I just got home from an Adventure! Ktm 450, Honda 450, Husaberg 550, Ktm 690. Very remote N Nv,450 miles 2 days, 10,000ft, snow over the knee, 200 miles between fuel, Dark 30 out of gas being towed by a pickup,, hotel no rooms, resturant will not open, dirve 30 more miles north to a friends hotel with only 2 headllights,10 pm he is full too but calls the neighbor next door and gets us beds and a 6 of blackbute porter, wake up, repeat, reach Brunos at 730 and then home. I know its not RTW but ............. FACK THAT was an Adventure
PS I own the Husaberg and the 690....................I think I prefer the 690 now that it has Trail Tricks boingers but its 50 lbs heavier
Black Rock? Yea! Some nice trail riding out there. You may have ridden some of these trails. Lots of new illegal gates going up these days, even on BLM land.
No shit about the fences. One right in front of a blm sign stating access road. Had to un wire that one due to fuel shortage wired it back up but its east to get through now. Black rock to Denio, soldier medows dont want to part with gas right now ,makes the trip interesting , little high rock,highrock,onion,knottcreek et al bitchin but still plenty of snow to make it difficult. Fell through a spring covered in 12" of sod. Front of bike completely under water never had that happen before. Flowers will be great in 2 weeks. Im so sore right now I cant pick my nose Gotta love the high dez in spring. There is a lot of not much out there
I'm hoping these guys can post a few pics, I'd love to see how the luggage works on a 690. Reading his one post that actually talks about the set up was good but I'd like to hear more detail about the trip, the other bikes and support they had on their ride. Sounds like a paid tour of some kind?
I am wondering if anyone has experienced slight water contaminant in the oil when changing the oil on 690 singles . I have a 2010 690R enduro and during the last two oil changes I have noticed a small amount of contaminated oil around the magnetic sump plug. Normally in most other bikes I have only ever seen something like this in the oil window during cold weather with short runs. However on the KTM it only appears at the plug and nowhere else, regardless of the journey length. I have checked the two screens and the oil filters, but there is nothing showing on them. I am curious to know if anyone else has experienced this. My oil is changed every 3000 kms. The amount of contaminant only seems to be about 2 or 3 Ml . My very experienced KTM mechanic believes that the area around the sump plug might be compartmentalised and out of the normal engine oil circulation. Accordingly he feels that engine condensation is gathering there and not being circulated with the oil. Any ideas ?
I've been paying close attention for a year and have heard/seen/read no complaints of water in the oil on the 690. Many, many other gripes but not that one. Your mechanic has the right idea, condensation. Another theory maybe??? get a tamperproof oil cap.
Coolant level is ok. I had first thought of some getting past the seals at the pump. 2/3 Ml is not going to make much difference to the level in the header tank anyway. I am also inclined to go along with the condensation theory but posted here to see if anyone else had seen or heard anything. Thanks for the responses folks.
I would think that if there is any condensation build up, minimal there could be it would be burned off when riding. Also it has to be hot then cold at night and sit for some time to build up, or at least i think. I have an 08E and 15000km on it, changed oil every 2500km or so and never had that.
Has anyone had issue with the bash plate on the engine with the trellis frame? Seems like it would be less protected/weaker than a traditional underslung frame? Did anything get sorted about the reliability of the 690? i am absurdly interested in this bike but have recently been heavily considering a used te630 with longer suspension travel and wider ratio gear box... and not much mention of reliability issues other than cam chains.
Just an update on the Condensation issue. I have been riding through the summer with two oil changes and no sign of water in the oil. Accordingly I can only come to the conclusion that there is condensation involved during winter time. I ride the bike all year round and I notice that during really cold weather I only ever see two bars at best on the temp guage. Otherwise all is well with the bike which now has 20,000kms on the odometer.
I turned sixty five last month. My high mileage body is wearing out, even the original replacement parts. My love for "adventure" riding originated with bikes from the 70's which is why my friends accuse me of having low expectations. Had a '12 KLR I modified and loved. Next came the R 1200 GS. Seven hundred mile days to mountain destinations far from western MN. Loved it too. Next came a Honda CRF 250L. Great little trail bike for an old guy to enjoy single tracks on. I just picked up an 07 gen 1 KLR with 1,200 miles on it. (pristine!) Put together my budget and plans for modicications and then I had an epiphany! All three bikes are going down the road to new homes. Im strongly considering a 690. I'd like to take a single track once in a while to remind myself why I shouldn't. I know that when the spirit moves me, I'll end up a couple thousand miles away in some remote place with a smile on my face. I'm religious about maintenance becasue I suck as a mechanic. Am I dreaming to think I can put 40K trouble free miles on a 690 enduro? I avoid interstate travel whenever possible so long days of 80 mph will be a very rare occurence. Two lane black top and a whole bunch of gravel and forrest service roads. Opinions?
