The 1290 Super Adventure S brings suspension tech and road going ability to an already accomplished package
KTM’s 1290 Super Adventure S features a spec sheet almost identical to its off-road focussed 1290 R sibling. It looks the same-ish – perhaps not quite as cool, but that’s subjective – and it goes the same, in a 1301cc V-twin, scalded cat kind of way. So, what’s the point? Why not just go for the full off-road rig and get on with the adventure?
There’s this point: you see yourself riding far more road than dirt, and when you do head off-road, you’re not re-enacting a Dakar stage. You commute, you carry luggage, a pillion, or a pillion and luggage. You may commute during the week and like to go out and upset the riders with ‘all the gear and no idea’ on the weekend. Whether you tick one or many items on that list, the 1290 S might just be the bike that’s your socks and jocks, because it’ll do any and all of those things.
That stonking 1301cc V-twin, punching out claimed figures of 118kW at 8750rpm and 140Nm of torque at 6750rpm, is the same in both bikes. If you’ve heavy on the right wrist, the traction control light may be flashing in protest – if you have it turned off, you could be throwing rear tyres at it ad nauseum. The six-speed gearbox is smooth and precise, but clutchless shifts require good timing. If your timing is out, the S won’t shift up and unfortunately, the S lacks the R’s Quickshifter+ setup. Finding neutral at standstill can be a painful experience, enough so that on occasion I’d just turn the thing off and walk away.
WP semi active suspension allows a choice of four pre-set modes: Comfort, Street, Sport and Off-road, with notable shifts in operation between all. The widest gulf is between Sport and Off-road modes. The first bit of dirt I encountered was handled in Sport mode. This option had the dash and screen creaking and rattling and the bike feeling nervous over corrugations. Switching to Offroad mode on the fly is easy, and the rattling stops and the S becomes off-road friendly, even more so than that S badge promised.
There are also four rear spring pre-load settings – rider, rider and luggage, rider and pillion, and rider pillion and luggage. Pop a pillion on the back in comfort mode with the preload set to ‘rider’ and you’ll be illuminating bedrooms on the fifth floor of the nearest apartment block with the KTM’s LED headlight. Select the rider and pillion combination via the left-hand switchblock and you’ll feel the bum come up (and oncoming traffic will be much happier.)
In addition to the selectable modes, the bike’s Suspension Control Unit (SCU) makes fine adjustments based on road surface and speed to keep the show on the road, a suspension trick becoming more commonplace and proven by this KTM to be worthy. Twin radial-mounted four-piston Brembo calipers grip 320mm discs up front, with a twin-piston caliper gripping a single 267mm rotor at the back that gets the 215kg (dry, claimed) package stopped well on the bitumen, while the ABS interaction off-road is excellent.
Ergonomics are very similar to the R; there’s plenty of room to move around, even for my 184cm frame. The seat is comfortable, firm but well-shaped, and only after a three-and-a-half-hour jaunt did I start to do the comfort-butt dance. I find the ’bars are a comfortable height while seated, but a bit low when standing. And despite the 23-litre tank capacity, it feels narrow between the knees.
Cleverly, the seat height is adjustable without tools, offering two positions (860mm or 875mm) making the S more accessible to those who find the R’s 890mm seat a bit of a stretch – literally.
Pillion comfort is good with large, sturdy grab rails which are also great for lashing bags full of adventuring gear to.
There are also integrated luggage attachment points for KTM’s genuine luggage, which which also double as really handy tie-down points in their own right.
The screen is adjustable without tools and provides excellent protection from the wind. At its lowest setting, the screen sent the wind blast just above my head, while at its highest setting, it provided no extra protection from the wind, but I felt it was in the way when I headed off-road.
The S boasts LED lighting all round, Motorcycle Stability Control, Motorcycle Traction Control, a vast suite of rider modes and ATIR (Automatic Turn Indicator Reset). ATIR will turn the indicators off if you forget, after 10 seconds while moving, or 150 metres.
The S features the same 6.5-inch colour TFT dash as the R, feeding you all the latest info, and can connect to your smart phone and/or headset for navigation, phone calls and music (see page 86 for our TFT dash Tech Talk article). It’s easy to read in any light and is one of the best in the business in terms of legibility, design and functionality. Flicking through the on-screen menu is done via back-lit switches on the left-hand switch block and it’s really intuitive.
Cruise control buttons are also located on the left switchblock. KTM’s cruise control is not quite as refined as other marque’s systems. The combination of tapping a brake to disengage the cruise control and the resultant engine braking has you lurching forward, which doesn’t look cool.
The cruise control also disengages when you pull the hydraulically-actuated clutch in. But there’s a fair amount of play in the lever before this happens, within the initial lever travel, so the cruise control system is still engaged for a moment and the revs increase, which isn’t ideal.
There’s a nifty little waterproof mobile phone compartment and power for charging your device. You can connect Android or iOS devices to the dash via KTM MY RIDE for incoming calls and playing your tunes. Navigation is also available via the KTM MY RIDE Navigation app.
The S runs 19-inch front and 17-inch rear cast aluminium wheels, but unless you’re doing some serious off-road work, the reduced wheel size compared to the R won’t be an issue. The Pirelli Scorpion 2 rubber offers excellent feedback and stability from each end, and aren’t out of their depth in dry off-road conditions.
With the 1290 S, KTM has created an incredibly versatile motorcycle. It offers a better road package while still retaining some of the off-road prowess of its more dirt focussed stablemates and, at $26,495, it’s almost $2000 cheaper than the R.
The 1290 S is a bike that can punch out serious miles, commute very happily and the lower seat height makes it easier to handle around town than the R, but can still hit the dirt with more than a dose of confidence. With the smaller wheel size, road focussed tread and with sport mode selected, the S is like a giant motard, and with that engine there’s no excuse not to get out and find your inner hoon, either on road or off.
TEST: PETE VORST PHOTOGRAPHY TIM MUNRO