KTM RC8

[Hobo]

Anyone got one on order or ridden one ? I have one for the afternoon later in the week & am interested to know what others think.

[doogalman]

A mate rode one at the bridgestone tests in spain the other week'
He said it handle and stops great, however the gearbox is full of false neutrals going down the box and the fuelling is absolute rubbish. This was common complaints from all who rode it.Build quality is a bit rough in places.
I'd wait till teething probs are sorted

[AlexHancock]

The reviews I've read agree about the gearbox but not the fueling.

I'm interested so please post after the test but I doubt you'll find many people have had the chance yet!

[randlemarcus]

The dealer I was chatting to at the weekend was less than complimentary about the performance of the screen.
I slung my leg over it, and while its not a tall bike, it seems to be a long way for my knees to reach to grip the tank comfortably.

[fergus]

who's the nearest dealer to central london? Are Bracken m/c getting involved?

[YamR1V64motion]

or alternativly just go and get a 1098

[y2blade]

YamR1V64motion said:

or alternativly just go and get a 1098

you are joking right?

[djt77]

had a go of one on saturday and i was very impressed, fueling was bit off at low speeds but dealer told me was due to inteligent system which learns how you ride and adjusts accordingly, but coz new bike with lots of dif riders it was getting messed about.

[randlemarcus]

djt77 said:

had a go of one on saturday and i was very impressed, fueling was bit off at low speeds but dealer told me was due to inteligent system which learns how you ride and adjusts accordingly, but coz new bike with lots of dif riders it was getting messed about.

Gosh, its not like Ducati to keep quiet about radical technology inside the ECU. I wonder how they managed it in this instance.
I'd suggest that its more likely that the ECU can advance and retard ignition to deal with differing RON fuel, rather than the riding style of the individual, that the map has a bleeding great hole at the bottom end (like early F4 1000s) mostly due to the fact that most testing will not have been conducted in an urban commute environment, and that the dealer is adept at the phrase "they all do that sir".

[Leadfoot]

I looked at 2 RC8s today, 1 white & 1 orange.

Both had really odd paint finishes - the fairing side panels were gloss (normal) paint, but the tanks & fairing uppers were a matt finish, almost as if they were precoloured plastic. Very odd effect & made the bike look a bit of a mess.

[fergus]

randlemarcus said:

djt77 said:

had a go of one on saturday and i was very impressed, fueling was bit off at low speeds but dealer told me was due to inteligent system which learns how you ride and adjusts accordingly, but coz new bike with lots of dif riders it was getting messed about.

Gosh, its not like Ducati to keep quiet about radical technology inside the ECU. I wonder how they managed it in this instance.
I'd suggest that its more likely that the ECU can advance and retard ignition to deal with differing RON fuel, rather than the riding style of the individual, that the map has a bleeding great hole at the bottom end (like early F4 1000s) mostly due to the fact that most testing will not have been conducted in an urban commute environment, and that the dealer is adept at the phrase "they all do that sir".

er, nearly all modern ECUs do this. They use the lambda sensor in the exhaust to work out the fuel burn and whether this is optimal, fuelling and ignition is altered on the fly. It's called closed loop running. Some older ECUs don't have this adaptive process built into them.

The different RON fuel is catered for by feedback from the knock sensor/s which detect when the ignition is too far advanced and the fuel pre-ignites, causing detonation. The jap car boys called them det-sensors, and it allows them to have more flashing lights on their dashes to disctract them from trying to improve their already limited driving ability

[randlemarcus]

fergus said:

randlemarcus said:

djt77 said:

had a go of one on saturday and i was very impressed, fueling was bit off at low speeds but dealer told me was due to inteligent system which learns how you ride and adjusts accordingly, but coz new bike with lots of dif riders it was getting messed about.

Gosh, its not like Ducati to keep quiet about radical technology inside the ECU. I wonder how they managed it in this instance.
I'd suggest that its more likely that the ECU can advance and retard ignition to deal with differing RON fuel, rather than the riding style of the individual, that the map has a bleeding great hole at the bottom end (like early F4 1000s) mostly due to the fact that most testing will not have been conducted in an urban commute environment, and that the dealer is adept at the phrase "they all do that sir".

er, nearly all modern ECUs do this. They use the lambda sensor in the exhaust to work out the fuel burn and whether this is optimal, fuelling and ignition is altered on the fly. It's called closed loop running. Some older ECUs don't have this adaptive process built into them.

