Looking to go Orange, but...
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What oil was in it?
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That's the base weight, for passenger and lugauge you change the preload settings like any other bike with electronic suspension.
There is also an option that the dealer can set the baseline on the computer +-5mm. More than a few have had a new spring fited though, especially the pie eating GS refugees
It shouldn’t come on at 100mph with a top box. I had it happen with a top box at around 140mph, with the suspension in comfort, which was a bit of a daft thing to do. If I want to ride at high speeds, then I’ll switch to sport suspension, and the bike is solid as a rock, regardless of luggage.
especially the pie eating GS refugees
Guilty as charged
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My 1290S is stable with panniers upto 143 mph according to the GPS. the top box upsets it a bit getting close to that speed. I first had the rear shock pre load increased by the dealer as I'm a BIG guy and subsequently fitted a stronger rear spring. As mentioned previously setting any bike up to suit your weight is very important. A GS won't even reach those speeds so not an issue there 
Jim Aim. They are a pretty good, had a 690 a few years back from them
No idea
I was there last week have my SA serviced (18k miles) and new tyres; I found them to be polite, courteous, informed, helpful and nothing was too much trouble (from the service team with whom I was dealing with).
I did see a couple of SA-T's in there which looked very clean & well priced.
totally different bike....
the GS is for grown ups and has brakes that work really well
the KTM is more for hoodies. lots of go, slaps like 350LC ridden properly, but doesn't have a clue how to go round corners and has no brakes at all. Its a cross between a turbo charged pogo stick on acid with a 20 stone rider and a 1961 BSA with single leading shoe front end that's just had the drum lubricated with big slosh of paraffin
just looking at the shit on the back wheel and the chain sag is enough to leave in the garage and get the k25 out
If I was getting old or rode in traffic I'd get the Guzzi
If I'd robbed a bank I'd get a new 1250GS
I've got both a proper air cooled GS and an Adventure T before anyone pretends I'm making that up. Half the problem is the joke electronic suspension. The back is solid, the front is more squishy than a balloon running 1/2 a PSI. Two up it works much better, unless you move from single rider without luggage to any other mode where it just gets worse. And since when was it OK for a computer to continually mess up the suspension settings.... I guess one day, for one second in the bikes life, it might be right if it keeps trying??? On a BM with the stupid ESA it just gets firmer, it doesn't transform from a wayward death trap into an unridable beast that shouldn't be allowed on public roads like the Adv T does
I'm beginning to understand (like everything else in the rest of the world) most bikers are now clueless morons who have no idea what possible, let alone what's right and will accept anything marketeer's come up with, especially when sold a dream by some retarded bike mag hack.
For me the brakes on the KTM were better and tbh the handling round twisties on smaller roads was great, never an issue there, it was only the straight line high speed stuff that was an issue. But seeing that makes up a fair portion of your journey to get anywhere the it needs to be a consideration. And having a chain and sprockets really isn’t that much of a bind if you look after them and they are properly alingned....
Personally I’d rather have non electronic suspension, decent components properly set up, but seems that the electronic press the button to adjust is they way it’s all going.
Will see how it goes, my current GS ticks lots of boxes but doesent offer the excitement and involved rise the KTM does. But at speed it’s far more stable..
Not ridden an SA-T but had a 2008GS and have ridden the variants since (except latest 1250)
I have had an 1190S and 1290S (well still have both) and for a while had a 1090S alongside the 1190 - and would of preferred any of them over the GS of the time, even the "budget" 1090 as it was still a lot more exciting than the GS - and IMO they all outhandle the GS, and the brakes on all of them are more than good enough to get the ABS kicking in on a good road with two finger braking - what more do you need than to have brakes that have excessive power and 50% of available effort...
...and they don't leak from new either!
I do agree about the bullshit people like to buy into, my 1190S is better on rough roads than the 1290S, the 1090 almost certainly had the sweetest handling when thrashing it like a sportsbike, but the GS semi-active suspension equally misses the mark, the latest with auto ride height (preload) made me feel sea sick as it constantly pitches back and forth trying to balance itself out, it was like being on a rocking chair when trying to cruise at a steady speed, and it's "comfort" mode had zero damping, nothing comfy about still boinging up and down 500 meters after the bump that started it al off.
Ignoring the unwanted electrical interference on the suspension and the lack of adjustment (in that there are only 3 modes one fella at KTM liked) the 1290S is definitely the best "Sporty Adventure Touring" motorcycle I have owned - and another problem is bikes have become so diverse it is not like the old days of a which 600 or which 1000 should I buy.
I guess the 1290T was pitched at the GSA, but the 1290S competes with the GS, but is not trying to be a better version of it, it also competes with the S1000XR (but so does the Superduke GT) and it competes with the Multistrada which is much further removed from a GS competitor and more like the XR, yet in some ways less like the Superduke.
