Cost of ownership: KTM 1190 vs Multistrada 1200

[ultrarnr]

I have been considering a Multistrada 1200 but have started to look at the 2013 KTM 1190. For those who have experience with both KTM and Ducati how do you feel the brands compare as far as cost of maint and other repairs go? Thanks for any insight.

[Martynho]

If we were comparing commuter bikes I would get this question. I dont think you buy these sort of machines based on the cost of oil filters.

If servicing costs are a major factor, I would go japanese for sure

[nikoktm]

"if you have money to buy whiskey, you must have money to buy the ice"

[Geek]

+1

If cost of ownership is a real concern; perhaps there are more sensible bikes to choose from.

Good luck with your decision.

[It'sNotTheBike]

Originally Posted by ultrarnr

I have been considering a Multistrada 1200 but have started to look at the 2013 KTM 1190. For those who have experience with both KTM and Ducati how do you feel the brands compare as far as cost of maint and other repairs go?

If your question is indicative of your priorities, you are not a
motorcycle enthusiast and frankly you don't even deserve to
own fine machinery. You have the mindset which would have
the entire world driving a beige Toyota Camry because it has
the lowest operating costs. The mere thought of this makes
my stomach want to eject its contents like Linda Blair did in
"The Exorcist".


One good ride on a KTM LC8-engine bike and any rider
who is an enthusiast will be thinking : "costs be damned,
I've got to have this bike !" And that rider won't be
wondering how much it costs to operate, not then and not
ever. All the rider will be thinking about is when the next
ride can happen.


.

[Martynho]

I was being polite, but I was thinking this mate. Well said

Originally Posted by It'sNotTheBike

If your question is indicative of your priorities, you are not a motorcycle enthusiast and frankly you don't even deserve to own fine machinery. You have the mindset which would have the works driving a being Toyota Camry because it has the lowest operating costs. And the mere thought of this makes my stomach want to eject
its contents like Linda Blair did in "The Exorcist".


One good ride on a KTM LC8 engine bike and anyone who is a real rider will be thinking : "costs be damned, I've got to have this bike !"


.

[It'sNotTheBike]

Originally Posted by Martynho

I was being polite, but I was thinking this mate. Well said

When you grow older, as I have been lucky enough to be able to do,
you tend to quit worrying about what someone else thinks of what you say and
you tend to say what you really think. It's a great feeling, not giving a damn
about what other people think. It frees you up to be who you really are. Truly the
world would be a better place if everyone did this all the time, regardless
of their age or station in life. Too much time is wasted on pretense and for
no measurable gain, unless you like the taste of the bottom of someone
else's boot. I never liked that taste myself.


Somewhere in the world there is a person who would sell
his or her kidney so he or she could own a KTM LC8 bike. They have read everything
they could find on the bike, they can recite the engine specs from memory,
they know what makes the engine a superior design, and they know
about all its race victories. For them no other bike will do, and they dream
of the day they can own such a bike.They are the sort who deserve to own an
LC8 bike, not some weenie with a bean-counter mindset who worries about maintenance
costs.


If I was in charge of the universe you'd have to pass a test
before you were allowed to buy nice stuff. Money alone wouldn't
mean you could have the nice stuff. You'd have to answer some
questions which would indicate whether you actually deserved to
own it. The Last Whole Earth Catalog contained a nice treatise on
what was necessary to earn the right to own a tool. Buying the tool
alone was not enough, you had to pay your dues to learn why the
tool was useful and how to best use the tool. Only then could you really
deserve to own the tool.



.

[SidewinderX]

MTS will cost more to own.

This is from my experience having ridden 17k on a MTS1200 in 7 months and 12k on a 990 Adv-R in 6 months.....

[Katoom72]

Unless u don't know how to pickup a wrench urself you're better of with a boring Jap. And believe me, they are boring compared to an European. I ride for the fun of it so KTM is the logic choice.
Hell even if i could not wrench i'd pick a KTM or any other European over a Jap. Name me 1 Jap that comes close to a Euro bike in riding experience.

[rockycraig]

hey ultra, welcome to advrider, you have a simple question and get responses that really do you no good, I guess by me typing this I'm doing the same thing cause I don't know the answer to your question but if you have patience someone will give you a first hand answer to your question. I myself was wondering about the cost of service of ktm and went to a ktm shop and asked. they said about a grand for the valve adjustment service. I have enough money for that but at that price it hurts, just don't know if I could stomach that and I do not do my own work except for oil changes. the 1190 r looks like almost a perfect bike for me but 1000 dollars. I guess I'm an old Dutchman cause I almost shit myself at 400 for my r1200 service. so I guess it's all in what you want but I don't want to give up that for service, that's why I got rid of my seadoo boat. good luck with your search no help with the Ducati costs from me.

