2024 KTM 1290 Super Adventure S: Tarmac to Trails

Every flat tire has a silver lining. Actually, not all of them, but it does sometimes apply. Case in point—I was geared up, packed up, and ready to roll out for a combination project involving a couple bikes, a tour feature, and a dedicated review. Yet, the moment one of the bikes came off the sidestand, there was a problem. Not one, but two screws had found their way into the 1290’s rear tire the previous day.

I’d just purchased a new type of plug kit, so the first silver lining was being able to give that a try. Although the plugs worked perfectly, this test would involve well over 1,000 miles, so we decided to replace the rear tire. Thanks to the folks at 3Bros Racing in Costa Mesa, CA, I could roll over on the plugged tire and have it swapped for a spare. This tire change would later play an interesting role during the test.

The KTM 1290 Super Adventure S has a unique split personality, which blends record-setting tarmac performance and rally-proven off-road DNA in a consumer-friendly motorcycle. On the road, the 1290 platform set a new world record at Pike’s Peak in 2017. KTM’s Chris Fillmore piloted a 1290 R to victory that year.

In 2018, I asked Fillmore how similar the engine of the 1290 Super Adventure S was to the Super Duke 1290 R that set the world record. “Overall, they are pretty much the same exact engine,” he told me. “When you ride them, you feel the similarities. The SD-R is tuned for more peak performance and the S is tuned for more all-around riding. They bring the torque down in the rpm so that it rolls on smoother when riding a gear or two high.”

The obvious question of what modifications were done to the competition bike resulted in an equally surprising answer. “The motor was untouched. The majority of the materials came out of the KTM Powerparts collection: WP fork cartridge kit and race shock, triple clamps, full Aero exhaust, rear sets, Brembo master cylinder, Galfer wave rotors. We used a Rottweiler Performance intake, Sprocket Specialist helped with sprockets, and Super B supplied a lightweight battery. Bam, race bike!”

Continuing the Legacy

Fast-forward to the present. KTM’s street-biased flagship adventure bike continues to demonstrate all the competition-proven “ready to race” characteristics. It also now features high-tech updates introduced from 2022 onward, like adaptive cruise control, an updated semi-active suspension system, and a robust set of features available through a fairly intuitive color TFT interface.

While virtually any modern adventure bike’s electronics suite requires some time to become accustomed to, the learning curve on the KTM seemed noticeably shorter when compared with many bikes in this class. I could both access and fine-tune the bike’s features with button sequences that seemed mostly logical.

Select a ride mode through the menu, and you can tune it on the same screen. Activate cruise control via the dedicated button, and you can adjust the available options through a menu screen identical to the ride mode screen. Keep going down the list to suspension settings, app connectivity, and various other options, and they’re all available. Just scroll to the screen you need, and more or all the options for that subset of functions are there.

A Motorcycle for Many Roads

Which of the myriad features rises to the top as “most important” depends on both rider and terrain. A long-haul road warrior would likely use the adaptive cruise control constantly. Someone riding primarily off-road would be quick to investigate ABS and throttle response options. The hardcore sport rider will likely be pleased with the extremely adjustable semi-active suspension, complete with a dedicated anti-dive feature that allows the fork and shock to be tuned with hints of record-setting performance.

For my part, the Rally mode opens up the 1290 Super Adventure S to its widest range of riding possibilities. This ride mode adds a few options when compared to the Sport, Street, Off-road, and Rain modes. At the bottom of Rally mode’s features list is perhaps the most fun of them all—the slip adjuster.

With a graphic that clearly depicts what the feature is all about, the slip adjuster reassigns the plus and minus buttons on the left handlebar. Instead of adjusting cruise control, they will now control how far the rear tire can back out when getting on the gas through the corners. At the highest of its nine levels of intervention, the nearly vertical motorcycle on the TFT offers an impression of the tame response you can expect from the monstrous engine, no matter how much throttle you apply when leaned over in a corner. As you reduce the level of slip intervention by clicking down to the lower numbers, the TFT displays an image of the bike with the rear tire stepping farther out with each button press. Having this parameter be easily adjustable on the fly begged for experimentation.

Mixed Tread but Maximum Performance

Back to the flats and the tire swap. The test bike originally came shod with Mitas Terra Force-R treads front and rear. An equal replacement was not available for the last-minute tire swap, so a Pirelli Scorpion Trail II was spooned on to the rear instead. Even with a mixed set of street-biased tires on a loose sandy road, KTM’s slip control system found just the right amount of traction mixed with slide. It threw the bike through corners in what felt like very similar angles to the images on the TFT.

The WP semi-active suspension is equally tunable. In any of the six available modes of Auto, Sport, Street, Comfort, Off-road, and Advanced, both front and rear preload can be set to default levels of Standard, Low, and High, or anything between 0-100%, selectable in 10% increments. Additionally, all six suspension modes offer the option to turn Anti Dive on or off. Switching to the Advanced mode, two additional options appear, which allow you to adjust damping on the fork and shock independently, with eight available settings.

Highlighting just a few features of the 1290 Super Adventure S in a short article feels like doing the bike a disservice. Seat and passenger comfort, chassis ergonomics, wind protection, luggage options, and multimedia connectivity are other aspects of this flagship bike that beg discussing. In the end, I suppose the name of the bike itself is perhaps its own best summary. The 2024 KTM Super Adventure S provides a toolkit for creating super adventures. On or off pavement, racing or cruising—tuning the machine for how you want to ride is likely just a few button clicks away.

Technical Specs

+class-leading performance, surprisingly good off-road manners, highly adjustable engine and suspension, intuitive TFT interface, robust multimedia connectivity
– heated grips and seat not standard equipment, overall aesthetics are an acquired taste.

Distributor: KTM
MSRP: $20,999
Engine: 75° V-twin LC8, liquid-cooled, four-stroke
Displacement: 1301cc
Power: 160 hp @9,000 rpm; 102lb-ft @6,500rpm
Transmission: 6-speed, PASC slipper clutch
Rake/Trail: 65.3°/4.3in
Weight (DRY): 485lbs
Seat Height: 33.4in-34.2in
Fuel Capacity: 6.1gal
Fuel Consumption: 49.6mpg (claimed average)
Fuel Grade: premium
Color: gray