It seems there should be a bike for everyone, except me, as I want the 1290S with quality manual suspension of the 1290R (but without the skinny wheels and extra 2 foot of height)
The 1290T never lit my fire, the electronic suspension was a put-off and the extra torque of the 1290 mill was not enough, although with the cruise as well I might of been tempted - if it came in any colour other than white, but I really do not want the extra weight, and the 23L tank of my 1190 / 1290 gives an easy 200+ mile range even at French Motorway speeds with 3 boxes weighing it down, and easily over 250 if obeying the French 50 mph national speed limit.
The 1290S/R make much more sense to me, who would want all that weight off road? and with the later 1290S/R having the cruise control, cornering lights, TFT, Keyless etc it makes for a better touring bike (IMO)
FWIW MCN did name it "bike of the year" in 2015, but I rarely agree with the bike press on anything, especially the "BMW Bribed us to say the GS is the best adventure bike for the 10th year running", I guess KTM opened up the advertising budget for 2015.
I have seen some excellent value 1290T's in dealers and thought them to be an awful lot of bike for the money,
I have had an 1190S and 1290S (well still have both) and for a while had a 1090S alongside the 1190 - and would of preferred any of them over the GS of the time, even the "budget" 1090 as it was still a lot more exciting than the GS - and IMO they all outhandle the GS, and the brakes on all of them are more than good enough to get the ABS kicking in on a good road with two finger braking - what more do you need than to have brakes that have excessive power and 50% of available effort...
...and they don't leak from new either!
I do agree about the bullshit people like to buy into, my 1190S is better on rough roads than the 1290S, the 1090 almost certainly had the sweetest handling when thrashing it like a sportsbike, but the GS semi-active suspension equally misses the mark, the latest with auto ride height (preload) made me feel sea sick as it constantly pitches back and forth trying to balance itself out, it was like being on a rocking chair when trying to cruise at a steady speed, and it's "comfort" mode had zero damping, nothing comfy about still boinging up and down 500 meters after the bump that started it al off.
Ignoring the unwanted electrical interference on the suspension and the lack of adjustment (in that there are only 3 modes one fella at KTM liked) the 1290S is definitely the best "Sporty Adventure Touring" motorcycle I have owned - and another problem is bikes have become so diverse it is not like the old days of a which 600 or which 1000 should I buy.
I guess the 1290T was pitched at the GSA, but the 1290S competes with the GS, but is not trying to be a better version of it, it also competes with the S1000XR (but so does the Superduke GT) and it competes with the Multistrada which is much further removed from a GS competitor and more like the XR, yet in some ways less like the Superduke.
It seems there should be a bike for everyone, except me, as I want the 1290S with quality manual suspension of the 1290R (but without the skinny wheels and extra 2 foot of height)
The 1290T never lit my fire, the electronic suspension was a put-off and the extra torque of the 1290 mill was not enough, although with the cruise as well I might of been tempted - if it came in any colour other than white, but I really do not want the extra weight, and the 23L tank of my 1190 / 1290 gives an easy 200+ mile range even at French Motorway speeds with 3 boxes weighing it down, and easily over 250 if obeying the French 50 mph national speed limit.
The 1290S/R make much more sense to me, who would want all that weight off road? and with the later 1290S/R having the cruise control, cornering lights, TFT, Keyless etc it makes for a better touring bike (IMO)
FWIW MCN did name it "bike of the year" in 2015, but I rarely agree with the bike press on anything, especially the "BMW Bribed us to say the GS is the best adventure bike for the 10th year running", I guess KTM opened up the advertising budget for 2015.
I have seen some excellent value 1290T's in dealers and thought them to be an awful lot of bike for the money,
took me a while to work out why SA T brakes don't seem to work... (aside from no bite like its running really cheap pads...) the GS telelever (which gives vague feel but is ok when you learn to trust it) reduces dive meaning the rear can add a lot more to the party.... and then because the BM brakes are linked you always get 25% rear when only using the front lever...
That loss seems exacerbated on the KTM... in one "active mode" the front goes as soft as anything, so if you stop riding 10 10ths and then you go to stop for a T junction, your head ends up head butting the road in front of you.... Its so bad I sit there incredulous that it could be so soft, so you pump the forks to check what's gone wrong and after three goes it wakes up and gets firm again. Its like WTF !!!
Electronic suspension interference is not thought out right. On the back of the GS I have a white power shock with 3 way manual damping and a 175nm spring.... its perfect, literally set and forget. 4 years on never touch it, even two up. Makes you realise ESA is just a way to try and make a 50 quid shock appear to function... when they should have just bought in a 250 quid one when making the bikes. Accountants !!!
I used to ride trial bikes with long travel a lot when I was a kid and never had an issue with dive. But when you get to big adventure bikes, a quick nip on the brakes when manoeuvring has 200kg of lard all upset and knocking you off line.... the GS design fixes that.
