Looking for adventure! 2022 middleweight mud plugger shoot-out | MCN group test 

The 690 is a great bike ... but given you need to address the seat and will most likely have to address the fuel capacity I think you should have also tested the Long Range edition of the Husky 701 ... it may cost more but the seat and fuel capacity and done ... A mate told me the Husky 701 LR might be a little snatchy and vibey but id think its as snatchy and vibey as the 690 given its based off that bike ... its just a suggestion.

Rally Raid tower, Seat concepts, lose the stock can and its sorted….

@@saturatedfat6542 the Husqvarna 701 LR isnt available in the uk only the standard bike and then the LR kit is a powerparts add on which is nearly always on back order and around £1800 to purchase and the seat is just like the stock seat in comfort. Also the 21+ ktm 690 & husqvarna 701 are now the same bike in essence

@@shaunbknight1 Rally raid dont produce a kit for the 2019+ ktm 690 unfortunately but there are other options and yes a Seat concepts seat and aftermarket end can are great upgradea for sure 👍

Gas gas es700?

They kind of do with cb500x

@@Adamjmckay Yeah, kinda. You can Rally Raid stage 2 a CB500x and it's a huge leap toward Afric Twin-ness. Maybe I'm thinking of something more like a CRF500L Rally, that parallel twin in a 350lb-ish package, dirt bike that can comfy highway at 70-80mph. I know I know, the never ending search for the unicorn bike.

They do make the transalp 750 which is ment to compeet with t7 and co, i assume the market for an additional bike between those two bikes would be very small

In all honesty in most parts of the world the bike market mainly consist of 300cc and smaller bikes. In places like Asia and India, Africa and even parts of South America where two wheels are mainstream transportation a 300cc bike is getting on the larger engine size. The bikes we want say here in the states make up a very small part of the sales worldwide. Even then many new bike models are released up to several years sooner overseas if they ever make it to the states at all. That should give you an idea of where the manufacturers prioritize their models to match the buying trends. Motorcycle popularity in the U.S.A. is basically for only enjoyment for the majority of buyers.

yes, if they can keep the weight down, so far for me its the yamaha, 442lbs wet, 74hp, 54 mpg, those are my 3 main parameters, weight HP and mpg,lets face it, touring MPG is a factor as range isa factor there may not be a gas station every 150 miles on your choice of itinerary, then if you are getting off road then you don't want a 500lb bike, so you need the lighter weight which means better components, lightweight alloys, composites.. they want to charge you for a good bike but dont deliver, the 800DE.. $14k fora 512lb adventure bike with 76hp? I dont mind the HP and range but the weight? I cant have the fun I want to have on it, a real adventure bike should be able to hit the moderate goat trails in my book.. my hayabusa weighs 500 lbs? soif honda did a 500CC hi performance with 65 hp and kept the wight down to 420 or so yea it may be a good one... if I got on right now it would be the tenerere. 442lbs, 74 hp, and 54 mpg, someo report 60 mpg... remember the lighter the weight your bike is the more your HP to weight ratio is so HP isn't as much as a factor, a 500lb bike for me on the freeway needs at least 150hp cua I am not getting onthestree with all these crazy freeks on a bike that does not DOMINATE, why I am on a sportbike, i don't have to deal with all these lamo drivers I hit and wave good bye.. don't think you wont be stuck in bad weather and bad drivers na duel sport, evenmore reason you need to be able to check out at the drop of hat, then you have all your gear, maybe a passenger you s don't want to be down shifting on a mountain pass, why the honda 300 wont cut it, 27 hp? nah, I carry about 165lbs of gear, plus I am 180, I wuldbe in 3rd gear up mointain apsses at 45mph... no thanks if it was an all offroad adventure sue then it works your averaging like 40 mph topps and that's fine, but if there are freeways and surface streets involved, which all good adventure riding there is, I need my power to weight ratio in my favor, not some cager who just arrive cross the river no insurance nota clue how to road road signs and its their first time driving in USA... no thanks been there done that cost me about $10k and my credit score for 7 years, I think Suzuki made a good adventure in the 800 for japan, its all surface streets for the most, their speeds aren't that high and its a small island, but make no mistake when your itinerary has 500 miles of freeway to your next trail head yo want to be able to make up time with decent MPG, Busa gets 44 mpg anything under say 125mph, so i can float at 120 at night and make someo good time, I schedule accordingly, ride through the night grab some shut eye that day get up and go.. frame there is touring, slow speed surface street lookie lou stuff, nothing over speed limits, not for me, too many half witted cagers.. then there is sport touring, I can do that, its point A to point B sightseeing in a nutshell as apposed to straight touring where its sightseeing as you ride, speed limit stuff or slow surface streets and back roads.. harley stuff.. then there is adventure touring, this is a combination of the former with off road capabilities and for this you need a special bike, a lightweight, good handling on and off road, HP and MPG.. 442lbs is a lot but I'm fair rider, string enough, prolly need to hit the gym fora fe months first so I can pick the darn thing up cuz I am going down, those are the best stories, long as you walk away, better stories if you ride away... also need storage capacity or capability, I use soft saddlebags upon the busa, large tank bag and large rear seat bag, have plenty, with bag and tent strapped to all that, I have enough space for laptop, clothes, towels food, everything, fact is my rear seat bag is a fridge.. I had a large rear bag come off and melt on a pipe so I converted it to a fridge, insulated it, dry ice or a few ice packs I can keep stuff frozen if need be.. in the heat.. I don't see this a problem on those middle weights but how are they going to handle the added weight on the freeways and mountain passes? when the larger bikes are floating at 90-110 making up time where would I be on a 700? if you're on a schedule and have a ferry to catch runs once week or month, gotta be there that may mean wicking it up for 400 miles? so far the Yamaha is the winner for me but will it be enough HP on the wicking it up adventures and how much MPG do I lose at that speed? need to speak with a rider that who owns one rides like me, late and generally in a hurry ... maybe the KTM is a possibility of I can work on it and its not an arm and leg as all those european bikes are, not a twin fan tho

