It’s been 5 years now since KTM released their first budget-friendly adventure bike, the 390 Adventure. At $6,200 USD when unveiled, the entry-level adventurer offered good dirt capability  and versatility for longer journeys. Now the Austrians have ramped things up a notch with an all-new chassis, improved suspension, rally-inspired bodywork, and a range of other refinements. It’s a complete overhaul that KTM says is 99% ‘new’ compared to the original design, while offering enough performance upgrades to earn the coveted ‘R’ badge.

For starters, the next-gen model boasts a fresh new look. Gone is the distinctive Kiska “Preying Mantis” headlight and pared-down bodywork (never a fan favorite), replaced by a fully-faired Rally Bike design that is considerably more eye pleasing. Included in the new rally styling is a clear upper fairing, integrated bodywork, high front fender, single-piece enduro seat, and standard spoked wheels.

Under the skin, the previous DOHC single-cylinder LC4c powerplant has been stroked for an extra 25cc in displacement, bringing it up to 399cc. The engine also features an optimized cylinder head, repositioned fuel injectors and other refinements. Peak output is similar to before at 44 horses and 29 ft-lbs of torque but the power now comes on earlier in the revs. As before, the engine is mated to a 6-speed transmission with a slipper clutch and there is a quickshifter option available.

Power is controlled by a Ride-by-Wire throttle system linked up to a Bosch EFI with a 46mm throttle body. This enables optional Cruise Control along with three different ride modes — Road, Offroad and Rain — each of which has preset settings for throttle response, Traction Control and ABS to match their intended usage. Both ABS and Traction Control are lean angle sensitive as well, thanks to a 3D IMU. The Offroad mode ABS disables rear-wheel intervention and permits greater front-wheel slip. However, the ABS can’t be fully disengaged at both ends.

A basic left-hand thumb control allows riders to adjust their settings on a new 5” TFT dash, which also provides a clear view of information such as speed, RPM, fuel level, outside temp, and current gear. Riders have access to Bluetooth connectivity features as well through the TFT display, such as playing music via the KTM app, the ability to answer incoming calls, and turn-by-turn navigation. Plus a USB charging port sits behind the TFT to power electronic devices.

Updates to the chassis are what really set this bike apart from its predecessor though. The 390 Adventure R now rides on a set of 21”/18” spoked ‘tube-type’ wheels rather than the previous 19”/17” hoops, giving it improved capability in technical terrain. The bike retains the WP Apex suspension with a 43mm full-adjustable fork and a rear shock with preload and rebound damping adjustment. However, these units have been upgraded with more than 2 inches of additional travel, now 9 inches at both ends. Big hit absorption is further improved with an added 3 inches of ground clearance, along with a new bottoming damper in the shock. Even better, a higher-performance WP Pro suspension upgrade option is in the works. More on that later.

The steel trellis frame, bolt-on steel subframe and aluminum swingarm have all been completely revised. A new offset-center rear shock configuration makes room for a tucked-in exhaust and also keeps the seat height reasonable with the taller suspension and bigger wheels. Despite gaining 3 inches of ground clearance, the seat height is only up 0.6 inches — now at 34.2 inches.

Braking is provided by a BYBRE (Indian-built Brembos) system with a 320mm rotor and dual-piston caliper up front, while the rear uses a 240mm rotor and single-piston caliper. Standard rubber is a set of 90/90-21 and 140/80-18 Mitas Enduro Trail E07+ adventure tires. The 390 Adventure R also comes equipped with a set of hand guards and an aluminum skidplate. All in, with the 3.7-gallon fuel tank full, the new Adventure R tips the scale at 388 pounds — about 9 pounds more than the previous model.

