2023 ktm 690 duke r review năm 2024

When you’re in the market for a light motorcycle (as in light weight), a single cylinder dual sports or supermoto-style bike is an interesting choice. These are usually easy to ride, don’t have a lot of horsepower, and don’t cost a lot of money. Well that may be true for some, but it certainly isn’t true for the KTM 690 Duke. This is a serious sports bike in a small package, with a cool design and price tag to match!

KTM is an Austrian motorcycle manufacturer that’s mostly known for its off-road bikes. Sounds new to you? Well, the company has been making motorcycles since 1954, won the Paris-Dakar rally eight times in a row, and raced in the GP 250 and 125 classes. They even make a car (well, it has four wheels). The 620 Duke was designed in 1992 and can be seen as the world’s first ‘funduro’ – derived from an enduro chassis and engine, but made to have fun on the streets!

690 Duke

The 2008 and later KTM 690 Duke is the third variation on the theme and thoroughly modern. The machine is available in black, black with white or black with orange, the latter being KTM’s colour of choice. There’s minimal but beautifully styled bodywork around the dual headlights, rear frame section and exhaust. The cockpit is minimal with an analogue rev counter and a digital display for the speed, coolant temperature and – handy, a clock! In fact, everything about the bike is minimal and functional. You will not find anything on the Duke that isn’t absolutely necessary.

Tech stuff

The engine is a single cylinder 4-stroke with a 654cc displacement and a counter-balancer to prevent too much vibration. It’s an ‘overbore’ design (102x 80 mm), keeping the revs relatively low and the engine in one piece. Power output is very impressive for a single cylinder: 48 kW/64HP and a torque of 67 Nm (almost 50 lb-ft). Because single cylinders and V-twins can experience rear wheel chatter during aggressive (or clumsy) downshifts, KTM uses a slipper clutch. The sub frame, kickstand, handlebar and wheels are all made out of lightweight aluminium. The wheels and front axle are hollow, the swing arm is open on the sides and there is only one front disc brake. Together with the single cylinder engine and minimal bodywork, that leads to a dry weight of only 148.5 kg (327.4 pounds). That’s not a supermoto, that’s a supermodel! Luckily you don’t have to be a tall supermodel yourself. The seat is 865 mm off the ground, and although not very low, its lower than the Aprilia Dorsoduro or the BMW F800 GS. Since the bike is so narrow and light, you will have little fear of tipping over.

First Impressions

The KTM Duke looks almost like a one-off product by a custom builder. It uses very high quality parts: adjustable clutch and brake levers, a nice handlebar, fully adjustable WP suspension, Marchesini wheels and Brembo brakes. Speaking of brakes, there may be only one front brake (to save unsprung weight), but it’s a radial-mount four-piston Brembo calliper with a stainless-steel brake line. This will out-brake your boyfriend’s bike for sure! The exhaust is mounted under the engine and surprisingly quiet. There doesn’t seem to be much of a fuel tank. It’s mounted low and partly under the seat and holds 13.5 litres or 3.56 gallons. Not much, but since fuel consumption is very reasonable you can still get almost 300 km or 200 miles between fuel stops. The seat is the strangest part of the machine. It feels very slippery when you’re wearing jeans. Well, just wear leathers then like you’re supposed to! There are two humps that you can sit back against on the highway or during acceleration. And this seat is hard, very hard. But there is enough room and usable grab rails for a passenger-if you can find someone brave enough to be your pillion.

Riding

The Duke is probably the exact opposite of the BMW F650 GS from a previous MOTORESS test I quote: “The F650GS riding experience is smooth, chic, silent—a calm running engine”. Well, this is neither smooth nor calm running. Although as noted, the exhaust is (too) quiet. The 690 engine wants to perform like an Arabian horse pulling at the reigns. It doesn’t like low revs very much, but puts up with it. With every twist of the throttle, the KTM jumps forward with enthusiasm. Having said that, the engine is actually quite usable in city traffic. It can pull away from traffic lights smoothly and shifting is easy.

The single-cylinder LC4 engine has been an absolute powerhouse for KTM over the years: it’s superbly responsive and gives little away to multi-cylinder opposition in terms of ballistic hit-the-stops acceleration. Spirited performance figures of 74hp (55kW) and 73Nm say it all.

The redoubtable 693cc powerplant is still alive and well today, powering the 690 Enduro R and 690 SMC R supermoto which will both continue in the KTM bunker for 2023 with only minor graphic changes

It’s a chance to take a breath after some more substantive changes in recent years such as the addition of Cornering ABS with the ability to disengage the function at the rear wheel for some extra sporting spice. Other recent updates have included a slim LCD screen and Euro 5-compliant stainless-steel exhaust.

Related Reading: KTM 690 Enduro R and 690 SMC R updated for 2021 2016 KTM 690 Duke R review

The 2023 690 Enduro R and 690 SMC R will go on sale in Australia and New Zealand from February 2023. Pricing is yet to be announced.

Meanwhile, no word yet out of the KTM bunker of the rumoured 490 range produced in collaboration with the company’s technical and operational partner, CFMOTO.

The KTM 490 range could encapsulate the full gamut of road (naked, faired and supermoto), adventure and touring motorcycles.

How reliable is the KTM 690 Duke?

KTM 690 DUKE (2012-2015) Review | Speed, Specs & Priceswww.motorcyclenews.com › bike-reviews › ktm › 690-dukenull

Is there a recall on KTM 690 Duke?

KTM North America, Inc. has determined that a defect which relates to motor vehicle safety exists with certain 2016 and 2017 690 DUKE motorcycles in which the fuel may seep or leak from the fuel filler neck insert area and the fuel level sensor.

What is the top speed of the KTM 690 Duke R?

KTM 690 Duke (2016-2019) Review | Speed, Specs & Priceswww.motorcyclenews.com › bike-reviews › ktm › 690-dukenull

Is Duke 690 discontinued?

KTM will not launch the Duke 690 in India and the company will discontinue the model in the future, replacing it with a twin-cylinder bike. The said information was revealed by KTM CEO Stefan Pierer at the RC 200 and RC 390 launch event earlier today.