And you have the best channel! Haha. How’s the ktm reliabilty compared to Yamaha tho???

@@jibinraj6058 not even close. You can get all that, crash bars and a storage/ skidplate combo and still be 20kg less than a stripped down t7. I do admire the t7 and have thought about getting one and selling my 701, but the 701/690 platform will crush the t7 offroad and they way it carries its weight it feels much much lighter than the T7. Of course on road handling with go to the t7 because of the twin motor and planted/heavier feel. Both very awesome bikes and both reliable.

@@jibinraj6058 I can not speak for the kits you listed above, but the rade tank and rally kit both weigh less that 7 kg total. Add the 1.5 gallons of fuel that's give or take 5 kg. But even with the kits you mentioned above, of you're picking up that kitted 690 and the stripped t7, the 690 will feel lighter because of mass centralization. I'm not sure where you can remove 15kg off the T7 but I would like to know. I'm sure Pol could have placed better on the 690, but we will never know lol

@@jibinraj6058 Rade garage rakky kit is not 15kg, not even closes. I would guess its 3, 5 kg MAX over the standard fairing. I own a 690 adventure with rade rally fairing.

@@jibinraj6058 Your right, I got that kit confused with the rade garage rally kit. I got the rade garage rally kit on my bike.

I'm an itchy boots fan too! I wonder if the upgraded spring package that she had installed is all this bike really needs.

itchy boots is lighter than me even fully loaded with gear🤣. so yea CRF300 indeed suits her better.

If going in real wild then honda, but euro civilizaciton ktm is more fun factor

I don't think she is riding fully loaded with camping gear. Seems like she stays in motels. Great channel though.

Check out SHONKY PRODUCTIONS, what he's done with the 300rally is pretty epic. Long AUS adventures, raced in rallies and so on. Great bike

All these bikes have good reliability scores . itchy also rides really slow and no technical difficult trails . Also working as a powersports tech Suz , Yam , Hon come in for repairs more often than you think .

Yeah- im with you on that. I had an old husky 610sm carb model loved that bike too it was a standout for pure fun. Many other bikes to compare by. The ajp is probably up specked on the swm version with that engine?

You are on the right way Alvaro, i think the AJP ist better because you get the complete device. That means in my world, i don´t have noting to change

Watch the next episode you wont be disappointed 😉

Yeah Micheal Cycle News is great.

The Man(n) and the Guy.

@@TommyAngelo1337 I was thinking *Neeves* and *Guy*

small bikes are definitely more fun. but sometimes you just need to get where you're going without the fun, just comfort security and a relaxed stable ride.

"If only the Japanese would build a serious Enduro bike."That's what I heard before the Honda CRF450L was released! Then when it came out, people poo pooed it! That's why we'll probably never see a 450\500 c.c. model from another Japanese Maker, 450 Rally bikes included! My 2019 model rocks.

CB500x engine in CRF frame ? That’s what I want.

Getting those intervals really means a different engine.

What's the cost of all those add-ons, except for the pipe?

Fuel pumps...always and Austrian problem, Husaberg(exhaust heat),KTM/Husqvarna dirty fuel, they don't like it...filter sock, way to go,and I've spent an age on the 'Berg getting it to run cooler, including lining under the tank with space age material

That's because it's a fact. My ktm 690 nothing but problems. list of issues is long for 690, 790 and 890.

2 years? Please be more subjective. How many km's/miles?

@@nathanf1934 13000 km. My mates 2019 model just passed 44000 km, no issues yet.

@@wonkywheels1037 You left the 1290 off your list. I have the 2019 SA-S and it has been in the shop at least 15 times, starting within a month of purchase, with electrical problems and not a single one was recognized or remedied by KTM.

I'm with you on your comment. I know late to the game here but just ran across the video. I have had big cc bikes but my 300 Rally is an incredible machine and at this point want for nothing else. I takes me anywhere I want to go and I like it so much, for first time in 45 years of riding I intentionally ride in winter months and not so nice weather when no one else is out! Ride for hours and its comfortable. Unless one is in some level of competition riding alongside bigger bore machines, the 300 Rally is an amazing bike for dirt cheap money.

