KTM 1290 SUPERDUKE R (2017 - 2019) Review

This bike does everything, I’ve been touring around France with mates who were on gs 1200s with no problem and very good fuel consumption

Out of all the bikes I’ve owned this has the best engine, it’s a train , so much low down torque and loads of power up top , just awesome!

Had no issues with this bike in 3 years of ownership

Not the cheapest to service but probably not far off every other manufacturer

I love the look of the bike , the engine and handling and also the wind deflection is good , the worst part of the bike is KTM making you pay extra to unlock features the bike has built in !

Brakes are excellent, good feed back and initial bite. Suspension wasn't that great, it sits very tall and I found the rear pogo'd and the front was very vague. I was considerably slower on track than my Daytona 675 because I just couldn't get confident in the front end, even after lots of setting up and adjusting. On the road, it's ok, pegs are nice and low, feels comfortable but again, very tall.

The party piece, an absolute revelation and makes you forget most of the flaws. It's just all encompassing, so much torque and violence it beggers belief. It actually feels like the engine is too much for the frame, like it's trying to twist the frame up, it really is staggering and will destroy almost anything from 30mph onwards.

Overall finish isn't great, certainly not up there with Triumph, Ducati etc. Plastics feel a little cheap, paint easily chipped. I had multiple engine warning lights before I reached 2000 miles, majority were ghost faults and a turn off and on again sorted it, but then the quick shifter failed.

Surprisingly good on fuel, insurance was less than a speed triple, MT-10 and S1000R. First service around £200, pretty average.

Plenty of electrical toys, but only at a premium extra cost over stock.

Bikes as happy on the track as it is on the road great all rounder in my opinion.

What an engine it is genuinely awesome and when you get used to dropping one less gear on a corner and using the torque it’s a really great feeling, it really is a pleasure to ride and it makes you smile constantly.

It’s a nicely built bike but since owning it the only problem I had was Switchgear packed up causing lots of warnings and as I ran out of warranty it cost £540 to fix £394 of that was the switch gear. It’s quite common for radiators to start leaking check Facebook Superduke Carnage page for cheaper fix than new radiator. Oh and fuel gauge packed up too but was replaced under warranty.

Love the riding position it’s so relaxed if you play with the suspension settings that are printed on the underside of seat and are in handbook you can firm up for track days.

For what it is the comfort is fantastic and it is a great all around bike. If im going over 150miles or need to take more than a backpack I'll take my Super Adv S, but I'm no iron butt. For me, the SDR is at it's best on the mountain twisties (im not a track rider). Will never put someone on the back of it, not what it's made for!

Power everywhere from low, mid, high - I've never had a better, more flexible, more balanced powertrain on any vehicle..from slow to on the pipe, there are no weak spots. I did put the full akra kit with PCV, AT, Dyno tuned it, but not because it needed it, just because I could, wanted better sound and investing in such a fantastic bike is a no brainer.

Only issue was a weeping break resivour...10k miles! Excellent build quality all around, no issues with paint, trim, anything!

The 18k service is approx $1k I believe - eg for valve adjust, etc...

Must have Power Parts accessories include: heated grips & comfort seat. I added CRG Arrow mirrors to cleanup the front. Stock tires and brakes are fantastic, stock exhaust heavy, ugly, poor sound. Dash functionality is effective. Ride modes, cornering abs/tc, all the electronics are awesome! Track mode let's you hang it out there as you desire!