I occasionally take my wife's 390 duke out for a spin, leaving my much faster, more expensive bike in the garage. I've even taken it out with groups of mates who are all on litre bikes or bigger. The 390 duke has to be the most grin inspiring bike there is - and if you stay on twisty roads, the bigger bikes can't get away. It's just brilliant
Heh, had a similar one lately - a 2nd hand 600cc or brand new duke (nothing can beat this one in the price range at least in Poland) - i picked the duke and it is been a joy to ride ;) 3500km so far without any problems.
I'm sure both bikes are great. I'd gladly own either, so no hate here. However, I strongly believe that long term, the MT-03 would be more reliable and require less maintenance. Also, dealership network is horrible for KTM where I live. 20 minute ride to the Yamaha shop vs. an hour and a half to KTM.
Ive had my 2016 Duke 390 for about 4 months. 10k miles. trip to Greece and back and I will tell you that this bike has personality, aggression and alot of people looking at it. Awesome bike!
absolutely none, did 90mph all the way back pretty much.just the fuel capacity is an issue every two hours you will need to fuel up but you generally need a break after 2 hours. get a custom windshield and some big balls and you will be ok :)
It relaible buddy... But keep in mind its not for bumper to bumper traffic ride... and no one in its category can beat it in highways.... I have been riding it for past 1.5 months and I have clocked around 3500 kms.. Its just awesome.. You wont understand a DUke390 until u own it... You can check my channel for Duke related videos.. and yes don't forget to subscribe... Cheers mate!
Yeah its not test of reliability until u ride it for 10k kms but at least u know how the bike behaves! Few of my friends have duke390 which are quite old like 3 to 2 years...they are quite happy... there are small problem but you have ignore them! but trust me buddy... if you have money then go for ninja300 otherwise no one is near duke390 in sub400 cc bikes...
I already own an R3, so I appreciate the MT03 and think the Duke line looks pretty cool. However, none of that is stopping me from wanting an S1000R or a Tuono!!!!!!!
giff74 I have an s1000r, and can not recommend it highly enough. It is the coolest thing I have owned, and I have been fortunate to have some nice cars. It is just great. I rode it to test ride an mt03 (For my son) and I thought it would seem terrible, but while it was clear it was built for less than a quarter of the cost it was finished nicely enough, and it was a lot of fun to ride. For AU$5500 ride away I would get one just for commuting, it was that good. That said, will now test ride a 390 Duke and the 310r. Shame none of them look great - love to turn the mt03 in to a cafe racer with a round headlight, murdered out, bar ends and tailtidy. Be a nice little bike for my son to go to Uni on.
Nice comparison video. It's unfortunate that Yamaha doesn't sell the MT-03 (FZ-03) here in the US. KTM does sell the Duke 390, though' so that's something I guess.
Comparing Ktm390 with Rd350 is cool - they have near same power to weight ratio for nigh-on the same displacement... never in my days i thought i'd see a 4T single producing the same power as a 2T twin!
I don't understand the big deal about the licence restriction issue. KTM don't make two different kinds of 390, they just offer two different power maps - one of which fits A2. Any KTM dealer can switch a 390 between the two. It's a red herring that the default 390 doesn't fit the A2 licence category as a remap is a trivial to implement.
It's funny review. ;-) Brakes? MT-03 wins. Fuel tank size? MT-03 wins. Fuel consumption? MT-03 wins. Space under seat? MT-03 wins. Suspension? MT-03 wins. Engine power? KTM wins by 1.5hp. Precision driving? Both on par. A2 license compatibility? Only MT-03. ... overall winner? KTM. WTF? :-D Why? Because it has "punch" (with the extra 1.5hp?), or the engine sound? Or because it's "special" (without specifying why)? Does not make sense at all...
Funny how stats on paper don't always tell the whole story. Remember people, tests are a personal opinion... ride them both yourself and make your own decision. Don't just slag off at someone because you don't agree! I personally listen to most opinions but base my purchase decision on my own findings. Thanks for the video!
