KTM are Toast ?
- Thread starter Arsey
- Start date
MotoGP, KTM AG: Production stopping for 2 months in January
MotoGP: Negotiations are underway at Pierer Mobility to secure the required bridge financing in the three-digit million Euros range. Major cost-cutting measures have been put in place.
www.gpone.com
Factory closing "for 2 months" as presumably nobody will send them any parts.
Will it reopen? I doubt it, in Europe at least. CF Moto or Bajaj will end up with the brand.
It's such a pity. My 790 Duke is wonderful at speed but horrid at in town speeds, lurching on an even throttle and seemingly unable to match speed to revs to fuelling. It needs a remap.
My 1290 Super Duke GT was great. Fuelled brilliantly, enormously powerful, great handling, comfortable for long distances but in the year and 5,000 miles I owned it from new, the filler cap wouldn't undo and had to be replaced, the suspension pre-set wouldn't adjust and had to be replaced and the brake warning light on the TFT went on and off at random intervals even though 3 KTM dealers couldn't find a fault, explain why it happened or stop it happening. I went back to a GS.
When they work, KTMs are brilliant, in my opinion. I love riding them. But until they sort their problems, be they electrical, mechanical or with their dealer network I will not buy another one.
My 1290 Super Duke GT was great. Fuelled brilliantly, enormously powerful, great handling, comfortable for long distances but in the year and 5,000 miles I owned it from new, the filler cap wouldn't undo and had to be replaced, the suspension pre-set wouldn't adjust and had to be replaced and the brake warning light on the TFT went on and off at random intervals even though 3 KTM dealers couldn't find a fault, explain why it happened or stop it happening. I went back to a GS.
When they work, KTMs are brilliant, in my opinion. I love riding them. But until they sort their problems, be they electrical, mechanical or with their dealer network I will not buy another one.
I'm with Bristol Saint here. No problems in 35k miles on my 1190ADV, nothing but trouble on my brand new 790ADV, went to an MT07 for about 3 weeks, then sold it and bought a 790 Duke. Fab bike, no issues, 23k on it but was then virtually worthless as the cam story unravelled. Can't see me ever having another even though they are good to ride. And yes, a remap does sort the low speed fuelling. A bit....
Sad but for a few reasons I won’t buy one. JJH
I’ve probably owned more KTMs over the last 25 + years than most on here . I’ll never buy another new one though.
More than happy to buy another KTM/Husqvarna assuming they remain in business - always some good discounts to be had and never had a major problem with any of the 8 bikes I have had from them 
I still regret not owning a 990 in the blue and orange Go!!!!!!!!!!!! paint scheme. Loved those.
If KTM do fold, I wonder what the spares situation will be.
If KTM do fold, I wonder what the spares situation will be.
Know where there’s a well loved one at a bargain price.
They’re going to find it hard to trade out of that hole. There will be a lot of collateral damage. JJH
plenty of used parts in the Tirana Motor Factors
Almost $1.5 Billion in the financial shit?
Blimey.
How does a mere $100 Million fix that in any way, shape or form?
Blimey.
How does a mere $100 Million fix that in any way, shape or form?
Will Jorge Martin be regretting his decision...? 
Of course he will, but as he's going to Aprilia I'm not sure of the relevance hereWill Jorge Martin be regretting his decision...?
.Could be tough for Pedro, but their funding from RedBull probably covers a lot of their MotoGP costs.
Sad to see Sweetlamb have lost their KTM affiliation, but needs must I guess.
Good point- well presented. D'oh....Of course he will, but as he's going to Aprilia I'm not sure of the relevance here
Could be tough for Pedro, but their funding from RedBull probably covers a lot of their MotoGP costs.
Sad to see Sweetlamb have lost their KTM affiliation, but needs must I guess.
KTM lost their way IMHO, as they went more mainstream the quality went down and they tried to compete with BMW and thought an MX mindset to customer service would suffice, the 790/890 cam debacle really showed up their corporate mentality and contempt for their customers which angered many long time KTM fans, pissed off anyone with a 790 / 890 and scared of potential future buyers.
I really loved my 1190, had a 1090 for a commuter for a while, and then got the 1290, close to 50,000 miles across the 3 of themwith 2 fuel senders (1190 / 1290) and a few code resets - never "broke down" or presented me with big biils for things going wrong, but I never wanted the Semi Active Suspension or Keyless Ignition on the 1290 - which seem to be the cause of many niggles.
