KTM 690 rocker arms

[boboneleg]

With the news of another KTM690 doing it's rocker arm after only 7,000 miles (in Stewie's RR) what is it with these bikes.

On paper they seem to be a great bike but personally what with rockers arm, injectors and electrical issues I don't think I'd ever buy one.

On the other hand there are plenty of examples around that have had no problem at all so are a lot of them made on a Friday near the end of the shift?

Love to hear both good and bad from owners.

[DavidS]

I haven't had mine long enough to form any great opinion or knowledge but they do seem date sensitive. 2104 on seem to be better and mine had the rocker arms preventively changed by the previous owner.
If they hadn't been changed, I would have had them done myself before anything happened.

I would say every bike. car or whatever has it's 'issues' - try the jamming panoramic sunroof on BMWs - a £1200 fix and there are thousands of them but they won't accept a design fault so it's down to the poor customer (luckily mine went under used warranty). Add in a weak joint in the rear wash pipe under the carpet that floods 10l of washer fluid over the car - a common occurrence but tough luck.
Hondas used to have their R&D carried out by the buying public. Most cars bikes now have far too much electronics and will surely suffer in the medium to long term.

I think the 'Friday' vehicle is still out there but most are inherently reliable.
How many happy riders compared to unhappy (and more vociferous) ones? They must have sold thousands.

[RichP]

With the news of another KTM690 doing it's rocker arm after only 7,000 miles (in Stewie's RR) what is it with these bikes.

On paper they seem to be a great bike but personally what with rockers arm, injectors and electrical issues I don't think I'd ever buy one.

On the other hand there are plenty of examples around that have had no problem at all so are a lot of them made on a Friday near the end of the shift?

Love to hear both good and bad from owners.

Had my 2012 690 for 4 years and 10,000 miles without any problems whatsoever. Three mates had theirs for 3 years and the only problem anyone had was the inlet rubber blowing off on one of them when the bike cough stalled. Think we must have been lucky when you read all the horror stories on the internet although you only tend to hear the bad on bike forums.
Would I have another - yes. There are a bit heavy when loaded up, especially with the Rally Raid tanks and fairing kit, when you are doing tight trails but as a 50/50 bike I think they are great.

[Famous]

Had a rocker go in mine

Hadn't heard of the failures previous to that but knowing that I've inspected a few for friends and needed to replace a couple

Would it stop me buying another one

Absolutely not!

Still one of the best bikes in that class

There's a lot of them out there being exposed to a lot of abuse so you're bound to have some issues

The rocker is an issue that they should have dealt with but at least they're not that expensive and relatively easy to replace as in you can do them on the side of the road

[diggermanbob]

Sounds like it might be a spare part worth carrying if you are on a long treck especially if your travelling solo !!

[PapaLazarou]

What are the consequences of them letting go though? It seems like a cheap enough part to carry in a spares kit, but won't it lunch the top-end if it goes?

[Famous]

The rocker fails and won't open the valve and it can damage the cam with the swarf heading off around the engine.
For a long trip yeah definitely worth carrying one

[Uncle Buck]

I only have 1800 miles on mine so still in good shape. It's a 2016.

[Thedktor]

The older ones are more prone. But sometimes they break and it makes a bit of a mess depending where the broken bits drop through.....

[bowber]

I've seen the needle roller cam bearing fail in one and it was still running and doing 60+ happily, bit noisy mind, wouldn't start the next day when cold though hence the owner delving into the top end and finding the needle rollers laying around. If he'd had the parts with him he could have replaced it there so they seem easy enough to work on. In the comfort of a workshop I'd be taking the motor to bits though.

Steve