I welcomed a second motorcycle to my garage two months back: a pre-owned 2017 KTM Duke 390 Gen-II that promised to be a true workhorse, a relatively cheap little beater that can go mental if pushed
BHPian CrAzY dRiVeR recently shared this with other enthusiasts:
A long while ago, in the post-COVID year of 2023, I wrote an ownership thread for my Triumph Tiger Sport 660 and called it the ‘one bike’ for my garage. For two years and ~26k kms: it has made everything fun, from mild track rides to mild offroading and everything in between – breakfast rides, commutes, luggage hauling, and whatnot! The perfect ‘one bike’ IMHO, or at least for me! Yeap – the philosophy that the best bike in the world is the one in your garage, yada yada yada…
But then, ironically, I welcomed a second motorcycle to my garage two months back: a pre-owned 2017 KTM Duke 390 Gen-II that promised to be a true workhorse, a relatively cheap little beater that can go mental if pushed:
A beater bike? Why a new workhorse? And why does it need to be fun?
Few things changed in 2025 –
- A five-day ‘return-to-office’ mandate that made the office parking crowded (and risky) for a big bike!
- My 2025 resolution to invest personal time and effort towards upskilling my riding!
- I decided on a future garage upgrade, god willing, which would have to wait a year or more for the finances to work.
- Mounting expenses (service and spares costs, more than petrol) started to hurt with my daily commute being 62kms on a good day, and a 106 kms on better days.
- And finally, this particular Duke 390, belonging to a close friend and BHPian, coming up for sale: A bike I had recommended to him, known since the delivery day, and ridden multiple times since then.
So then this Gen II Duke 390 from Kraftfahrzeuge Trunkenpolz Mattighofen will share the garage with the Tiger Sport 660 for a year or two, till a replacement likely to arrive latest by end-2026, god willing. Here in this thread, I intend to continue documenting my biking diaries in parallel with the Tiger Sport 660thread, hoping to keep myself honest and sincere – pushing for both of these decisions to come true: the upskilling and the upgrade!
Disclaimer – This forum is already a treasure trove of content on the Duke 390. Between the ~500 pages of discussion on the Duke 390 Ownership thread to a comprehensive review of the current (Gen III) generation Duke 390, almost every single detail regarding the bikes has been covered. A comprehensive review of an 8-year-old Duke isn’t going to be a value add. Hence, my intention is to keep it short, personal, and make this a running report for long-term observations.
That said – A quick summary of my likes and dislikes before i lose your attention:
What I love:
+ Pocket Rocket, Mental, Giant-killer: whether on the road or track.
+ 42hp for the price of new ~20hp machines. Hard to beat the price-to-performance ratio of a Duke 390 when new, impossible when buying used.
+ Lovely 373cc, short-stroke single that produces 42 bhp and 37 Nm of torque
+ Very compact packaging and excellent weight (just 163 kgs!) distribution makes it a breeze in the city
+ Carefully selected list of add-ons by a BHPian owner : FuelX, YSS rear suspension, Michelin Road 5 tyres and RTR Mirrors
+ Sharp handling and braking, whether on the road or track. Really can’t wait to try it out with stickier rubber!
+ Good transmission and slipper clutch combination – Allows to row through gears just as fast as the bike needs it (more on that later)
+ Very low price of spares and parts: such a relief for me, having spent the good part of the last decade with the likes of Triumph and Kawasaki
What I don’t:
– Reliability remains a multiple-choice question, but the company’s future has come down to a simple Yes/No situation! Did i time this purchase well or what!!!
– This single-cylinder 363cc motor heats up more than my three-cylinder 660cc in traffic!
– Low end is weak, despite the FuelX – can stall if you are careless! That said, the engine is super happy to revv out of that zone in a second, so it doesn’t bother me much!
– Age and mileage-related repairs – O2 Sensor, Fuel Pump, and Wheel bearings changed so far. Will get the chain sprocket changed next.
– Small size can sometimes feel insubstantial, especially out on the track.
– Adjustable front suspension would have been a welcome affair – feels good for the city, is a tad too soft for the track.
– Vibrations: This engine isn’t Japanese smooth, with minor vibrations throughout the range. However, there is no sudden prominence in vibration at any rpm, and it doesn’t bother me!
– Some missing features compared to modern bikes: Navigation and Quickshifter are sorely missed, and lean-sensitive traction control would have been most welcome. Some modern bikes even offer bottom coolers!
Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