Don't want to be rude, but I've found this a few times now... I wish the narrator could read without it sounding like a nervous student presentation. The deadpan delivery and stilted punctuation have me reaching for the mouse, because it's hard work to follow... but I do actually appreciate the information. Maybe just use bullet points and chat about the bikes, rather than word for word (?)
i am in the same dilema, ktm 390 2017 vs mt03 2017. My bikers friends tell me that yamaha is a better machine, japanesse quality, but i prefer for a bit the looks of the ktm. i dont really know what to do. Another thing, they tell me, and i dont know if there at your countries is the same, when i will have to sell it, i colud get a better price wuth yamaha, than ktm.
Well, yamaha is reliable than Ktm.. But there is nothing like duke 390 sub 500 cc.. I'll pick duke any day, any fucking day over anything in it's category
Test road both of the bike and the mto3 it better than the ktm bye a long way one the hole bike is very hard the handling is not as good I road lots of bike and the ktm 390 bike I would not ride again just not a good bike get a mto3 or get honda cb300r z400 or the bmw 310
KTM is more exciting for sure. But it has an awful reliability record!. Why do reviewers never pick up on things like this?. People watch these reviews and suffer in the long run!!. All in all a very misleading review.
federico motomotero si? porq? de donde eres, aca en peru me dicen q ktm no tiene tanto soporte, y de hecho debe ser asi, yamaha tiene mucho tiempo en el mercado a diferencia. además que en la reventa cuando tenga q venderla perdere mucho mas con la ktm, me dijeron. No se. me gustan ambas. la ktm blanca y una mt color negro plata 2018, los nuevos colores.
I occasionally take my wife's 390 duke out for a spin, leaving my much faster, more expensive bike in the garage. I've even taken it out with groups of mates who are all on litre bikes or bigger. The 390 duke has to be the most grin inspiring bike there is - and if you stay on twisty roads, the bigger bikes can't get away. It's just brilliant
You forgot one very important thing: Yamaha is many times more reliable than the KTM.
My ownership experience with 7 KTM's is lots different then that. Except a hub issue with my SDR 1290.
Have to agree, I've heard many cases of parts getting loose and bits breaking on the Duke, far less so on the R3 and probably by extension the MT-03.
Don't agree on this statement man. I have ridden both Ktm and Yamaha and I can say without hesitation that both of the companies are super reliable.
Is that so I had a yamaha and evey time it rained it packed up no problems with my 2016 390 Duke yet.
Mete Gürün 390s hard head gasket problems so
Using liter for the size of gas tank but mpg for mileage?
That's Imperial gallons, not American gallons.
That's what we do in the UK. In fact we also use ft and cm but very rarely inches.
@@Brewer_ Unless you're talking about penis size
The MT-03 won the test because the KTM was stuck in the garage having it's engine rebuilt again ..
Dave Rainbow this made me lol
The KTM won as always.
Very reliable engines.
Finally, someone old enough to compare the 390 duke to RD/RZ bikes of my youth! Bravo!
I had an RD350, fun bike! Quick now thinking about it
Totally love how MT03 looks
I hate the headlight
Informative, as ever. This reviewer is so professional.
Lol funny how this video came out now, i had this dilemma a month ago, i ended up buying the duke 390, and its awesome
Heh, had a similar one lately - a 2nd hand 600cc or brand new duke (nothing can beat this one in the price range at least in Poland) - i picked the duke and it is been a joy to ride ;) 3500km so far without any problems.
LOL, I had to make exactly this choice in march Kukifikator. ;D Greetings from Wrocław.
MotoHolota and what did you choose?
Duke, as you can see in our videos. :D
MotoHolota nice
What about the z400 for another alternative?
