the adventure segment. Rider would agree, having awarded the 2019 Motorcycle of the Year honor to the KTM 790 Adventure. In our Tour Test of the bike, our reviewer called it “an eminently capable lightweight ADV tourer that was designed for excursions into some pretty gnarly territory.”
The 2024 KTM 790 Adventure still has the 799cc parallel-Twin LC8c with DOHC, but KTM says the bike is now more stable at constant speed and has gained more cornering poise thanks to a 20% increase in rotating mass. Reworked Dell’Orto throttle bodies bring a cleaner and more efficient connection due to the enhanced combustion, and the knock control sensor results in a higher state of ignition and better capacity for low octane fuel, which is a reassuring characteristic for the different qualities of gasoline found while traveling and addresses one of the minor gripes from our reviewer regarding the 2019 model.
The 790 Adventure also has a 6-speed gearbox, throttle-by-wire, a PASC slip/assist clutch, a new airbox, and a reconfigured optional Quickshifter+. The bike also benefits from the latest 6-axis IMU that can be found on larger KTM siblings like the KTM 890 Adventure R and KTM 1290 Super Adventure models and which informs the Cornering Motorcycle Traction Control and other aspects such as ABS, Motor Slip Regulation (optional), and three standard ride modes – Street, Offroad, and Rain – as well as the optional Rally mode. ABS modes now automatically switch between the ride modes, removing the need for more configuration. Demo mode allows sampling of the full electronic rider aids suite for the first 1,500 km.
WP Apex suspension includes a 43mm inverted fork and a preload-adjustable shock with 7.9 inches of front/rear travel. Braking comes from dual 4-piston calipers clamping down on 320mm discs up front and a 260mm disc in the back. The bike still rides on 21/18-inch front/rear tires, but they’re wrapped in new Pirelli Scorpion STR tires with large tread blocks for more of an off-road focus.
The 790 Adventure has 9.1 inches of ground clearance, an adjustable seat height (33/33.8 in.), and a 5.3-gallon fuel tank, which follows the flow and lines of the bike to where a new front mask gives way to an integrated fairing. A new higher windscreen provides more wind protection, a larger aluminum engine guard is fitted as standard, and the plastics (injected molded with graphics for more resistance) have also been reshaped to guard the tank and seat against unwanted knocks.
The lights are full LED, and the bike has a new 5-inch TFT that reacts to ambient lighting and utilizes a redesigned menu system of new infographics for faster and easier customization.
In addition to Rally mode and MSR, other optional features include KTMconnect with Bluetooth connectivity, Quickshifter+, heated grips, a heated seat, and cruise control.
The 2024 KTM 790 Adventure will arrive in December 2024 in two new colorways: white with orange graphics or a black option. Pricing has not yet been announced.
For a fresh model, there’s a lot to like about the 790 Adventure. A whole lot. I spent some time on its sister bike the 790 Duke a few months back so had a reasonable idea of what to expect – but even then I was seriously impressed.
It’s a nice bike to live with day to day – and even with a couple of very minor niggles, it would have to go close to getting the gong for class leading mid-weight soft-roader.
Contrasting to the Duke, the Adventure version has a little more scale to its overall dimensions and as a result doesn’t feel like a smaller capacity bike, like the Duke did.
I really gelled with the size. With its 850mm seat height it’s an easy thing to throw a leg over and on the go it feels super maneuverable. Worth noting that the seat height is 10mm lower than the F 850 GS, but it feels like a bigger difference than that.
Also worth noting that it’s 30mm lower than the longer travel Adventure R version, and I’m sure that a fair chunk of the inherent handling capabilities come from the work that’s gone into weight placement and distribution.
The new 790 parallel twin is ridiculously compact, which allows the engineers to package it up in a way that gives even more clearance while keeping weight where it needs to be. And then of course there’s the funky fuel tank.
I admit that I had a bit of a psychological hurdle to get over with the placement of the wrap-around tank that drops down either side of the motor. The reality is that the design has no real issues for a soft-roader.
The only time I was conscious of them was when I was sneaking around the boom gate into the work carpark where you need to pay attention to the curb, but it’s still safely clear of getting close to contact. So the issue is a mental one to overcome.
There’s 20 litres capacity there which gives a very handy range – I saw over 440 km a few times on my commute and it would have still had another 20 km left in it.
On the R version and if you intend on doing serious off-roading, then you’d throw some crash protection on there anyway wouldn’t you? I’m sure there are numerous options out there.
