I recently posted asking for input comparing the 990 to the 690, for some highway and lightly aggressive dirt riding, specifically riding several hundred miles of slab to Colorado and then doing the mountain passes in the Ouray area. I have been heavily leaning towards the 690R and I suppose the next logical question is - why not the 500 EXC? Will it do highway tolerably? Would I be holding back my buds on the highway on their "big bikes" (they tend to haul the mail)? I assume in the dirt the 500 is the $hit? Thanks in advance for input.
2007, 2008 and 2011 990 ADV-R; great for slab and dirt roads...450-550 pounds. 2010 690R; very good for slab and dirt trails...330-430 pounds. 2013 500 EXC; good on slab, nothing better in the dirt...250-350 pounds. 19L fuel tank is a must for back country exploring. With stock gearing the 500 EXC will easily attain 100 MPH and cruise at 70 MPH. The DOT knobby tires are nervous at freeway plus speeds. The bike is smooth except for the lumpy tires; power is not an issue. The 690R might be your best choice because it is very good off road. You will need to upgrade the seats on the 690R and the 500 EXC ( or stock up on pain meds ). http://s1222.beta.photobucket.com/user/tooltechstw/library/KTM 500 EXC and KTM 990 SMT
Thanks for your reply - those are some good looking bikes in your pics. In addition to the trips to the mountains referenced above, I suppose if a guy were going to ride out to the west coast and up highway 1, the 500 probably would not be the bike eh?
Why would you ever consider the 500 if all you want it for is lightly aggressive dirt riding? I'm sure it will overexcel at the task but is there a reason why you think the 690 will not also be able to handle it? You're trading away highway capabilities (that would be useful for "riding several hundred miles of slab to Colorado") for additional dirt capability that it doesn't seem you'd need, and yes I've ridden these passes. What are the big bikes your buddies are riding? 990s? If so, I wouldn't want to try to keep up with them for several hundred miles of pavement on a 500EXC. Even if the bike can do it, you'll be exhausted.
The reason for my question was to get an idea of how much I might be giving up on the highway side of things with the 500. I have no doubt the 690 will easily do all the passes in the San Juans and I am leaning towards it currently. With that said, New Mexico has lots of sand and I am sure the 500 is much better in the sand, so my decision has to be based on how much of each type of riding I might do in the future. Long ago I did some desert racing with Arizona Desert Racing Association on a YZ490 (that is an open class 2 stroke) so part of me might tend to error more towards the dirt side rather than the street side of the equation, but I am not as young as I used to be so I will probably make the smarter decision for my situation and go with the 690. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
I sold my 950 A and replaced it with a new 690R. It will do what you want and in comfort if you replace the seat with a Seat Concepts foam and cover kit. The newest 690 is a very good street bike. In my hands it's still a little heavy for technical terrain, but probably better than any other 650-700cc single. Certainly better than my 950. I also have a Yam WR250R I keep in the desert. I have been able to ride that thing pretty well in the sand washes once I get it going. I would guess the 690 would be much better because of its power. They are both about 300 lbs.
+1 I am selling my 950, but already picked up a '12 690 and love it! I have the seatconcepts seat, FMF slip-on, and just got the KTM windscreen but haven't put it on yet. Eventually I'll probably go full-fairing but for now the windscreen will make interstate much more enjoyable not that it's bad to begin with.
Only you know what mix of riding you'll be doing. There is no bike made that will work well keeping up with your buddies on "big bikes" for several hundred miles of highway and also being great for technical sand. Depending on your spread, you'll may get away with a 690, or you may find you need two bikes, in which case the 990 and 500 might be a better combo than 690 and 500.
Do you own a car? Several hundred miles of slab is going to wear you out on both the 500 and the 690, as well as your knobbies. IMO you will be off a lot better using a trailer to do the boring highway part in comfort and then getting on a proper dirt bike when you get to the good stuff.
