The big KTM 990 SMT thread -- riders check in w/ photo!

If your asking me about the differences in the KTM and the Multistrada, I've only had a couple test rides on the SMT at the KTM rally in Lake Tahoe the other weekend.
I was very impressed with KTM's fuel injection. It was super smooth to me without any hiccups typical of fuel injection systems. I thought it was better than the Ducati in that dept. The bike handled very well and was a hoot to ride. I thought it could use a little more HP but it was at around 6000+ ft altitude too. I didn't get any long time in the seat and it had the touring windscreen on it. The ergos felt good like the Multistrada 1200s that I own now.
All in all I really couldn't complain about any aspect of the SMT. I would love to have one and will probably own one some day.
Right now I have the 1200s Ducati and I'm very happy with it. It is an expensive bike but it truly is like 4 bikes in one with the different suspension and power modes. It is nice to be able to push a button and have a good handling and riding bike on every type of road there is out there.
I just got home from a 2450 mile trip to the Black Hills in SD. I very much enjoyed the bike on the trip. The Multi does have a lot of electronics going on though. I've had a few little annoying electrical problems with it and the only Ducati dealers are 200 miles away from me so that is a pain in the ass. Lucky they have not stranded me. The grip heat quit on me and once in a while I get an error message about the suspension system. Everything seems to work OK I just get random error messages once in a while.
The Duc wins hands down in the power delivery dept. Handling I would say the Duc wins there too, but it should with the high dollar suspension it has.
I thought the KTM had very good suspension too just not quite as good as the Duc.
I am able to ride well over 650 miles a day on the Duc and not have any pain at all. I'm pretty sure I could do the same on the KTM.
Both bikes seem to have pretty good side bag systems that I can live with and they had the hard case system on the SMT at the rally. I thought it was a great system and liked it better than my Duc.
Finally, I would probably feel a little better about taking the KTM on the dirt roads than the Duc, mainly because of the cost of the Duc. I do ride once in a while on the dirt with the Duc and it handles it very well but I have the Adventure 950 for that stuff.[/QUOTE]

Thanks, that was a fine comparison to share with us and nice to hear from a Multi 1200 owner. Sounds like what I was thinking when buying the SMT. IMO the Duc is the best looking bike on the road, but the SMT not too far off that mark along with looking a little more rugged. I expected that the SMT would be less on power, but plenty for me and overall pretty comparable at a much better price for me. I also have a KTM dealership 5 mi down the road.

well i've put about 1200 miles on my SMT so far....mostly commuting. that involves lots of lane splitting and slowing and acclerating. i get about 39 mpg.....over 40 when I drone along at 80+. 150 miles till the lite comes on. so the mpg is good. the vibs are low and the motor just runs great. the suspension soaks up everything even in the sport settings....a little bouncy but that's the price you pay. lost 19 lbs with the leo cans and a shori battery. also the seat is super comfy. the handling is very quick and it feels a little darty. a damper would help but i don't know if anyone has a set-up

I recently fitted some aftermarket goodies to mine.

Tank protection, engine protection and the centre stand.

Is that the SW Motech stand? Did it give you any problems during installation, and have you noticed any loss of ground clearance while turning left?

Not sure if the prior poster has the SW Motech stand, but I do. Installation was pretty straightforward, the only difficult part being pulling the spring into place. And I haven't had any issues with ground clearance on either side.

No, its the KTM centre stand. But it may very well be made by SW Motech as a lot of the SMT accessories are.

I agree with seh750, fitting the springs was a complete PITA! I hope I never have to do that again.
Apart from that it was fairly straight forward.

Unfortunately my bike has been back at the dealership since I fitted the goodies and I won't have it back until November (sprocket nut came loose and damaged my swing arm)

It's been awhile since I posted here. Previously I had been trying to decide on the best luggage system with cost in mind. Unfortunately the Happy Trails 950SE rack did not work out, so I ended up going with the SW Motech system. But rather than buying the adapter kit for my Pelican 1550's, I decided to make my own. The kit they offered just seemed weak, and the price was a bit much for what you get. It also seemed to add quite a bit to the overall width of the setup.

The rack itself bolts up and works as advertised. My previous concerns about the quick fasteners was thankfully proven wrong. The fasteners held their own. The mounting brackets I made are simple. They are bolted to the cases and hook directly onto the racks. I even included a quick lock setup using a sliding door lock. This allows the cases to be locked to the racks.

This was my setup for a trip I took in Aug/Sep, touring the Western US. 7,500 miles over 25 days.


Overall I was loaded a bit heavy as I was doing some camping along the way. Each side case loaded weighed 30 lbs, the dry duffel was 15 lbs, and the tank bag had minimal supplies.

For my next trip I will definitely trim the load as she was a bit tail heavy. I might also look to move weight forward where possible. Perhaps by eliminating the tank bag and going with some other storage system. The tankbag is nice, but it is right there. It really kept me from getting up on the seat. I've been thinking about trying the Giant Loop Mojavi as a tank/saddle bag setup. I've also considered dumping the hard cases and going with a soft luggage system as a way to shed some weight as the Pelicans weigh about 11 lbs each when empty. But then I'm never certain of what I'm going to do until it's done.

what steering damper set-up is that?

Ralle-Moto. There used to be a US dealer, but I noticed the other day that they quite carrying them.

slick set-up. who actually makes the damper.....i wonder??

I'm assuming Ralle-Moto out of Australia. http://www.rallemoto.com/contents/en-us/d27.html

Best Rest Products was the US dealer/distributor at one time, but they have stopped carrying them.

Okay...the SE Aqualine 30L tank will fit on a 990 SMR.

A 990 SMT tank will fit on an SMR


sooooo....the 30L Aqualine Tank will fit on a SMT?


?????????????


Thoughts

get an answer yet?

Is it cool other than the wt savings and fabbed aux tank?
For me, the dual exhaust is a big plus appearance wise.

A cool mod might be to convert to single side exhaust, then using the other exhaust can and convert it to an aux fuel tank. That way it still "looks" like dual exhaust, but really you have a gallon or so of extra fuel.

Yes, to have it look like a second exhaust, plus
have fuel or storage would be excellent if well done.

No answer.

I need to find out what the difference it between the SE, SMR, SMT

Do they all use the same from??



?????

I'm checking in with my new '11 SMT. Awesome bike. Mods so far- Garmin Zumo 660. Wings exhaust is on order.

Picking it up:

Wait, you got an SMC too?! :huh




:eek1

Yes...