The launch of the KTM 1390 Super Duke R for the 2024 model year left no doubt that the rest of KTM ' s ' 1290 ' models will be uprated to ' 1390 ' in the coming years , and now we have confirmation that the Super Adventure is the next to get the new engine - with an official unveiling scheduled for September . But it ' s not as simple as an engine transplant , because the 1390 Super Adventure also gets a completely new look and will be the first KTM to get the company ' s new semi-automatic transmission option . Despite the ' 1390 ' name , the latest |
KTM LC8 V-twin engine is actually 1,350 cc , and since the old ' 1290 ' was really 1,301 cc , the capacity increase is a modest 49 cc . The really big change is the addition of the company ' s first variable valve timing and lift system , which operates on the intake camshaft only and switches between two different lobes as revs rise . It ' s very similar to the ShiftCam system used by BMW on its latest Boxer models and the S 1000 RR superbike , although the same setup has been used in cars for many years . For the Super Adventure , the engine ' s sure to be detuned compared to the |
188 hp 1390 Super Duke R , but since the capacity increase gave the Super Duke a 15 hp increase over its predecessor , a similar increase is likely on the Super Adventure . That will take it from the current 1290 ' s 158 hp to somewhere north of 170 hp . The bike has been previewed in disguised form at the Erzbergrodeo Hard Enduro event in Austria , and while the new styling was immediately obvious , the really important change was the fact it was missing a clutch lever . The disguise camouflage was also peppered with the letters ' AMT ' - standing for Automated Manual |
Transmission - and a set of ' up ' and ' down ' triggers were fitted on the lefthand bar . |
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The world ' s first high-performance motorcycle with a combustion engine fuelled by hydrogen was demonstrated in advance of the Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race in July when Kawasaki allowed its prototype supercharged machine to lap the circuit .
" supercharged four-cylinder was run at Suzuka "
Hydrogen might have some significant drawbacks as a potential power source for motorcycles , but in Japan the HySE research project , which involves all four major motorcycle manufacturers as well as Toyota and Kawasaki , has been charged with the task of developing engines capable of running on hydrogen as part of the effort . The company has previously
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shown prototype engines and sketches of a motorcycle built to house it , but this is the first time the bike has been seen in action by the public . The downside of hydrogen as a fuel is immediately apparent . The bike looks like a large tourer with huge side cases , but it ' s really a single-seater with minimal luggage space . Those panniers are packed with cylinders that carry the hydrogen , compressed to around 700 bar ( 10,000 psi ), and even so the prototype ' s range is believed to be significantly less than a conventional petrol-powered machine would manage on a normal tank of fuel . But fuel systems and storage aren ' t Kawasaki ' s role in the HySE project , and it ' s clear that its part of the deal - to create a combustion engine that will run on hydrogen - is largely complete . According to Kawasaki , the prototype ' s chassis has been designed specifically to make space for all the hydrogen tanks , but the engine is |
derived from the existing 998 cc , supercharged H2 motor . Forced induction is a key element to getting good performance from a hydrogen combustion engine , helping to get as much air as possible into the cylinders . It ' s paired with direct fuel injection that adds the hydrogen to the combustion chambers after the inlet |
valves have closed . Although the prototype is running and Kawasaki reports that hydrogen actually provides improved responsiveness compared to petrol , it ' s still a long way from production . The company believes that it might become " one carbon-neutral option for riders in the early 2030s ". |
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the ' KTM Electric Freeride ( Street Legal )' and ' Husqvarna Electric Pioneer ( Street Legal )'. The documents describe the powertrain as a ' 5.54 kW Li-ion 660 W ', which could be interpreted as meaning the motor is capable of outputting 5.54 kW of power - equivalent to 7.4 hp - with a lithium-ion battery , with the ' 660 W ' element likely to relate to the bike ' s charging level . However , that doesn ' t fit with KTM ' s previously published plans for EVs , which include a range of models with |
5.5 kWh ( kilowatt-hour ) batteries and motors with 9 kW to 10 kW ( 12 hp to 13.4 hp ). It ' s possible that the ' 5.54 kW ' mentioned in the new VIN document should actually read ' 5.54 kWh ' - making it a measurement of battery capacity rather than motor power - as that figure would round down to the 5.5 kWh of the original plan . In a 2022 presentation to investors , KTM and Husqvarna ' s parent company , Pierer Industrie , promised several electric models planned to use 5.5 kWh lithium-ion batteries . These were to |
include a Husqvarna E-Pilen - which had already been shown as a concept in 2021 - and a mechanically identical KTM E-Duke . However , the Electric Freeride and Electric Pioneer mentioned in the new document are more likely to be related to a third electric model in the same presentation , which at the time was called the Freeride E-LV . It was shown as an offroad-style bike , in line with previous Freeride E models . That would explain why there ' s a specific mention of ' Street Legal ' next to the Electric Freeride and Electric |
Pioneer ' s names in the new document , as it implies there will also be nonstreet-legal versions . The same VIN decoding document also made mention of another unreleased Husqvarna , the Vitpilen 801 . While Husqvarna has already launched a Svartpilen 801 based on the KTM 790 Duke ' s engine and chassis , with the usual scrambler-style Svartpilen look , we ' ve yet to see a Vitpilen variant , which would be expected to be more street-focused , with lower bars and slicker tyres . |