I'd also add that a 990 will do 75-80% of trails that a 500 can do (granted it takes a bit more effort and skill then on a 500). A 690 can do 90% of the trails (again with a bit more effort and skill). And the last 10% can only be handled by the 500 or lighter bikes. I'm thinking of mountainous trails out here in Colorado. The only problems I ever had on the 950 was tight technical terrain or climbing loose 25%+ grades where my rear tire just dug in due to the weight and power of the bike when I lost momentum. Granted I couldn't keep up with the lighter bikes in the technical stuff but I usually made it without issue. The non-"proper" dirtbikes can still do many many things that people say a "proper" dirtbike is needed for it'll just take more skill and effort. For what it's worth I always had fun when I was on a 950 in technical terrain, it was challenging and when I succeeded it felt awesome. My choice in the 690 was a balance. Sure it won't be as fun for long slab stretches but it'll do it; plus it'll make me want to take the back roads which are always more fun and interesting. Oh and if you're on a 690 and your friends are on 990's then you'll be tired after the highway but will kick their butts in the off-road section.
Well, the "slab" part of this specific annual trip is really only 180 miles, and then the tarmac becomes very twisty and fun, and I like the paved twisties as much as the dirt part. Those of you who know the area would probably agree, once you head north out of Durango it is not long and the road becomes very fun. In the paved mountain twisties how will the 690 do compared to the 990? I would be surprised if it could not hang very well indeed. I guess what I am saying is that I would suck it up on the 690 for 180 miles of boring slab, in order to smoke the guys in the twisties and the dirt.
Million Dollar Highway? Yep, it's a great road. The 690 will do it effortlessly, certainly easier than the 990 even if it's down on power.
sounds like your biggest constraint for the riding you describe is tire selection. (not an owner of any of the three mentioned bikes but....) I gotta think with the right tires for the job the road riding on 2-lane twisties would be comparable. Where the differences would arise would be in technical steep trails where muffinman mentions the bikes mass coming into play. A dirtbike on knobbies is always going to be less comfortable than a 1000cc adv bike on dualsport tires on the freeway, and vice versa. The 690 would be a great compromise bike, but again i think most of the "comfort" is relative to the tires. The other consideration for offroad prowess is speed; are you trying to set a new lap time for technical trails or just "get there", because i am sure all 3 would be able "get there" 99% of the time.
I don't like riding dirt bikes on the Interstate for more than about 20 or 30 minutes. It just gets uncomfortable and no fun IMO. For 60 mph 2 lanes it's not nearly as bad. If you are just talking about riding with those guys for a one time trip, it isn't as important, but if you all plan to ride together most of the time, I would get a similar bike as they have. The types of trips they are going to take in the future will be based on what their bikes can do. If they all ride 990s they might ride all the way down to Baja and camp for a week, that much highway would be brutal on a 500. At the same time, if you want to ride a lot of the harder, more technical single track on a 500 they might not enjoy coming along. As a bonus, if you ride the same bike you can share parts and if something goes wrong there are more of you with the knowledge to diagnose/fix it.
No,Don't do the "smarter" decision because of your age,and don't listen to the CrazyBrit-he's crazy. Go for the 500,ride all the dirt you ever want with ease,and just rough it a little more on the highway.
Everetto - I re-read your post and additions (unlike some of your other advisors). As I read it again, you want a decent off-road motorcycle plus you want to hang with the KTM 990's in the twisty's. Maybe even show them something... Well, I can assure you that if everybody is on DOT knobs, the 690 will smoke any competition. In a drag race, my 690R is as quick as my 950 up to about 100mph. Maybe quicker up to 60. It is 150lbs lighter. Plus it has a sweet chassis, geometry, suspension tuning and MONSTER freaking brakes. Monster I say... Dang! The 2012/13 690 is the very best super sized single ever made. ...ever ....my opinion of course.
I have used a similar answer on a few other threads. The 690 with a race can, large air cleaner, EVO overhead cam and Vortex fuel computer is one mean machine. Scary pick up and will cruise at 75-95 easy. With a good seat and faring fast highway cruise is easy with no off road holdbacks. Finish with dual sport tires and you got it all. Owned 1200 950 and 800 and I keep going smaller. Really happy now.