While thinking about options, you’d probably also want to throw some spotlights on it too as the headlight throw isn’t as wide as I’d like given that I often have no choice but to ride amongst roos at night.
The engine is also a little detuned from the Duke variant. I dunno why. When you have the ability to switch tunes electronically and have such good traction control, I don’t understand why you’d dial some power out.
Just give it the full welly so when you can use it, it’s there!
When I picked it up I knew it was slightly detuned and my immediate impression was that there wasn’t much hump there.. but it was actually in ‘Off-Road’ mode which tames it down even further.
A bit of a poke of the mode button controls had that sorted and it was more like what I expected. There’s 95 horses there and it’s genuinely a very good thing on the go with a surprisingly strong mid-range and top end.
Top gear roll on is bloody impressive and feels on par or better than anything else in its class. It can protest a little if you ask too much of it under 2500 revs – which you can occasionally fall into doing as its so tractable you forget to change down.
But keep the 790 over 4000rpm and it’s superb. How strong? A little dip of the throttle in second gear and getting back on it will loft the front up every time. It’s a ripper.
The throttle feel is spot on, as is the quick shifter. Super smooth. In fact.. And this might sound weird but bare with me, it’s almost.. too smooth? Is that even possible you ask?
Well let me explain. I did find that I’d occasionally miss up-shifts in that I’d find myself lifting my foot so gently that it would trip the clutch engagement and the revs would rise, but I hadn’t moved the lever enough to trip the gear change.
I’d probably like a little more solidity to the gear change, but it really is nitpicking. Admittedly the lever is positioned quite high with plenty of room for adventure/off road boots like mine – Trev commented on the lever position too but he was wearing road boots and had just stepped off the 1290 Super Duke and of course the shifter position is adjustable, it’s just that engagement is never quite rifle-bolt positive, a trait of pretty much every KTM gearbox I am yet to sample.
Downshifts were a delight and I didn’t miss a single one. You can almost lean on the lever and it will pull the gear in and slip down a cog. Lovely.
Suspension, brakes and overall handling were faultless and I found the riding position really natural. Controls are light and precise, like most soft roaders/adventure bikes the front brake is dialled more towards feel than initial bite to avoid dipping the front too much with the longer travel suspension – but there’s plenty of power once you give it a squeeze.
It’s a very, very nice place to call home for a few hours. The seat seemed like it might be a bit firm at first but felt fine even after four hours in the saddle on my single longest day. As I said earlier, it’s a good thing – even more so for a fresh model.
All of my real niggles are on – or related to – the dash. Which shows just how good the rest of the bike is. The fuel gauge only shows increments below half which is puzzling, and the range meter can only be described as schizophrenic when it gets down to the business end of the tank. As in the bit where you need it to be reliable.
Examples? My last fuel stop is 45km from home. So I need at least 90 kays of range in it as I pass it each night. Several times I’d go past and it would say I still had 120km range. Then I’d be 15 minutes up the road and it would show 40km… Then the next morning it might show 40, then 20, 10, 0.. Then 20 again.. So it needs a bit of work. It needs a look at.
The final niggle is the system for switching modes and turning traction control on and off. And to be fair, KTM aren’t the only manufacturer doing this.
The trend of having multi-function buttons that you use to navigate through menus on the dash might be ok for more obscure setting changes and information, but it shouldn’t be used for ride mode or traction control.
Stick a dedicated button somewhere please that riders can press to activate and then press again to cycle through modes or toggle between on and off please.
Having to press two different buttons eight or more times (yes really), as well as rolling off the gas for three-seconds for traction control changes gets old pretty quickly when you’re transitioning from dirt to tarmac and back each ride and/or you feel like a bit of a play…
Once you do select off-road mode and disengage traction control though… It’s well worth it. The low seat height and ample mid-range make for great fun on a dirt road.
After spending some time on the Indian FTR 1200 S before this, which was a proper slide machine, I was in the mindset for skids… which the 790 Adventure is more than happy to oblige. That low seat height and clever weight distribution comes into its own once off tarmac and it’s a hoot. Mr Squiggle was out and about again.
Those dash related niggles aside, it’s a very impressive bike. Take my negative comments in the right context because they don’t impact the ride itself. I really do rate the 790 Adventure highly. So much so that the longer travel R version will absolutely be on the shortlist to replace my own Tiger 800 XC when the time comes.
Why I like the 790 Adventure:
Love the overall dimensions. Big enough to have plenty of room, small enough to still feel nimble – great manoeuvrability.