[Martynho]

Originally Posted by it'snotthebike

when you grow older, as i have been lucky enough to be able to do,
you tend to quit worrying about what someone else thinks of what you say and
you tend to say what you really think. It's a great feeling, not giving a damn
about what other people think. It frees you up to be who you really are.

aye but old habits die hard, i am brit you understand, brought up to be polite

somewhere in the world there is a person who would sell
his or her kidney so he or she could own a ktm lc8 bike. They have read everything
they could find on the bike, they can recite the engine specs from memory,
they know what makes the engine a superior design, and they know
about all its race victories. For them no other bike will do, and they dream
of the day they can own such a bike.they are the sort who deserve to own an
lc8 bike, not some weenie with a bean-counter mindset who worries about maintenance
costs.



you speaka my language amigo. I threw in a bloody good job in the corporate world to ride a lot more. Looking around for a suitable bike my old bean counter type logic was leading me to buy a yam tenere 660 (fine bike, sensible, very reliable, shame you dont get them in the usa). I knew sod all about 990's at the time but one came up at good money so i test rode it for 40 minutes and wrote a cheque as soon as i got back to the bike shop, grinning like a ferkin' idiot. Put 70,000 miles on that one, came to south america to live and work, bought another, now 50,000 into that one.


Never counted the running costs, it just is.


Looking around at other bikes occasionally now (as wellas, not insteadof): Bmw rr1000, a ktm superduke or supermoto 690 and a triumph speed triple all coming to the fore. Wherever i go it will not be for any rhyme or reason. More how I feel on the day when the cash comes available. Surely this is what riding a bike is all about!

I drive a 5 year old Hyundai SUV to ferry the family about, cost effective vs reliability vs depreciation matrix optimum point

.

x

[Katoom72]

Considered this one?:

[Moronic]

Originally Posted by ultrarnr

I have been considering a Multistrada 1200 but have started to look at the 2013 KTM 1190. For those who have experience with both KTM and Ducati how do you feel the brands compare as far as cost of maint and other repairs go? Thanks for any insight.

Interesting question ultranr and one that I too would enjoy having some insight into. Thanks for asking it.

For those suggesting that anybody interested in the answer is unworthy of a KTM, read the question again.

It is not asking whether an LC8 costs more to run than a Yamaha.

It is requesting insight on whether the KTM could be expected to cost more or less to run than a Ducati, a notoriously high-maintenance brand which had been high on the OP's next-bike list.


So, after five years of new-Ducati ownership but none of KTM ownership here is my take on the question - which I hope KTM owners can correct, confirm or add to.

1. In addition to the cost of desmo valve jobs and timing belts, what adds to the pain with Ducati is the high cost and poor quality of some OEM parts. As I am interested in the 1190, I have taken a look online at some LC8 spares, and they appear to be priced at about 70 per cent of equivalent Ducati spares. Systems also seem to be more available as individual parts. Is the quality higher? Can't say.

2. The other potential big cost for Ducati owners is the unusually rapid rate of depreciation with miles. A lot of people seem to buy Ducs but not ride them much, and so the used market is flooded with low-mile examples. That cuts demand for higher mileage bikes, even though the basic engineering is solid. My impression is that used KTM buyers are more tolerant of high mileages.

3. It looks a bit easier to set the valves on a KTM, and you don't have to pay for or tension drive-belts. That should keep costs down and make life easier for do-it-yourselfers.

4. KTM has added multi-mode ABS and sophisticated traction control to the 1190 but has stayed away from hands-free ignition lock and steering lock and digitally controlled suspension, unlike Ducati. Less to go wrong.

[bikepharmer]

Originally Posted by ultrarnr

I have been considering a Multistrada 1200 but have started to look at the 2013 KTM 1190. For those who have experience with both KTM and Ducati how do you feel the brands compare as far as cost of maint and other repairs go? Thanks for any insight.

I went from a KLR to my KTM 990, and have no experience with Ducati, but I share your sense of value. Sadly, I am not in a position to disregard ownership costs, so figuring out maintenance, insurance, and cost of ownership is part of my buying decision. Guess a lot of other folks on here have cash to burn

KTM parts seem to be about 30% more than the Jap stuff, and I'm guess a shade less than the Italian stuff. With the HOW you should be able to do a lot of stuff yourself (assuming some translates from the 990 to the 1190). My experience with the KTM 990 is that it is amenable to wrenching after you dig through the body work. The 1190 appears to have an advantage there.

Dealer support is about the same, maybe slightly favoring KTM since they have more dirt bike shops in some of the medium to smaller towns. Parts are more widely available, but then again I have not bought any Duc parts.

Just my .02, and I hope some other folks chime in with answers instead of sermons on how costs don't matter.

[crazybrit]

Originally Posted by It'sNotTheBike

unless you like the taste of the bottom of someone else's boot. I never liked that taste myself
...
Somewhere in the world there is a person who would sell his or her kidney so he or she could own a KTM LC8 bike. They have read everything they could find on the bike, they can recite the engine specs from memory, they know what makes the engine a superior design, and they know about all its race victories. For them no other bike will do, and they dream of the day they can own such a bike.They are the sort who deserve to own an LC8 bike, not some weenie with a bean-counter mindset who worries about maintenance costs.
...
If I was in charge of the universe you'd have to pass a test before you were allowed to buy nice stuff. Money alone wouldn't
mean you could have the nice stuff. You'd have to answer some questions which would indicate whether you actually deserved to own it.

Christ, this reads like the Aryan Brotherhood of the KTM. Some bizarre byproduct of a childhood where all the other kids got the cool toys.

Originally Posted by rockycraig

I myself was wondering about the cost of service of ktm and went to a ktm shop and asked. they said about a grand for the valve adjustment service.

This seems high, even if they have to replace shims. However, I think you're on the right track. Pull the owners manual for each bike, pick a point, say 20,000 miles, determine the listed routine maintenance and get estimates. Given the above price I'd suggest calling more than one dealer for each marque.


Good luck!