I've ridden a 990 ADV a few times. Owned a 690R for 21,000 miles (2010 vintage). Own a 500 EXC now. The 690R was a fantastic motorcycle. It was fast enough on the street and way overboard in the dirt. Fairly comfortable for long street rides (Renazco Seat). Don't bother trying to tough it out with the factory seat...it's totally sucky. I did ride a nice loop from Portland, OR to Carson City, NV down the east side of the cascades then back up to Portland on the west side of the cascades...on the factory seat. Dirt, Backroad, Slab, Trails...it does all of that fairly well. That's where the 690 lives...in the middle. For me, it got tedious after long miles on the street (twisties or slab). The engine vibes, sound, lack of wind protection just makes you tired. As I've moved into more and more technical riding in the dirt, the 690 started to feel more like a liability. Don't get me wrong, you can rail the hell out of that bike, but it's just easier on something smaller. Plus, a 690 starts to get real heavy after the 3rd or 4th time you pick it up during a tough ride. That brings me to the 990A. Before I bought the 690 I thought I just had to have a 990. I'm really glad I passed. It would be a nightmare in the dirt. I know tons of people do more on their 990's than I'll ever be able to do on my 500 in the dirt. Don't care, it's not for me. I know I'm not supposed to do it, but I love to go ride by myself sometimes...out in the middle of nowhere. Had I been on a 990, I probably would have passed on some of the cooler adventures I've been on because it would have been too much for me to handle. Those bikes are to be taken seriously when it comes to keeping them upright or picking them up. Wicked Heavy!! Full street bike (adventure bike if you prefer) and a DS are where my brain is at. Although, I haven't bothered to get a street bike because I've been having too much fun in the dirt! The 690 is still my pick if you want to ride both street and fairly tough dirt and can only have one bike...or like to mix both types of riding in the same trip. I really don't think you can do better right now. Dunlop D606's will be better than the MT-21's in the dirt and pretty much just as good on the street (IMO). I've been through several sets of each. Really liked Kenda Trackmasters for the dirt rides. The front was a tad squirrely going straight but they hooked up really well in the corners. Much better bite from the rear tire pretty much everywhere too. Never rode them on the street but I suspect they would be fairly uninspiring. All three bikes are very cool (and I'm sure you'd love any of them) but only the 690 can live somewhat happily in both arenas.
This is the same debate I seem to have with myself every few months. I currently own a 990A and my wife rides an F650GS. Almost all our trips are a minimum of 300-400 km's, and at least once a year, we do a 6,000-8,000 km trip. These trips consist of 5-10% quad tracks, 10-15% dirt roads, ~25% gravel, and the remainder being anything but interstates. Observations: 1. The larger the bike, the more you can pack. We typically haul two plus weeks worth of gear, including all our camping equipment. The more you pack, the more you a) Restrict your type of riding b) Increased chance of bodily harm when you go down c) Increased risk of bike damage since you are going down more, with a chance of becoming stranded. 2. We are riding the same roads over and over again to get to virgin (to us) new riding areas. It's getting boring... 3. Big bikes are comfortable (relative; compared to smaller dirt oriented bikes) when you're days are > 8 to 10 hours. 4. Less maintenance on the big bikes. Rarely do we need to do oil changes during the trip for example. Thoughts: 1. Replace the big bikes with 690 Enduro bikes and soft luggage. Reduce weight and increase the type of terrain we can ride on. Two years ago, we had to turn back a couple times. In one instance, after a 3 hour we had to turn back as the bikes were too heavy to ride the descent. 2. Replace the big bikes with a 500 EXC and 350 EXC and soft luggage. Haul the bikes using our truck and/or covered utility trailer and use it as a base camp. 3. No replacements period. Buy the smaller bikes (500 & 350), and haul ALL the bikes and then use the bike best suited for the location and ride. As far as I can tell, there isn't the perfect bike, but if you had to choose one, it would be the 690. Just don't expect to ride hard on long trips with buddies on litre bikes.