Been looking at getting a wings exhaust for my 701 SM. They say no fuel remapping is required with either of the baffles in. What has been your experience with it?

@@Gofr5 Sharon exhaust from Rade Garage, good looking pipe,reasonable price too?

@@Gofr5 It’s a simple plug ‘n play. My bike required no fuel remapping. It’s lighter, sounds great and doesn’t get nearly as hot as oem. You won’t regret it.

Glad you enjoyed it!

More to come!

Jeez that's even worse than a CVT interval on a scooter !!

First add-on when buying a KTM, an Oberon clutch slave

!

I thought the same 😂

AJP

the ktm 690's reliability issues have been resolved for many years now

You obviously know nothing about KTMs..

So, there was a problem.

No need to muck about with the suspension on the Katoom like you would have to on the Honda or Yammie (if you're semi-serious). That can involve a ton of time and money and faffing about. Cheap bikes are cheap for a reason. Expensive bikes? You take your chances.

For such low miles you'd expect it to be trouble free! True?

@@nathanf1934 Expectations and reality don't always line up real nice. At least you would expect the dealer to make things right. Finding a good dealer is almost as important as finding the right bike.

@@nathanf1934 Not sure how many miles you but on a bike in a year, considering I use the 690 purely for pleasure/trail riding I think the bike has been fantastically reliable. I would think around 65/70% has been "off-road" miles whilst traveling on the Trans Euro Trail which the 690/701's seem to be dare I say it the perfect combination 🤷🏼

At what weight penalty?

701 owner here. I test rode Tuareg and had exactly the same impressions as you do. I would switch right away if I haven't owned RS660 before. That one was nothing just issues, during 20 months of ownership I lost 12 months for repairs or waiting for the parts. I said I was done with Aprilia... but that Tuareg keeps coming back to me. I need to follow-up how it performs and if all the issues were resolved.Who knows, maybe I give Aprilia a second chance.

So, if you buy the £9.5k bike and add another £2k from RADE you're all sorted?

Apparently if a bike didn't have brand new tech in it, it was not mentioned or considered. Even the AGP he stated was great and had no negatives, but then didn't choose it in the end because "the engine is old school". Guess what - all single cylinders with counter-balancers are old school.

@@ws8080 KTM 390 Adventure is the new 'DR-Z400'(more power)...put 'Adventures with Ryan'(KTM390) in the search bar here, 3500miles on it,all off-road...my bike for the Americas trip,I reckon?

The DRZ400 is not available in the UK and hasn't been since 2009 - which I'm fairly sure is why it's not included in a UK motorcycle channel/magazine group test of 2022 bikes "what should you buy" review.

I sold my KTM 1090 after becoming disillusioned with it due to a litany of issues big and small. Went back to an old 1150gs. Couldn't be happier.

​@@roelfkromhout any specific problems on ktm?

@@erixlast6020 - faulty tensioner (timing chain), fixed under warranty - flaking paint on the rear spring (not a legitimate warranty issue according to KTM) - cold start issues - random electrical issues - a rear brake that does not stand up to real use. Fading after just a few hairpins on a mountain pass. Never had any such issue on the many other bikes I rode, but not a warranty issue according to KTM. This was on a 1090 I bought new from the dealer. Their attitude with regards to the rear brake was the last straw for me. Just unacceptable. In addition, a friend of mine also bought a 1090. His is even worse: - also fading on the rear brake after minimal use - a faulty / leaking rear head gasket - it doesn't run properly. Random shut-offs and intermittent ignition cut offs during acceleration I bought a 1090 because the press was very positive on it after that Corsica launch event. But it goes to show that riding a bike on an all expenses paid launch is something entirely different from real ownership. Odds of me ever buying a KTM again are low to say the least. Would have been different perhaps if KTM had had a different attitude towards fixing my issues with the bike.

@@erixlast6020 just random electronic errors, literally random lol I work with the bikes everyday and let’s just say the 790 is the worst bike they ever made, we’ve did at least 2-3 engine rebuilds and my tech was not happy… but 1090/1190/1290 are reliable engines I just don’t trust euro electronics because you can’t clear codes unless going to a dealer

@@NudaMan made in india i guess 😅

Except the weight. You don't want to have such heavy bike for riding proper offroad alone

I also have read several times that the 660 puts out a tremendous amount of heat.

@@bgm1911 EU problem... dump the cat, richen the mixture, sorted...same on the KTM 390 Adventure, heat melts the shock seals...choke any exhaust up,heat rises

@@bgm1911 true it smokes everything

Sometimes it is just a sizing problem. If I was 100kg of muscles and bit younger it could be fine. But as of now 75% size of this bike would be great for me. 75% of power, weight, clerance, etc. 150kg and 60 HP sounds gr8 and would be gr8 for many of us. I don't need 200kg 80HP

Like the 640 Adventure they used to make.

Would be cool if Honda made a 450/500 like the 300 rally with similar fuel range and maintenance intervals.