The different RON fuel is catered for by feedback from the knock sensor/s which detect when the ignition is too far advanced and the fuel pre-ignites, causing detonation. The jap car boys called them det-sensors, and it allows them to have more flashing lights on their dashes to disctract them from trying to improve their already limited driving ability

I know, I was trying to be kind to the poor chap. I dont believe for a second that the 1098 will adapt to a style - it would significantly detract from its track capability if yu had to burn a tank of fuel to get the best out of it. I'd quite like to know whether the dealer believes it(scary) or its just a good off the cuff explanation for deficiencies in the bike. On the other hand, theres a great ride report on TRC between a 1098 and the RC8 (see, we can get back on topic) that says it has an even bigger hole in the map, which is not great news.

[nervous]

Im going to try and get hold of a RC8, you know- when i get some talent and balls. if they still make them by then.

it looks great, and had great reviews in the mags that im basically living through right now. very appealing.

[randlemarcus]

nervous said:

Im going to try and get hold of a RC8, you know- when i get some talent and balls. if they still make them by then.

it looks great, and had great reviews in the mags that im basically living through right now. very appealing.

Its too orangey for crows.

Stick to black things.

[nervous]

nonsense: it'll match my skin.

[y2blade]

doogalman said:

A mate rode one at the bridgestone tests in spain the other week'
He said it handle and stops great, however the gearbox is full of false neutrals going down the box and the fuelling is absolute rubbish. This was common complaints from all who rode it.Build quality is a bit rough in places.
I'd wait till teething probs are sorted

---

just read the same on another bike forum
the one Superbike magazine tested was the same too as where i few others in the magazines

seems KTM have dropped a b-ll-ck

---

KTM owner on another forum said:

RC8. Looks nice, sounds OK. Instant impressions were that the fuelling below 3500rpm is attrocious and it's almost about to stall every time you pull away. THe power is very very smooth and the riding position is pretty nice.
The display is very confusing and has WAY too many options on it, and i don't like the way it scrolls through the fuel/servicing/ miles/average etc etc, changing every 10 seconds or so.

Over the bumps and road surfaces it handles well and soaks them up nicely.

However, once you change gear, it all starts going horribly wrong. I counted 15 false neutrals on the total ride-out of approx 1 hour. Every time i'm trying to get going 'THUNK' another sodding neutral. My mate on his Gixer 1000 nearly rammed me as i missed yet another change from 3rd to 4th on the throttle. I'm not sure if this was caused by the selector lever being in the wrong position or if it's down to the end you push your foot on which is pretty short. If you ram your foot tight into the frame/footrest, it's better, but then you struggle to change down as you have to move your foot out to get back over the top of the selector.

Brakes were decent and the bike was pretty stable even if braking upto and into the corner.

Comfort was pretty good apart from minor wrist ache but that's me being used to a sit up position now and this being a full on sports bike.

The finish was rubbish with the paint coming off in 4 places on the tank. But the overall finish on the bike was pretty nice. Impressed. (ish)

Edited by y2blade on Thursday 3rd April 11:18

[StuB]

Good write up from Chad (lives in the same village as Al) on it in MCN and I'm sure a PC/racefit will sort fuelling glitches.

Not sure I would if I were you though.

[slim_boy_fat]

I was giving one of these serious consideration for this year, but i will hang back till next year when hopefully some of the niggles are sorted, also looks like KTM will be bringing a number of higher spec editions out. (not that i am good enough for them i just like a bit of bling )

p.s. i was going for white.

but i would rather have a black one.

[y2blade]

StuB said:

Good write up from Chad (lives in the same village as Al) on it in MCN and I'm sure a PC/racefit will sort fuelling glitches.

Not sure I would if I were you though.

i was more worried about the gearbox issues

[Dare2Fail]

Sounds like a common KTM problem. When the 990Adv was first launched pretty much all of the owners complained about the fuelling maps. There were all sorts of solutions banded about (different maps, running the bike on the stand for 10 minutes to reset the fuelling map...) some people learned to ride around the problem, some gave up and parted out the bike. It seems a real shame.