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KTM: Key Takes Months


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The locksmith (SOS) is taking a second crack at it and asked for my ECU, so I had Sean from KTM Murrieta remove it and bring it to my place last night (he lives pretty close).  I'll ship that off today to SOS in Portland and see if they can make it work.  From what I understand, the mfg of the immobilizer and the ECU (Keihin) are in many different bike platforms and SOS has done wonders with these at least for Ducati, Aprilia, etc...  I'm still optimistic.

If that doesn't work then I have to order a new immobilizer/key set.

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Update...

So the experts at SOS Diagnostics are awaiting delivery of a specific part from KTM that should allow them to provide a solution not just to my issue but for any KTM rider in the future.  I really appreciate their dedication to this issue as well as their investment in solutions for riders in the future.  Don't forget their name when you lose YOUR key! ;)

They now have my immobilizer, ecu and keys.

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Update...
So the experts at SOS Diagnostics are awaiting delivery of a specific part from KTM that should allow them to provide a solution not just to my issue but for any KTM rider in the future.  I really appreciate their dedication to this issue as well as their investment in solutions for riders in the future.  Don't forget their name when you lose YOUR key!
They now have my immobilizer, ecu and keys.


Consider getting one of these after you get your keys sorted from KTM.


I misplaced my keys after lunch at TOD this year. Found them buried in one of my several pockets. I have three of them. One for the bike key, the bike and house keys. I actually use the tile probably twice a month. I'm notorious for misplacing items. In fact my wife also has two. One for her keys and for her purse. Worth the investment! Hope to see the project bike at the next rally!
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That could certainly be a take-away.  I've heard cases of KTM providing great service even if their dealer network isn't always exceptional but this really isn't turning out to be one of those.

Same status as 3/20; SOS is awaiting their own immobilizer in an effort to make this work not just for me but for future 990 owners.  I was told an immobilizer takes about 3 weeks to arrive but I think it's been four now.

KTM deserves credit for reaching out to see if they could have KTM of Murrieta get it sorted out with the help of any KTM mechanic if need be but they weren't able to get around the issue.  KTM of Murrieta (especially Sean) has been fantastic, all things considered.  Parts at cost would be a very nice gesture.  We'll see how it pans out.  I'm not eager to throw anyone under the bus.  I'd like to be able to throw my weight around but the opposite tends to be the case in that I don't want to burn any bridges given KTM generates a lot of great content here.  But then it is a two way street, you know?

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Update...

So SOS still doesn't have the new immobilizer they ordered.  We were both told "three weeks" but it's going on five I think.  I think KTM must outsource this to the company that makes the immobilizer; I don't think it's a part they have stashed in some bin in a warehouse.

I got a call from KTM Murrieta asking how it was coming along and I just said "still waiting on KTM."

Estimate at this point feels like as few as 5 or so days to another couple weeks.  Who really knows?

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So Dec-09... Coming up on 4 months?!!!!??!?!? I am sure you have already gone through the p___sed off stage and pounding fists doesn't help but I may have lost it by now. Have you checked the local dead bike wrecking yards for a 990? IF there is one with the keys it would be worth it to buy for around $400!

AARRRRRRG !!!!!!! There I said it for ya!

RPM

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2 hours ago, Allrpm said:

So Dec-09... Coming up on 4 months?!!!!??!?!? I am sure you have already gone through the p___sed off stage and pounding fists doesn't help but I may have lost it by now. Have you checked the local dead bike wrecking yards for a 990? IF there is one with the keys it would be worth it to buy for around $400!

AARRRRRRG !!!!!!! There I said it for ya!

RPM

That would actually work but only if I got the keys, the immobilizer, the ignition and the ECU off of it, which would probably cost around $500

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I read this story the other day and got to wondering if my 990 has essentially be "bricked."

I mean, not literally because of all this awareness I've generated but more systematically and de-facto based on how KTM's more concerned with "racing" and selling new bikes.  The more problems legacy models have, the quicker they sell new bikes.

I may call my insurance company today to inquire if this classifies as a total loss.  If I cannot get the thing running after something like 4+ months (nor can anyone else) then it's effectively a total loss.

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Well,

I got dibs on lets see...... Wheels, Suspension, Roti stuff ! Oh sorry, am I jumping the gun? LOL ! It would be interesting to see their response. It could be ending in a claim though, if you seize the motor not from neglect do they right it off or offer to pay for repairs? Insurance is a strange and fickle animal but sometimes it goes in your favour. My 150HP out board motor basically blew up and my insurance company offered $7000 to repair it or use the money to replace it. I replaced it with a new one and kicked in the difference.