However the flexy forks are a joke. On the K25 with forks that are twice as stiff as the LC bikes, I still get massive flex (increased when you move to road tyres as they can actually generate some grip). Particularly noticeable in high speed direction changes.... I have braced the top of the stations on mine just below the ball joints and top yoke. It takes 3" of bar flex out of the equation when pressing on. Which means the stock air cooled bike forks are dangerously undersized. Which makes you wonder how the world works when they dropped the material thickness by half and reduced the diameter by 5mm on the LC bikes. Is it any wonder the ball joints fail and the forks fall off as you ride? (still world wide recall was kept pretty quiet and didn't resolve anything - so that's OK). The 1250 is still on the joke pipe cleaner forks and not the proper 45mm stations it needs.
I think the solution is get the forks off a SA T and put them on a 1250 GS with most of the insides missing (luckily the stupid electronics and the biro fork springs can go in a skip when you fit the top ball joints) then finish off the suspension redesign with a set of stock Ohlin's units both ends… After that get an angle grinder out and make the engine into a 90 degree twin like a guzzi, so we can get 3" of width off each side.... and we'd be halfway towards a proper bike.
The KTM has linked brakes.
Not how it works, it adjust on the fly in real time in fractions of a second, not when someone starts bouncing it up and down, plenty of stuff about it on the interweb, but....
100% spot on - I had top spec Wilburs on my GS, got a setting I liked and when it was in for service I would get an ESA bike, mine rode bumps better than the ESA bike in "Comfort" and handled better than the ESA model in "Sport" just on my base setting.
My 1290SAS seems to have a lot less dive than my 1190, then again so did my old 1090, so this could be the effect of better damping rather than the clever electronics, but either way the dive is not excessive IMO. I got used to the telelever and think it is great for two-up, but I prefer a good fork setup (with an emphasis on good)
Or for KTM to fit telelever to the 1290
really ? mine do nothing at all.... the wind resistance hitting the BMW brake lever (even with hand guards) slows the bike 1000 times better than two hands squeezing the KTM lever against the bars
trust me, mine can move the front damping to NOTHING (and having head butted the floor) if you bounce them up and down when stationary at 2 1/2 compressions the damping comes back in hard. It is due a recall for the electronics to be updated, I live in hope.... if the lack of brakes doesn't kill me first.
(I'm a motor vehicle tech with 45 years of riding under my belt I know what's supposed to happen)
Well I must be one of the clueless, hoodie wearing morons that botus so eloquently describes. I bought a '16 plate 1290T a few weeks ago and couldn't be happier with it.
Handles great (Although I've not loaded the bike up with full panniers/camping gear and then tried to do 140MPH and hoped for there to be no issues with handling). Brembos work just fine, suspension is great and that motor is such a peach but hey....what do I know.
I guess I could only ever aspire to reach the amazing botus levels of greatness.
Oh and the finish is the usual high standard I've come to expect from KTM (this is my third KTM). Mind you I do also own an Evo Harley so maybe it is all relative. It isn't all a bed of roses mind. The way KTM put shite, cheap seats on a premium product and then expects you to stump up for a comfortable seat pisses me off immeasurably. I can't imagine a car manufacturer asking if you would like a comfortable seat as an optional extra...."no, I'll take the really fucking uncomfortable one please". Maybe they do, I've never bought a new car.
So all in all, I'm pretty chuffed with the bike. The realisation that I must be the aforementioned moron has left me feeling a little upset with KTM though.
Handles great (Although I've not loaded the bike up with full panniers/camping gear and then tried to do 140MPH and hoped for there to be no issues with handling). Brembos work just fine, suspension is great and that motor is such a peach but hey....what do I know.
I guess I could only ever aspire to reach the amazing botus levels of greatness.
Oh and the finish is the usual high standard I've come to expect from KTM (this is my third KTM). Mind you I do also own an Evo Harley so maybe it is all relative. It isn't all a bed of roses mind. The way KTM put shite, cheap seats on a premium product and then expects you to stump up for a comfortable seat pisses me off immeasurably. I can't imagine a car manufacturer asking if you would like a comfortable seat as an optional extra...."no, I'll take the really fucking uncomfortable one please". Maybe they do, I've never bought a new car.
So all in all, I'm pretty chuffed with the bike. The realisation that I must be the aforementioned moron has left me feeling a little upset with KTM though.
Linked brakes? Check. Mine work.
And I’m clearly a massive moron too having had 4 KTM Adventures and an EXC.
I’ve been riding for 45 years but haven’t got a clue what’s supposed to happen.
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And I’m clearly a massive moron too having had 4 KTM Adventures and an EXC.
I’ve been riding for 45 years but haven’t got a clue what’s supposed to happen.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
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