KTM RC8 - life begins at 140

Published May 6, 2008

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Cape Town - KTM's first superbike, the RC8, looks like exactly what it is - a narrowly focused sports bike built by an off-road motorcycle company. Its uncompromising off-road design is typically KTM; everything is visibly over-engineered and its hard-edged angular styling has nowhere been allowed to take precedence over function.

You either like its looks or you don't - but it hangs together a lot better than the fragmented bit and pieces of the SuperDuke I rode recently, although its colour scheme was the same, three different shades of orange over black

The 75-degree, V-twin LC8 engine is derived from that of the 990 Superduke, bored out by seven mm to 103mm and stroked by two mm to 69mm for an actual capacity of 1148cc - it should have been badged 1150 but BMW has bragging rights on that number so KTM just upped the ante a little and you'll find stickers proclaiming "1190" all over the bike.

It's a marketing thing; live with it.

The dry-sump engine is mechanically noisy and vibrates throughout the rev range despite two balance shafts. The shakes become intrusive above 7000rpm, where the real power begins; the engine produces a claimed 113.8kW at 10 000rpm and 120Nm at 8000rpm.

In the real world that translates to heavy power-thudding below 3300rpm, a muscular "working range" up to about 6500rpm (the equivalent of 164km/h) and intimidatingly serious grunt from then on to the shift light at 10 200 rpm, the red line at 10 500rpm and the rev-limiter at 11 000.

The engine is neither as powerful nor as civilised as that of the Ducati 1098 with which it will inevitably be compared but its mid-range blast is stronger.

The RC8 went up to its 259km/h indicated top speed very quickly, with just less than 10 000rpm showing on its hard-to-read, bar-graph rev-counter. That's a long way short of the Ducati's 292km/h but I was very impressed when the GPS reading was exactly the same - it's the first motorcycle I have ridden whose speedometer was accurate.

Throttle response is jerky at low revs but smoothes out nicely as speed rises - note I said speed, not revs; it'll tolerate lower revs in top than it will in third, which makes riding the RC8 in traffic something of a challenge although the bike is commendably narrow.

I experienced mild clutch judder on take-off; it improved markedly during the test so it was probably just a slightly uneven clutch plate.

Gear-lever throw is very short and its light but distinctly notchy action caused a couple of missed upshifts during my time with the bike - though none at full chat. This may improve with time; the test RC8 hadn't yet had its first service.

The suspension is by KTM-owned WP, fully adjustable at each end. The rear monoshock is also adjustable for ride height - independently of pre-load - by means of an eccentric upper pivot. This has more to do with changing the rake angle than with ground clearance, which is never an issue thanks to very narrow engine casings.

It was set at the factory's recommended "sport" settings, which were stiff and harsh, especially on the bumpy section of my standard test route. The best I could maintain was 75km/h in fourth gear; the KTM 950 Adventure, by contrast, sailed through there at 110!

Rock steady

It came into its own on smoother roads; the whole chassis tightened up as the speed rose. With this bike life really does begin at 140; on a good surface its handling and roadholding are exceptional and the bike is rock steady at top speed with the steering damper set midway through its adjustment.

It has the slightly lazy steering typical of European big twins, superbly predictable and precise. As with the Ducati, you have to steer this bike - it doesn't "go where you look" but it does go exactly where you point it. I soon found myself doing silly speeds through the long sweeping bends of my test route just because I could.

Radial-mount Brembo callipers with radial master cylinders give superlative braking control and one-finger stoppies; you can steer with the brakes, change lines in corners at will.

The seat feels like a plastic plank but the bike is unexpectedly comfortable thanks to a multitude of ergonomic adjustments: the footpeg mountings are adjustable, the seat height can be adjusted independently of the ride height, the handlebar and foot-levers are adjustable for reach.

I rode it with the rear sub-frame in the lower position, foot pegs in the lower, rearwards position, gear lever stub as far out as possible to make allowance for my size 10s, rear brake lever stub in the middle position to put it exactly under the ball of my right foot and brake and clutch levers two-thirds in to allow for my stubby fingers.

The bike fitted as if it had been built for me.

Multiple readouts

The computerised LCD instrument pod has a bar-graph rev-counter with small lettering which I found difficult to read; the LCD screen also shows speed, distance travelled, engine temperature, coolant temperature, time, distance to next service, 99-lap timer (trigger on thumb side of left switchgear), average speed and how long you've been riding, all scrolled through by a trigger on the forefinger side of the left switchgear.

The pod is compromised, however, by poor waterproofing; KTM advises owners not to wash their RC8's with high-pressure hoses because water can get into the computer and cause it to fail; the start sequence and ignition mapping are in the same module and if the computer freaks the bike won't start.

The RC8's build quality, fit and finish are awe-inspiring - they'd better be, for R195 000; attention to detail is astonishing, even in the crowded engine bay, with lots of wiring and tubes neatly routed, wrapped and secured - did I mention this bike's off-road heritage?

Its emphasis is more on mid-range response than top end, on chassis integrity rather than outright performance, with comfort way down the list. It's a Sunday-morning back-road blaster and a superb track-day tool, a credible alternative to the 1098 - not as quick or as civilised but likely to be less temperamental.

Price: R195 000.

KTM RC8 specifications

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