This midweight adventure-touring line arrived for the 2019 model year as a new twin-cylinder travel-enduro aimed at riders who wanted a lighter, more off-road-capable alternative to the larger adventure bikes in the segment. The original launch established the formula: a compact parallel-twin chassis, long-travel suspension, and a road-and-trail character that quickly became one of the company’s most recognizable modern adventure platforms.
For the 2021 model year, the line evolved into a more powerful 890-badged version, with the earlier 790 designation temporarily stepping aside as the range was expanded and repositioned. That made the family feel like a clear two-step progression rather than a simple trim update, with the larger-capacity variant occupying the role of the more road-biased and premium middleweight option.
The 790 nameplate then returned for 2024 after a gap, with KTM describing it as a revived model rather than a continuation of the original run. That revival brought updated engineering and emissions-related revisions while keeping the same general mission: a versatile, confidence-inspiring adventure machine for mixed-surface use. As of the current model year, the 790 designation remains on sale, while the 890 variant continues to define the upper part of the middleweight adventure range. Because the nameplate has appeared in separate production periods, its history should be treated as a multi-era line rather than a single uninterrupted run.