RPM

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Well, enough of the conspiracy theories... I just got word that the new immobilizer showed up and SOS wants to do some testing first before they send it back to me.

I was over at First Gear last week talking with Jeff Boaz and he is very familiar with SOS from his days owning a Ducati.  He says they are the international go-to shop for these types of issues.

The good news for me is that I'll have a programming key finally and two extra's so that if I happen to lose the keys again, it won't be such a long and drawn out drama.

So hopefully I could have the new keys sometime late next week or by April 21.  Fingers crossed.

KTM of Murrieta checked in with me last week to see how it was coming along.  I will probably call them today and give them a heads up.  I'll just have to pop the ECU and immobilizer back in and then program the new keys.  

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Look what I got today from SOS Diagnostics?
IMG_0335.JPG

Given traffic, it's a bit late to try and get to KTM of Murrieta today so I will drive it out there tomorrow and see if it works. Fingers crossed.

Of course, if it works I won't have the ability to drive it home given I'm driving my car out there (unless I can find someone with a truck). I will have to arrange a ride back out there so I can pick it up. There's a chance there will be some programming needed and their master tech isn't in tomorrow.

I will be looking forward to closing this chapter soon and I'll write an epilogue on the whole thing.

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3 minutes ago, 556baller said:

So I live at least a few hours from any KTM dealer, how would I go about getting additional keys made? 

I have my Orange key, and all my paper work. Would I talk to a dealer or possibly SOS? I would prefer to talk to someone like SOS if possible. 

That's a great question.  Given the replacement key from KTM (one that wouldn't work) took 6 weeks I'd say go with SOS in a heartbeat.

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Epilogue...

So I wanted to wrap this very long (~18 weeks) story up with some final thoughts.

One is that no, I'm not angry with anyone about this.  I mean, I'm the one who lost the key, right?  I also bought a bike with no programming key or spare key.  And yeah KTM has an odd way of getting to a solution on this but they didn't really let me down; it's just the system they set up isn't as good as it could be.  I hope this story points that out so that they change it for others.

Another is that this is not the same kind of issue for KTM's newer bikes such as the 1190, 1090 and 1290, so don't worry too much about that.

The places I do reserve judgment for:

  • The first dealer I took it to should have known that without my original orange programming key (I told them I didn't have it) a new key wasn't going to fix my problem.  They don't handle a lot of bigger KTM bikes and don't do lost keys that much so it just was an unfamiliar situation for them.
  • KTM can't defend taking six weeks to make and deliver a key then six more to send a new immobilizer.  That's really absurd and no one ever explained why that was.  I think it has to do with a third party company, Zadi, who makes the immobilizers but I'm not really sure.
  • KTM USA did reach out to see if they could help but no one from their customer service ever made an effort to follow through to see that this issue was being addressed.  BMW has a special code for riders stuck in these situations that allow for elevation of priority as well as issue-tracking.  This is CRM 101 (customer relationship management).  KTM has been run by racers and engineers for a long time and they're hopefully getting better at this stuff.  I know there are those on the inside trying so that's encouraging.

And those who deserve kudos for their good sportsmanship and efforts:

  • Eric Wager who loaned me his 950 to go ride with Thierry back in December
  • @Wolfie who loaned me his 690 to do my Baja ride in late December
  • @francotesta who loaned me his GS to scout trails for Taste of Dakar then later attend
  • Dennis Godwin as well for the ride he gave me to KTM Murrieta with my bike in the back of his truck.
  • SOS Diagnostics for doing such a great job on programming the keys with the immobilizer and the ECU and sticking with it until it was resolved.  By all means use them if you find yourself in the same situation.  As a matter of fact, I'd recommend you have them make you a spare key NOW if that's something you're concerned about.  They'll do it very quickly for a good price.  They do this for quite a few other motorcycle makes as well.
  • KTM of Murrieta (Sean) for being such a tremendous help in getting this first troubleshooted then in seeing it to the finish.  They are a great organization with quite a pedigree so I shouldn't be that surprised.  You should make them your KTM dealer of choice (or their BMW dealership next door).
  • KTM USA for inviting me out to help troubleshoot this and giving me such a cool tour of their US offices.  Their help makes me glad I made a decision to purchase a KTM in the first place.

Don't lose your key now!

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