First Impressions

Whenever testing a new adventure bike with as much interest as the 390 Adventure R has generated, we like to get at least two days of riding. However, this launch was shared with the 390 Enduro R and we only had a day of seat time for each model. Luckily, we did have a big day of testing that featured everything from technical single track and soft sandy climbs to rocky fire roads and long highway sections. With routes created by ex-Baja champ and Dakar top-10 finisher Quinn Cody, the trails got quite spicy at times too. While we would have liked more testing, we definitely had a good understanding of the 390 R’s capabilities both on and off-road by day’s end.

Considering that both models are based on the same platform with the same chassis underneath the skin, you’d expect there would be a lot of crossover in the design. But these bikes definitely have their own distinct character. In fact, KTM made sure to give each bike unique suspension, ABS and traction control settings, configuring the Enduro R to be the more hard-edged offroader of the two.

The difference between how the two models feel was one of the biggest surprises. Ergos are the same except for a seat height that is 0.8” lower on the Adventure R, due to a more cut out seat design. With a larger tank and a tall windscreen the Adventure model triggers your brain to expect a heavier-bike experience, yet it feels just about as light and nimble as its Enduro sibling once you’re rolling. 

It has a more refined feel too in how the handling and power come together. You can tell KTM spent the majority of their development time polishing the Adventure R, then created the Enduro R as a stripped down version—which the manufacturer confirmed to us. Not to take anything away from the Enduro R, but the Adventure R really has that special sauce that gives it a unique character you notice right away.

On The Street

Sitting on the bike, it has a very compact feel. It’s not so small though that a larger rider would feel cramped. I’m 6’2” tall and it felt like riding a standard-sized enduro with a rally kit or rally bike — not something that was shrunken down to appeal to shorter riders. For comparison, the wheelbase is 4.6 inches shorter than a Yamaha Tenere 700 and it weighs 64 pounds less. 

With its nice flat, wide saddle, the seating is quite plush and the bar reach and bend put you in a comfortable upright position. The relatively-tall windscreen shoots air over the helmet peak and doesn’t cause any strange buffeting on the highway at speed. The knee bend was a tad cramped compared to the Enduro R with its lower cut-out seat design, but it didn’t cause any discomfort during the day. If I owned one, I’d upgrade to a taller seat for a little more leg room.

Getting up to speed on the freeway is not a problem for the Adventure R, with plenty of power on tap to pass when needed at a reasonable pace. The low- to mid-range grunt is a little flat though, so keeping it in the higher revs ensures good acceleration. At the higher elevations we were testing (around 7,000-9,000 feet), the power was somewhat subdued and you could feel acceleration slow significantly on some of the steep inclines. However, not slow enough to require dropping a gear or going below the speed limit. And with the improved mid-range compared to the old 390 Adventure, maintaining speed in a headwind or on an incline was made easier.

Under normal conditions, the new 390 Adventure R can easily cruise at 80 mph and it does so very smoothly. The previous 390 Adventure had some buzz around the 65 to 80 mph range, then would smooth out at higher speeds. In comparison, KTM has done good work on engine balancing and new rubber mounting to improve the vibration damping noticeably. Now it’s quite smooth — something I didn’t think was possible for a single-cylinder engine just a few years ago. Compared to say a Kawasaki KLR650 or Honda CRF300L Rally, it’s a big jump in comfort and I wouldn’t hesitate to take it on a long highway ride now. 

Riding fast in the twisties, it’s a light and flickable machine that craves the curves. The high-revving powerband matches up great with the optional quickshifter, making sweet sounds carving canyon roads. On a long straight, it will get up to triple digits pretty quickly too. There’s also enough power to get the front wheel up in 1st gear with a little tug but it requires some skill in second.

The 390 Adventure R can be leaned over far, without any fear of scraping pegs or other components. Despite the relatively tall suspension, it’s well damped so there’s no major dive or squat to throw the bike’s balance off. Plus, the ByBre brakes, with the large 320mm front rotor,  hauled the bike down to a stop with excellent feel and the ABS system worked flawlessly.