That 790 engine has some serious punch from midrange up.
Proper comfy for long hauls – and big range too.
The low seat height will appeal to a lot of riders and makes it super accessible.
I’d like it more if:
Eight or more button presses to change mode or disable TC? C’mon…
Give it the full welly tune of the 790 Duke while you’re at it.
The fuel range readings need a bit of a talking to.
I’d have to tick the Akro slip on option for more noise (but I say that for every bike).
2019 KTM 790 Adventure Specifications
ENGINE
Displacement
799 cm³
Power
70 kW
Torque
88 Nm
Engine Type
2-cylinder, 4-stroke, parallel twin
Bore
88 mm
Stroke
65.7 mm
Starter
Electric starter
Lubrication
Forced oil lubrication with 2 oil pumps
Transmission
6-speed
Cooling
Liquid cooled
Clutch
PASC antihopping clutch, mechanically operated
EMS
Bosch EMS with RBW
Co2 Emissions
98 g/km
Fuel Consumption
4.19 l/100 km
CHASSIS
Frame Design
Chromium-Molybdenum-Steel frame using the engine as stressed element, powder coated
Front Suspension
WP upside-down Ø 43 mm
Rear Suspension
WP monoshock
Suspension Travel F
200 mm
Suspension Travel R
200 mm
Front Brake
Dual radially mounted four-piston caliper
Rear Brake
Two-piston floating caliper
Front Brake Disc
320 mm (x 2)
Rear Brake Disc
260 mm
ABS
Bosch 9.1 MP (incl. Cornering-ABS and offroad mode, disengageable)
After seeing first hand the lengths that KTM have gone to in order to make the dimensions of their new 75-degree offset crank-pin 790 cc parallel twin as minimalist as possible, and then sampling how strong and linear the performance of the 435-degree firing interval engine is myself over many kilometres of fanging the 790 Duke, I am dying to see just how well this engine will translate in to the 790 Adventure, but unfortunately we are going to have to wait until its June 2019 arrival to sample it!
KTM quote 95 horsepower at 8000 rpm and 88 Nm at 6600 rpm for both 790 Adventure models. This is 10 hp down on the 790 Duke, but the claimed 88 Nm torque is marginally higher while at 6600 rpm, that peak twist arrives 1400 rpm earlier than the 790 Duke.
The incredibly small engine packaging (only fractionally larger externally than the 375cc single in the 390 Duke), gives KTM the room to fit a long swingarm and more space for the fuel cell.
The small engine dimensions also allow for plenty of ground clearance while maintaining a reasonable seat height.
Clearance on the 790 Adventure is 233 mm while the 790 Adventure R has 263 mm of clearance.
Seat height on the Adventure is adjustable between 830 and 850 mm while the saddle on the 790 Adventure R is a taller 880 mm.
Both are also claimed to tip the scales at 189kg without their 20-litre fuel cells being topped up.
Thus we can extrapolate that the 790 Adventure weighs in at 204kg fully fuelled and ready to ride.
Again those slim and compact engine dimensions have played their part in keeping the fuel low with the tank extending down alongside the engine, similar to what we once saw in the 990 Adventure models some years ago.
KTM claim a fuel range as high as 450 km from the new bikes and while this might be possible when being nursed, realistically a rider will more likely able to count on a 350+ km range in most touring duties.
Predictably, KTM owned WP provides the suspension for both bikes.
Inverted 43 mm forks on the Adventure grow to more premium 48 mm XLPOR forks in the R.
Suspension travel at both ends is 200 mm for the Adventure and 240 mm on the R.
Both bikes roll on an 18-21 inch spoked rim combination.
Easily adjusted from the left bar-mounted menu switch, the KTM 790 Adventure has different ride modes to enable riders to explore the full potential of the bike.
Street, Offroad and Rain riding modes, along with the optional Rally mode (standard on the R), alter the behaviour and feeling of the engine.
Changing a ride mode changes the throttle response, the traction control level and, depending on the mode, the peak power.
The KTM 790 Adventure is also equipped with the state-of-the-art TFT display. Easily readable in all conditions, the full color, 5″ screen’s configuration is variable and automatically adapts to changes in environmental light.
The main information is arranged in a position where the rider can immediately see it, while additional displayed information can be chosen by the rider with the integrated KTM MY RIDE system is integrated. This allows pairing with a smartphone for receiving (or rejecting) phone calls, listening to music and, using the optional app, navigating with on screen turn-by-turn directions along with audio prompts.
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