KTM 390 SMC R vs Suzuki DR-Z4SM on track

One standing-start lap of the Ref Ring, our 3.4 km circuit with no home-crowd corners. Every braking point, apex speed and straight is computed from the published specs, so the stopwatch has no favourites.

Read the full comparison

One lap of the Ref Ring

3.4 km, nine corners. Simulated from published specs, played back 3.6x faster than real time.

0:00.0

KTM 390 SMC R

0 km/h / 45 hp / 161 kg wet

Gap

+0.00 s

Suzuki DR-Z4SM

0 km/h / 38 hp / 154 kg wet

Speed through the lap

0 to 172 km/h, shaded zones are corners

KTM 390 SMC R takes it by 2.78 s, which is 111 m of daylight at the flag. Most of it came at Spec Sheet Straight.

KTM 390 SMC R

1:52.02

top 163 km/h / avg 109 km/h / 0 corners won

Suzuki DR-Z4SM

1:54.80

top 154 km/h / avg 106 km/h / 0 corners won

Sector	390 SMC R	DR-Z4SM
Sector 1	46.05 s	47.30 s
Sector 2	19.32 s	19.68 s
Sector 3	46.61 s	47.78 s

The working: every assumption in the simulation

This is a point-mass lap simulation from published specs, the same quasi-static method club-level lap-time tools use. It is an estimate for comparison, never a measured lap.

Rider: 75 kg, added to each bike's wet weight.
Drivetrain efficiency: 90 percent of claimed peak power.
Aero drag area by class, 0.32 (faired supersport) to 0.44 (adventure and enduro); air density 1.2 kg/m3, rolling resistance 0.015.
Peak cornering grip by class, 0.88 g (enduro knobbies) to 1.15 g (supersport rubber), adjusted mildly for load: lighter bikes work their tyres less.
Braking from the front brake spec: disc size and caliper type set the ceiling, grip has the final say.
Launch capped by the wheelie limit computed from wheelbase and seat height, and by tyre grip through the friction circle in every corner.

Race notes

The KTM 390 SMC R laps the Ref Ring in 1:52.02 on paper, 2.78 seconds quicker than the Suzuki DR-Z4SM at 1:54.80. That gap is worth about 111 metres at the flag, and the biggest single chunk of it, 0.84 s, comes at Spec Sheet Straight.

Through the corners there is nothing between them on paper; this one is decided by power and braking. Top speed goes 163 km/h to 154 km/h. A faster lap is not the same thing as the better buy, which is why the full comparison scores value, practicality and ownership too.

Simulated lap times from published specs with stated assumptions, not measured track data. The circuit is fictional and the physics are listed under the race. Read about both bikes: KTM 390 SMC R and Suzuki DR-Z4SM.

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