I bought one in September and haven’t had any issues. I’ve been riding dirt bikes for 55 years and the 390 is my first stab at an adventure bike.
I live in Idaho and it’s perfect for an old guy like me. I highly recommend.

I personally have been riding motorcycles (motocross/enduro/flat track/desert racing/rode racing/pleasure rode riding) since the 1960’s, and started adventure riding with single cylinder street legal (I added headlights/tail/brake lights) dirt bikes (Ducati 450 MX, Yamaha 500XT, etc.) in the 70s, and three years ago I acquired a Harley Davidson Pan America 1250 that has seen thousands of (50/50 off and on road) miles.
As I age (mid 70’s) and physically slow down, reaction time and strength (lack there of, compared to my youth/prime), I found the Pan America becoming a bit to much of a terrifyingly scary fun bike in the dirt, and that’s why I went with the 25’ KTM 390 ADV R. I also have a slightly souped up (to include after market suspension) Honda CRF 250L Rally, that actually does better in the dirt than the KTM, suspension wise, but, lacks the power of the KTM.
Almost every single MC I’ve owned (a lot of them over the last 60 years) had issues that needed to be addressed, and were. Some of them actually came close to being perfect… the KTM 390 ADV R, obviously is no exception. All the short comings pointed out are real, and somewhat common with other machines.
KTM (the company) has been pretty good at listening to us, the consumers/owners, and responding in kind with solutions that are, so far, for the most part, covered by KTM. I did, however, on my dime, upgrade the tires, hand guards, and installed a Coober cat free header and Fuel management system with the DNA Stage II air filters. These upgrades made the KTM 390 a much more lively and enjoyable bike to ride in the dirt. During a recent trip with my bother and cousin, we covered over two hundred miles in the Pacific NW rain forest mountains, with 80% of it on mountain fire roads (two track) and a little bit of single track and about 40 miles of mountain twisties tarmac, then we went to Idaho and did a similar 200+ miles in the mountains of Idaho (only at higher altitudes - 10,000+ feet). During both trips, the bike performed great, with absolutely zero stalls, and for the most part, had enough low end torque to negotiate any and all terrain encountered, some of which was technical and knarly. Could it have been better? In a word yes. Was it lacking? Not really. Did it perform like a light weight ADV bike? Yes, because, that’s what it is.
Is it a Hard Enduro bike, or even an easy enduro bike, no, not realistically, however, in the right hands, it could do either. What it is , is a light/small ADV MC, that is comfortably manageable and fun on both the open roads and the dirt. Does it pop wheelies on command as quickly or easily as my Pan America 1250? Not yet, but, a larger (by two teeth) rear sprocket, and or a one tooth smaller front sprocket with will remedy that problem without adversely hindering it’s high speed road manners. The bike, when stock cruises easily all day at 70-80 mph, with a top end of just shy of 100 mph, with camping gear loaded on the bike.
Having said and done all the above, I still have less $$ invested in the KTM than most all the supposed “better” options, and by the way, CFMOTO IBEX 450 is a good option, a little better on the tarmac, but lacking in dirt performance. The KTM 390 instills confidence in the dirt and allows for a more aggressive style of riding than the IBEX 450.

Ktm 1290 súper adventure R here watching this guys mentioning this bike is so heavy 😂lol

Thank you for this review. After that i think i should buy this moto.

Ill never buy another KTM. Because ill be keeping my 390 ADV R until i can no longer pick it up out of a bush. Its a fun little ripper!!

FWIW.  This bike was built as an A2 machine for European compliance. As I understand it, A2, is license category for newer riders. It’s not meant to be an unicorn especially here in the US. It’s built to a price point.

This will also apply to the new Kawasaki and likely the new BMW.

You should ride it like a 2 stroke  and that’s it !!!  😂💨

"it took me forever to finally get it up"

RIP

Spud crashes into a tree and complains

Spud says an adv bike is to heavy for slow technical terrain

Love my 390 R, but i dont think after this and the 890 ill ever buy a ktm again after this bike fills all my needs.

The lose footpegs might be the dealers fault. From factory the 390 comes with a heel plate on them, that u can use if u want a pillion footpeg delete. They probably removed them and didnt tighten the bolts correctly

There is something in the 390 range for almost everyone. I have a 390 Duke Gen 3, it's for me, as an unbelievable tarmac-shredding extreme handling bike. The fully kitted CRF300L is me adventure bike :) My Duke is updated and the latest tune does help a lot with the stalling, low-rpm blubberyiness.