I just bought the mt03 myself using it mainly for commuting purposes and not wanting to shift gear all the time when driving in the city
I'm sure both bikes are great. I'd gladly own either, so no hate here. However, I strongly believe that long term, the MT-03 would be more reliable and require less maintenance. Also, dealership network is horrible for KTM where I live. 20 minute ride to the Yamaha shop vs. an hour and a half to KTM.
Ive had my 2016 Duke 390 for about 4 months. 10k miles. trip to Greece and back and I will tell you that this bike has personality, aggression and alot of people looking at it. Awesome bike!
Big trip for a little bike. Any problems?
absolutely none, did 90mph all the way back pretty much.just the fuel capacity is an issue every two hours you will need to fuel up but you generally need a break after 2 hours. get a custom windshield and some big balls and you will be ok :)
Where did your trip start and end?
London, Albania, Sarande,(2 weeks in albania) then back
How does that add up to 10K miles? Good trip all the same.I did similar years back on an XT500, so I know you don't need a big bike.
KTM? No chance in hell for me..Yamaha until the end of the earth 🤪
My 1975 RD350 was a hot bike....miss it so much!
Where does the z300 sit?
I guess its Z250 u r talking about? Am I right?
Which one is more reliable and easier and cheaper to maintain and fix?
Same dilemma here. Ended up with the MT03. I am very happy but it is still breaking in so I won't see full potential for a month or so.
Last 20 months I'm riding duke 390 and I'm happy with it.
Reliable? How many miles/kilometres have you done on it?
It relaible buddy... But keep in mind its not for bumper to bumper traffic ride... and no one in its category can beat it in highways....
I have been riding it for past 1.5 months and I have clocked around 3500 kms.. Its just awesome.. You wont understand a DUke390 until u own it...
You can check my channel for Duke related videos.. and yes don't forget to subscribe...
Cheers mate!
3,500 km isn't really a test of reliability, is it?
I've got to admit a sub-400 cc single appeals to me.
Yeah its not test of reliability until u ride it for 10k kms but at least u know how the bike behaves! Few of my friends have duke390 which are quite old like 3 to 2 years...they are quite happy... there are small problem but you have ignore them!
but trust me buddy... if you have money then go for ninja300 otherwise no one is near duke390 in sub400 cc bikes...
What sort of small problems?
Did you know they recalled a total of 15,000 motorcycles in japan alone? Thats inclusive of the r3,r25 and mt03
What is the issue on it.?
Duke can give you problems but you'll still be mighty impressed with it..
How do you guys compare this one against the Kawasaki Z300?
checkout powerdrift.
great informative review!
great video review...just what i need
I already own an R3, so I appreciate the MT03 and think the Duke line looks pretty cool. However, none of that is stopping me from wanting an S1000R or a Tuono!!!!!!!
giff74 I have an s1000r, and can not recommend it highly enough. It is the coolest thing I have owned, and I have been fortunate to have some nice cars. It is just great. I rode it to test ride an mt03 (For my son) and I thought it would seem terrible, but while it was clear it was built for less than a quarter of the cost it was finished nicely enough, and it was a lot of fun to ride. For AU$5500 ride away I would get one just for commuting, it was that good. That said, will now test ride a 390 Duke and the 310r. Shame none of them look great - love to turn the mt03 in to a cafe racer with a round headlight, murdered out, bar ends and tailtidy. Be a nice little bike for my son to go to Uni on.
Thanks for the review. good! 👍
Nice comparison video. It's unfortunate that Yamaha doesn't sell the MT-03 (FZ-03) here in the US. KTM does sell the Duke 390, though' so that's something I guess.
finally one guy compared it to the rd 350.
Comparing Ktm390 with Rd350 is cool - they have near same power to weight ratio for nigh-on the same displacement... never in my days i thought i'd see a 4T single producing the same power as a 2T twin!
Love both these but wnt with the MT07. These are excellent machines.
what age do you have to be in the uk to ride the 390 duke?
19 years old
Hahha as long u can ride
I don't understand the big deal about the licence restriction issue. KTM don't make two different kinds of 390, they just offer two different power maps - one of which fits A2. Any KTM dealer can switch a 390 between the two.