As for the electronics I kept it in Street mode most of the time, which automatically activates lean angle-sensitive Street TC and ABS. Any intervention was never noticed on the asphalt. There’s not enough torque to break traction under normal conditions, so the TC seems like overkill. ABS may seem unnecessary too until you hit that unseen sandy patch hidden in the shade and it becomes extremely useful. The same goes for Rain mode, which softens the throttle and increases ABS intervention for additional confidence in the wet.

In The Dirt

Pointing our pack of 390 Adventure Rs off pavement onto our first single track trail was an eye opener. This thing rips just as good as the 390 Enduro R in the tight stuff, despite the 25 pounds of extra weight and bulk. Whereas its sibling felt slightly heavy and large for an Enduro, the same platform makes for an agile, flickable machine when graded on the Adventure Bike scale. The low-end grunt you expect on a dirt bike was noticeably lacking on the Enduro R but that same power characteristic seemed acceptable on the Adventure R when considering its more-versatile Adventure use.

Much like the Enduro R, the Adventure R’s ergonomics benefit from a factory-installed bar riser, and thankfully, the awkward forward-slanting footpegs of the previous model are gone. The stand up position feels centered in the bike with good room to stretch out for a taller rider. The seated position felt equally at home on the trail. Although, the cut-out seat design does slightly inhibit sliding backward to weight the back tire. Combined with the bigger fuel tank, it also reduces the ability to scooch your weight all the way forward, as on the Enduro R. Again, a taller, flat enduro seat would be an excellent upgrade, especially for longer-legged riders. 

Setting it to Offroad mode selects an ideal throttle map for a softer hit that grips the dirt. But if you like it more aggressive, you can choose to have the Street throttle map in your configuration. As for Traction Control, the Street setting is really too aggressive to ride on anything more than a smooth dirt road and you’ll notice it cutting out immediately. With Offroad traction control activated, it works quite well for 90% of the terrain you might encounter on an adventure ride. It’s just the deep sand, mud or loose hill climbs when you’d want to shut it off completely. Unfortunately, you can’t turn ABS off completely. The off-road tuned front ABS works well but it would be great if you could defeat it both front and rear like you can on the Enduro. Why did they allow it on the Enduro and not the Adventure? Lawyers we’re told.

One cool new thing the lawyers did finally allow is saving your electronics settings when you turn off the key (not just the kill switch). Turn ABS off and it stays off, if for instance you want to kill the engine for a conversation with a friend and don’t want to drain your battery by leaving the key on. However, I did notice there seemed to be some type of timer that will eventually reset settings to default if you have the key off for more than 10 minutes or so. Speaking of modes, the basic thumb switch does require going through a few levels of menus to configure your settings, with no shortcut buttons to speed things up.

With the settings dialed in, the 390 Adventure R made easy work of slow-speed technical sections with a soft clutch pull and excellent modulation. The power seemed torquey enough in first gear but it’s a bit of a jump to second. I found myself keeping it in first longer and using the engine’s over rev capability until it was necessary to shift up. Again though, the lack of low-end grunt seemed forgivable when considering the varied usage of this bike. For anyone who wants to use the 390 Adventure R as more of a dirt bike, they could easily improve the slow-speed technical performance by dropping a tooth on the front sprocket to make second gear more usable. I’d probably leave it alone though in favor of highway cruising comfort.

On the more open double-track trails is where the bike’s handling really shines though. There’s enough power to steer with the rear a bit and the bike rewards an aggressive riding style. The plush suspension soaks up the rocks and roots, without any clunks from the fork on sharp-edge bumps. You can ride it hard without punishing your body and it has plenty of hold up to make quick work of big whoops and dips.

I liked having the damping settings right on top of the fork tubes where you can make fine-tune adjustments, without getting off the bike or busting out the tools. The rear shock has rebound damping and preload adjustment but no compression damping, which was a bit of a bummer. I would have liked to have some additional high-speed compression. Although, just setting the preload for my weight (208 lbs) might have been adequate if we’d had more time to play with it. 

