A bikers bike ..... (Can I come in .... ??!)

[MattW]

Matt,

Compared to my 1200 GSA the 990 was more compact but no less comfortable for either Blondie or I however it was noisy, wind noise that is. The 1190 is more spacious and just as comfy as the 990. I asked Blondie for her views and they are the same. From a riding point of view both KTM's are much more involving and enjoyable to ride than a BM, the 990 is super light and carries weight really well, manually adjustable suspension means you can always adjust to whatever load and once adjusted the weight seems to disappear. Only drawback with the 990 is the way the brakes feel, they don't have a great amount of initial bite but they do work pretty well. The 1190 has great brakes but, in the standard form with electronically adjustable suspension, is not as good as the 990 two up with camping gear. You feel the weight more if you know what I mean. It's not a big difference though. In a nutshell i'd rate the bikes 1190, 990, 1200 GSA for two up use, I put the 1190 in front of the 990 in spite of the fully loaded benefit to the 990 as this is marginal and the 1190 is just so much fun with loads of power, great brakes what more do you want? You won't be disappointed with either.

Dave

Thanks for this Dave - really helpful.
Cheers
Matt

 

[cookie]

The brakes on my 1190 are plenty powerful, but seem to lack the initial bite I found on the LC BMWs.

On an unrelated note...I was out and about on the Dorset back roads this afternoon in pouring rain. It was bloody marvellous at it. I didn't think putting it in rain mode would make me any quicker so I didn't bother.