It's a red herring that the default 390 doesn't fit the A2 licence category as a remap is a trivial to implement.
in denmark the ktm costs about 2000 dollars more than the mt-03 and in that case i'd go with the yamaha.
I got it! You like the Duke. I'll go for the Yamaha regardless the infomercial.
The ktm looks like a cool shopping cart
Thanks!, you really helped on my desition! :D
what was your desition?
This video appears to be more of an advertisement for the 390.
Truth hurts.
It's funny review. ;-) Brakes? MT-03 wins. Fuel tank size? MT-03 wins. Fuel consumption? MT-03 wins. Space under seat? MT-03 wins. Suspension? MT-03 wins. Engine power? KTM wins by 1.5hp. Precision driving? Both on par. A2 license compatibility? Only MT-03.
... overall winner? KTM. WTF? :-D Why? Because it has "punch" (with the extra 1.5hp?), or the engine sound? Or because it's "special" (without specifying why)? Does not make sense at all...
found the butthurt fanboy
Funny how stats on paper don't always tell the whole story. Remember people, tests are a personal opinion... ride them both yourself and make your own decision. Don't just slag off at someone because you don't agree! I personally listen to most opinions but base my purchase decision on my own findings. Thanks for the video!
I agree with Mike Slack. I like the look of the 390 but I suspect the Yamaha will be just as good.
MT _Price ?
The 390 having more HP than an A2 licence allows means it's missing many potential costumers that will go the MT03 or CB500 route, like me.
So?
Don't want to be rude, but I've found this a few times now...
I wish the narrator could read without it sounding like a nervous student presentation. The deadpan delivery and stilted punctuation have me reaching for the mouse, because it's hard work to follow... but I do actually appreciate the information.
Maybe just use bullet points and chat about the bikes, rather than word for word (?)
Cannot agree with you more...KTM 390 epic commuter bike
I see a challenger on the horizon. The BMW G310R.
The power difference is huge between these two. 310R has 25kw and 390 Duke has 32kw. Thats about 30% more...
i am in the same dilema, ktm 390 2017 vs mt03 2017. My bikers friends tell me that yamaha is a better machine, japanesse quality, but i prefer for a bit the looks of the ktm. i dont really know what to do. Another thing, they tell me, and i dont know if there at your countries is the same, when i will have to sell it, i colud get a better price wuth yamaha, than ktm.
I guess it is too late now but... Go for MT-03 2014. You will get Yamaha but with single cylinder engine, like KTM 390 but it is 660cc. Win - win.
Get the Duke, the Yamaha is a 🐕 (dog)
Well, yamaha is reliable than Ktm..
But there is nothing like duke 390 sub 500 cc..
I'll pick duke any day, any fucking day over anything in it's category
Test road both of the bike and the mto3 it better than the ktm bye a long way one the hole bike is very hard the handling is not as good I road lots of bike and the ktm 390 bike I would not ride again just not a good bike get a mto3 or get honda cb300r z400 or the bmw 310
Nice punctuation you've got going on there. Makes your sentence really understandable.
i have a mt 03 and it produces 48 hp i dunno where they get the 42 hp...
KTM is great...when it works. Too many problems now...I think KTM's quality control is dropping.
KTM is more exciting for sure. But it has an awful reliability record!. Why do reviewers never pick up on things like this?. People watch these reviews and suffer in the long run!!. All in all a very misleading review.
the sound suck in this video
Short people review
Imagine being british
sin dudarlo la yamaha.
la duke pesimas
federico motomotero si? porq? de donde eres, aca en peru me dicen q ktm no tiene tanto soporte, y de hecho debe ser asi, yamaha tiene mucho tiempo en el mercado a diferencia. además que en la reventa cuando tenga q venderla perdere mucho mas con la ktm, me dijeron. No se. me gustan ambas. la ktm blanca y una mt color negro plata 2018, los nuevos colores.