Bottoming out the fork never happened and the rear shock, only rarely. When it did, it was softly cushioned rather than a ‘kathunk!’. Perhaps out in the open desert, at higher speeds, you’d get to the limit faster, but in the tighter woods riding we tested on, it had plenty of suspension for a good off-road rider to push at a fast pace. I think it’s capable enough to at least keep an 890 Adventure R in range.

Bottom Line

With the competition in the 300cc to 500cc adventure bike range really heating up, KTM has thrown a compelling choice into the middleweight adventurer mix. Considering the power, weight, capability (both on and off-road), and competitive price, it’s a solid package that moves this bike to the top of the category.

After a day of testing, it reminded me of how much I enjoy riding a smaller machine in the dirt. The challenge of riding a big bike in difficult terrain can be a blast, but there’s something about the synergy you feel with a machine that doesn’t outweigh you by a factor of two or more. It’s the confidence you experience when it gets a little out of hand and you can bring it right back or you get into a flow state with body and bike, blasting through whatever comes your way. The 390 Adventure R offers a nice balance of characteristics with the stability to cut through the crud in soft terrain, while still being light enough to quickly change lines for obstacle avoidance when you need it. 

The 390 Adventure R has the kind of versatility that would allow you to go ride one weekend with your buddies on enduros, then the next weekend with your friend on big GSs. And with an MSRP of $6,999, there’s room in the budget to improve that versatility further. Two factory options that I’m excited about are Cruise Control and the WP Pro suspension. The suspension upgrade includes a fully-adjustable replacement shock with high/low speed compression damping and a drop-in cartridge kit for the fork. Either standard height or increased suspension travel versions (+20mm) will be available. This could really take the off-road performance up a notch.

Other factory add-ons that would be useful are the PowerParts GPS dash mount and the QuickShifter+ proved its worth during our test. From an aftermarket perspective, the mirrors and hand guards seem a little fragile and could use a more-robust replacement. Same goes for the skidplate, which is at least aluminum compared to the plastic one provided on the previous 390 Adventure. I wonder about how an aftermarket exhaust system might wake up the low-end power as well. It could also use a rear top rack, which I think should come standard on any adventure bike.

All those add-ons add up of course. But what a sweet machine you’d have after customizing it to your taste. A generous 2-year unlimited mileage warranty, along with 6,000-mile oil change and 12,000-mile valve check intervals only sweetens the deal.

As far as reliability goes, the only issues we had during the two days of testing both the 390 Enduro R and 390 Adventure R were a few loosened mirrors and some fender screws coming loose on one machine. There’s also a known issue with the kickstand safety switch. Those with bigger feet like myself might inadvertently push down the kickstand with their heel, activating the engine cut off switch. I had this happen to me two or three times. KTM seems to be taking this problem seriously though and is in the process of developing a solution for all new and retailed 390s.

Overall, this new 390 Adventure R can meet the needs of a wide swath of adventure riders — especially those with intentions to spend a lot of time exploring off-road. With its smaller size, approachable seat height and simple electronics, it would be a fun, non-intimidating first adventure bike. At the same time, its performance envelope is big enough to put a grin on the face of experienced off-road riders, with even more potential after adding upgrades. And best of all, after a full day of ripping trails, you can blast home on the highway in comfort. 

KTM 390 Adventure R Specs

Photos Simon Cudby and Rob Dabney

Author: Rob Dabney

Rob Dabney started a lifelong obsession with motorcycles at the age of 15 when he purchased his first bike – a 1982 Honda MB5. Through his 20’s and 30’s he competed in off-road desert races, including the Baja 250, 500 and 1000. Eventually, his proclivity for exploration led him to dual sport and adventure riding. Rob’s never-ending quest to discover what’s around the next bend has taken him on Adventures in Latin America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and throughout the American West. As a moto journalist, he enjoys inspiring others to seek adventure across horizons both near and far.