Indonesia is the country which is the talk of the town when it comes to motorcycling these days. They got the R25 from Yamaha and possibly they are getting a four-cylinder quarter-litre from Kawasaki as well. However, what they have now is the KTM Super Duke R. KTM has just launched this 1301cc monster in Indonesia despite the bonkus taxes they are levied with. Indonesia has all the superbikes despite this insane taxing policy by the government because the companies still see a huge demand for these motorcycles in this “biking” country.
The KTM Super Duke is the best selling and awarded super naked motorcycle in the world because of the fantastic package it offers. Sure it is way too expensive according to our American and European brothers but they say it is well worth it because it has what it takes to dethrone the king of the segment which is the Aprilia Tuono. The new competitor is the BMW S1000R which came and has already been dusted by the KTM. Such is the sheer level of packaging and fun KTM has packed into the Super Duke. We think that after launching it in Indonesia and more Asian countries, KTM will bring it to India which is its second home thanks to Bajaj.
The KTM Super Duke is powered by a 1301cc V-Twin engine which produces 180 BHP of power and 144 Nm of torque, both at very low RPM. For example it produces 100 Nm of torque just from 2500 RPM. The bike has a 1:1 ratio thanks to BHP and weight figures being the same (weight is 189 kgs, still they call it 1:1). 0-100 km/hr is achieved in under 3 seconds and 0-200 km/hr is done in just 7.2 seconds. That is properly, scarily fast. All of this has made Aprilia stand up and quickly roll out a upgraded Tuono to counter the Austrian. This is the level of madness KTM has created with the Super Duke. No wonder KTM themselves call it “The Beast”.
Expect this “beast” to come to India in CKD form and later it might be manufactured here. Something which Bajaj said that it will do with every big KTM model in the future. Would you pay Rs. 15 lakhs for a bike which is bound to win every possible test thrown at it from the competition? We would, if we could!