I think what the bike needs is a centrifugal clutch like the the rekluse . BMW and Honda announced these kind of clutches as options in some of their 2026 bikes. It allows a lower displacement engine to deliver power on demand more evenly without the need to modulate the clutch perfectly. Yes it’s a work around but possibly the right answer without the need to compromise highway riding by providing more torque lower in the rev range. The DRZ 4S for instance has way more torque down low but can’t deliver much at highway speed without getting buzzy and bent out of shape. We’re asking these low displacement engines to do both. The solution is a centrifugal clutch that gives the experience of getting power between gears without any lag or or stalling. What are your thoughts ? My plan is to get the 390 because it’s got a weight advantage over the 450 ibex for instance and install the rekluse. I don’t work for them by the way.

It's not a dirt bike. It's a road oriented mini adventure bike. In 2010 I bought what was supposed to be the best mid ADV bike. F800GS. The seat was so bad I could only ride 60 minutes. When the fuel went below 50% it became incredibly top heavy. The suspension was crap and completely non adjustable in the front and the rear was barely better. The buffeting from the windscreen was horrible. But...it was ultra reliable and super comfortable (after a seat swap/ new windscreen) for long distance riding.

That's a drastic change of opinion from the CF-Moto 450MT vs KTM 390 Adventure R video from a while back ... and I have been since then very skeptical to the general opinion of YouTubers who would say in that time frame that they also would no doubt choose the 390 over the 450 MT ... despite all the evident issues ... I could not understand that ... now it seems the same YouTubers start to roll back. Very strange indeed...

Most of the stall comments, remember, USA uses 87 octane. In Europe the minimum is 95 and also the fuel quality is better. I had 3 stalls in 1000km. All of them after cold start with the engine not on operating temp. So what?

I saw this video, didn't stop me from ordering one. He is how I answer to their points: 1. Weight: It's still a light bike compared to most other adventure motorcycles. If you can't get it up (I can't believe he said that with a straight face), maybe you need to work out. 2. Power: 44hp is more than enough. That it's up high is a problem, but the latest ECU firmware update apparently makes it better. It probably changes the way the bike should be ridden (clutch), and we should be ready and willing to do that. 3. Suspensions: I'm heavy (and tall), I know I'll have to change the spring. It doesn't cost much and it's pretty darn easy. 4. Reliability: Here they mostly mention loose bolts. I guess they never heard of a wrench. I do worry about engine reliability long term, but it seems that with judicious oil changes (more often than the manual suggests), it's fine. 5. Costs: Aside from changing the rear spring, and the bash plate if doing some serious off-roading, everything else is optional. With the new ECU update, is it still necessary to get a new exhaust and Coober? Maybe not. Foot pegs? LOL! That video is just clickbait, trying to get views. And the fact that it's made by Bajaj, so what? I can't afford a 690... As simple as that. Actually if I had more money it probably would be a choice between the T7 and the 690, and let's even throw in the Kove in there, why not, or the AJP. I wanted a mono-cylinder ADV, and I'm getting that. I eliminated the Himalayan and the CF because of looks, maybe that was wrong. Anyway, I know buying a KTM/Bajaj is a risk, so I keep my expectations low, but I think you get a lot for the price with the 390 ADV-R. We'll see... I'll make some videos once I get it.

I took one for a test ride today. The part and bolts they mentioned was loose was also loose on the demo bike. I hadn't seen this video until later this evening. The bike stalled once, but that could have been me. I was actually very underwhelmed with this bike. I'm coming from RE Himalayan I had for 6 years and then a DR650. I've sold both and looking for my next ride. This video just confirmed it for me. The KTM is now out of contention unfortunately. I'm going to wait until the KLE500 and BMW F450GS arrive in the country. Take them for a ride then maybe comeback and have another look at the KTM. Southland, New Zealand

Excellent honest review. Everyone should realise that in this A2 licence market segment, they cut corners in suspension and there is the 0.2kW/kg power limit. Listen to what Ian from BRM said in his latest comparison with the 890, which is an absurd comparison in the first place. And then there is reliability.

For the price of €8000 in Austria, there's nothing comparable on the market. And I truly love this bike for its travel and adventure possibilities.🥰