Superbike Engine in an Adventure Bike? KTM 1190 Adventure Follows Ducati’s Lead

Ducati did it first with the Multistrada. Design a relatively light, upright and comfortable adventure touring chassis and place a full blown superbike engine inside. KTM will be following suit when it replaces the 990 Adventure (a bike that makes less than 100 hp) with the 1190 Adventure next year.

Borrowing the big V-twin from its RC8 Superbike, the 1190 Adventure is expected to weigh close to 500 pounds while generating roughly 150 hp.  Not your father’s BMW GS.

There will be both a standard and an R model, differentiated largely by wheel size (19/17 on the standard and 21/18 on the R).  Just as Ducati does with the Multistrada, expect KTM to tune its superbike motor for peak power and torque at lower rpm levels.

Top drawer features should include Brembo brakes, ABS and traction control,  as well as ride-by-wire throttle, adjustable windscreen and selectable power modes.

Full details should be available in early October at INTERMOT, but we expect KTM will make the bike available in Europe next year, but will not bring the 1190 Adventure to the U.S. until the 2014 model year.