i am looking to buy a ktm990 or xtz660, the ktm is a bit of a beast and have ridden one last week, so far i have not had a chance to ride the xt but hope to do so tomorrow, has anybody had both and if so would love to hear their opinion.
most of my riding will be around central london but fancied some light touring around ireland,wales and norfolk two up
the touring is a bit of a pipe dream as i am not sure the missus is up for it although i will go it alone if necessary
in the main its going to be a bit of a toy really but its still a hard decision so alll advice would be gratefully recieved
thanks
Mark

Riding around central London +1 for Tenere;
Touring two up +1 for KTM;
If you are looking for more power +1 KTM;
If you are looking for some light off/green lanes +1 for Tenere (however depends on your riding skills);
If you are looking for reliability +1 for Tenere (this is based on my and my mates opinion having both bikes);
Servicing cost....I dont know - Tenere is pretty straight forward to work on so you can do few things yourself, cant tell about KTM,

thanks for your advise, i used to own an xt600 and found it lumpy and got bored after 6 months the xtz660 is probably not comparable

KTM requires more skill, not a simple beast to ride, also the reliability is not the best. The XT is an easier beast and much more docile. must cheaper to buy and to maintain. Your choise....

__________________
(Now sold on, sob) 2011 Blue XT660X with gold wheels, was 26,500 km.
Engine mods: K&N Stage 1 filter, DNA Stage 2 filter, snorkel removed, Kev fuel mod fitted.
Plus: smoked Puig screen, Yam aluminium sump guard, Yamaha / Acerbis handguards, Givi Trekker aluminium side cases, Leo Vince X3 cans plus Kev front fork mod and Fender Xtender. Just fitted Michelin Road Pilot 3 tyres.

SOLD the XTX for a Super Ten 1200. And just bought a Raptor 700 so staying on here for some tips....

Taking you at face value by saying it's going to be a toy buy the KTM just make sure you have a few bob in the bank to back it up because you may need it,I have never managed to force feed myself a 680 SMCR because having seen so many KTM's that have eaten themselves it's like have a hand grenade without the pin and the excitement that can bring.

If your looking for an easy life buy the XT but it'll be nowhere near as much fun or pain as the Ktoom.

Very different bikes in my opinion. Not least twice as much hp with the KTM. I ride with a mate on his KTM 990. He loves it to bits which is just as well as it often is in bits. Even with his mechanical competence and enthusiasm to service meticulously and maintain it himself, he still seems to spend a huge amount on the bike by comparison to my Tenere. All that said, when its working it works really well and out performs the Tenere on and off road. The 990 has a 23 litre tank the same as the Tenere but I fill up after 250/280 miles when away touring, the KTM fills up every 120 miles!

So to sum up my experiences of the two bikes; KTM - thirsty, expensive to service and run, can be unreliable but very good bike on and off road and fun. You will need a shed to work on it. Tenere - sips fuel, moderate to cheap servicing, reliable, capable tourer and off roader. Oh KTM would be better for sustained two up touring as there is more seat space and power.

Hope that's of use.

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DickyC

Gun Metal Grey 2014 XT660Z
'Advice is sought by someone who knows the answer but doesn't like it'

'The adsence of alternatives clears the mind marvelously'

Had a 990 extremely thirsty as others have already said, be prepared to change rear tires often as it chews through them like nothing.
660 can't comment to much as I've just purchased one, did a 500km ride this morning and enjoyed every moment of it. Only issue I had was the helmet buffering but suffered the same on the 990.

Just sold my 2010 ktm990 adventure.Probably one the best bikes I have had-superb quality suspension, first class handling,comfy for 450 mile days.Fast as feck when the red mist came down in fact dynamically faultless really.Riding sensibly- ie 70-80mph fuel return was around 50mpg. Caning it-mid 40's mpg. The gas guzzlers that people speak of are I suspect one that have the akra's and remapped and generally tinkered with in search of more performance. Parts are not that expensive and in the 10k miles I put on it, it was 100% reliable. The only reason I sold it was it was a PIA to service, eg it took approx. 2 hrs to do an oil change and filter.There is so much cr*p to remove before you can get at the gubbins the novelty of having a bike that albeit is fantastic,very quickly wears thin.-Just my tuppence worth if anyone is interested. Cheers.

Had an extended test ride on the xt660z as one is likely to be my next purchase.Initial impressions were-pokey for a single, handling good on the road despite fairly agricultural suspension,comfy seat and all control surfaces easy to use. I have no idea about the spares cost but if they are anything like the previous jap bikes I have run they will be exy for non routine stuff and ferocious for bodywork.

For Tenere:
Guranteed to never let you down.
Will go through and over anything in its way.
Full tank will take you to the moon.
Brakes good even without ABS.
Easy to move around in car parks etc.
Easy home servicing and cleaning.
Cheap parts readily available on ebay and the like.
No expensive throttle bodies to balance or shims to replace when doing tappets that main dealers bankrupt you for.
Happy going to local shops as it is going to Morroco.
Cruise at 75 to 80 mph easily all day which is more than sufficient for most.
Cheap insurance.
Gets under your skin and becomes part of you.

Against Tenere:
Very high to mount and disembark.
Not so smooth as most twins/4cylinders.
Seat can be hard on long trips.
Obviously not same power output but 80mph cruising is more than sufficient for most.
Typical big single thumper vibes and heavy engine breaking on chain/rear wheel.

A lot of these things are improvable though with a few mods.