2023 KTM 890 SMT RELEASED

The first road bike that really made us sit up and take notice of KTM was the original 2005 950 SM supermoto. The wacky Austrian dirtbike maker was a niche operator on the tarmac up until then, but this pile of orange nonsense was a cracker. It had a lovely carburetted 942cc 75° V-twin engine – the first KTM engine that wasn’t a thumping single – borrowed from the KTM 950 Adventure released a couple of years earlier, steel trellis frame, long-travel suspension, and sporty wheels, tyres and brakes. A few years later they bumped up the engine to a 999cc and called it the 990 SM, before adding pannier fittings to make the hilarious 990 SMT. Bonkers, barmy, brilliant for bringing beer home from the shops... it could do it all.

And now KTM has resurrected this legendary moniker with a new SMT for the 2020s. The 2023 890 SMT uses the 889cc 105bhp parallel-twin motor from the 890 Adventure, adding a tweaked supermoto-style chassis to match, together with lower seat, sportier brakes and sticky 17-inch Michelin PowerGP tyres. Just like its ancestor, then.

There are detail mods everywhere on the new SMT compared with the 890 Adventure. The aluminium swingarm is longer and the shock mount has been repositioned to suit that lower seat. The steel tube trellis frame has tighter geometry. And the WP suspension is premium APEX track-ready kit, with 43mm open cartridge USD forks and rear monoshock, both with 180mm of travel.

KTM’s also subtly crafted the new bodywork, with the seat cutting into the fuel tank area to let the rider sit more forward and into the bike. This was one of the characteristics of the 950 and 990 SM models, and it made for a ride that was both relaxing and exhilarating when you needed it.

The engine is unchanged from the 890 Adventure install, which sounds top to us; 105bhp sounds a bit mean in these days of 215bhp superbikes, but the 2005 bike only had 98bhp, so we’re up already. Add in peak torque of 74 ft-lb and a more modern fuelling set-up and it should be a cracker on the road.

There are no standard pannier fittings like on the original SMT, though luggage will be available as an option. What the new bike does have that the old machine could only dream of is the latest in electronic rider aids. There’s three standard rider modes – rain, street and sport – which fine-tune throttle and slide settings, plus standard cornering ABS and 10-way adjustable cornering traction control. There are software add-ons to provide engine brake control, quickshifter and cruise control – though you’ll have to pay extra for those goodies, like the bags.

The five-inch TFT colour LCD dash connects to your phone for navigation and other functions, and there’s full LED lighting too.

No word on price for the new 890 SMT as yet, but it will be in shops by the end of May this year.