It seems many KTMs have failings at launch, which are just so rare on Jap machines, and although more common on BMW's at least BMW don't tell their customers to fuck off, and seem to just quietly fix most things without any fuss.
Although my 1290 is currently for sale as I was thinking of a 23/24 model next year as I am struggling to find any other bike I like right now, the combo of comfort, performance and handling of the KTM's has been perfect for me over the last 8+ years.
I would also be happy to just keep it as with a young child I don't ride anywhere near as much and I would have confidence in the bike not to blow up or fall apart, and as long as the dealer tools continue to work to reset codes I can see no reason why the current bikes cannot be kept running for a good while to come regardless of what happens to KTM....
...Or more to the point, when CF Moto swoop in and buy them for a penny in the pound will they keep the big flagship bikes built in Austria, or just use the brand / badge to charge a bit more for their own stuff???
My dream is they continue to make the big V-Twins with semi active suspension, keyless ignitions, 32" OLED displays with 7.1 surreound sound speakers.....
....And flog a poor mans version under the CF Moto brand with just the non shift-cam 1290 engine, an anologue speedo, a conventional key, and really shit conventional suspension I can swap out for Ohlins and still have a load of change left over.
The Orange is dead, long live the Orange!
I really loved my 1190, had a 1090 for a commuter for a while, and then got the 1290, close to 50,000 miles across the 3 of themwith 2 fuel senders (1190 / 1290) and a few code resets - never "broke down" or presented me with big biils for things going wrong, but I never wanted the Semi Active Suspension or Keyless Ignition on the 1290 - which seem to be the cause of many niggles.
It seems many KTMs have failings at launch, which are just so rare on Jap machines, and although more common on BMW's at least BMW don't tell their customers to fuck off, and seem to just quietly fix most things without any fuss.
Although my 1290 is currently for sale as I was thinking of a 23/24 model next year as I am struggling to find any other bike I like right now, the combo of comfort, performance and handling of the KTM's has been perfect for me over the last 8+ years.
I would also be happy to just keep it as with a young child I don't ride anywhere near as much and I would have confidence in the bike not to blow up or fall apart, and as long as the dealer tools continue to work to reset codes I can see no reason why the current bikes cannot be kept running for a good while to come regardless of what happens to KTM....
...Or more to the point, when CF Moto swoop in and buy them for a penny in the pound will they keep the big flagship bikes built in Austria, or just use the brand / badge to charge a bit more for their own stuff???
My dream is they continue to make the big V-Twins with semi active suspension, keyless ignitions, 32" OLED displays with 7.1 surreound sound speakers.....
....And flog a poor mans version under the CF Moto brand with just the non shift-cam 1290 engine, an anologue speedo, a conventional key, and really shit conventional suspension I can swap out for Ohlins and still have a load of change left over.
The Orange is dead, long live the Orange!
Agreed they have lost their way, but…..apart from a duff battery , my 2022 Ktm390 built by Bajaj was a belter. Great quality, great performance.
Remember it wasn't that long ago Ducati had to pull every other V4 Multi as the cam feeler/ followers were defective. They used two suppliers and one supplier supplied defective parts hence 50% of production effected.
From memory Ducati did an engine swap on affected bikes. It knocked back deliveries for 6 months or so. I guess the big difference is Ducati fessed up early , took decisive actions and corrected the issues. Ktm have stumbled along with their mid sized engine bikes for a few years now, knowing there are inherent faults yet blaming everyone else.
Remember it wasn't that long ago Ducati had to pull every other V4 Multi as the cam feeler/ followers were defective. They used two suppliers and one supplier supplied defective parts hence 50% of production effected.
From memory Ducati did an engine swap on affected bikes. It knocked back deliveries for 6 months or so. I guess the big difference is Ducati fessed up early , took decisive actions and corrected the issues. Ktm have stumbled along with their mid sized engine bikes for a few years now, knowing there are inherent faults yet blaming everyone else.
And don't forget the front shock issues in 2014. What a fiasco that was. But to be fair, at the time Cotswold registered a brand new 1600 GTL and told me to ride that until the RT came back. Did they give us £1k to spend on goodies too or did I dream that? But it does demonstrate that big issues affect many manufacturers and not just KTM. Would KTM have registered a new bike for me to ride? Obviously they wouldn't have done that. Do I want a GS again - absolutely not, especially this latest effort. I wonder if the latest models of GS/A will be their 790 for sales. Just my opinion but I think they look awful. But then I do ride a bike with a baboons rear end with built-in lights
The latest KTM adventure fodder looks better though.
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