KTM seems to have burst a cracker of sorts with the Duke 390. The Austrian automaker will soon be lifting off the covers from their latest Duke motorcycle but details have already leaked on the internet. The scans from the brochure reveal the Duke 390 to be very similar in appearance to the Duke 200. Even the hardware looks similar with the Duke 390 having the same trellis frame, but painted in KTM’s orange racing colors. The suspension, tyres and brakes seem to be the same as the Duke 200.
Powering the KTM Duke 390 is a new 373.2cc single-cylinder, water-cooled engine that produces 44 PS of peak power output at 9500 RPM and 35 Nm of peak torque output at 7250 RPM. This engine is mated to a 6-speed gearbox and the fueling system is made by Bosch. The Duke 390 weighs just 139 kgs (dry weight), which gives it an immense power to weight ratio of 316 PS per tonne!! Expect a 0 – 100 km/hr time of under 7 seconds, while top speed should be around 170 km/hr.
All bikes in Europe need to offer ABS as standard and thus the Duke 390 comes with ABS. We hope Bajaj-KTM offer ABS in India as well, since the Duke 390 does need splendid braking performance owing to the high speeds its capable off. With the styling and most parts shared with the Duke 200, we can expect the Duke 390 to be priced very competitively. The 390 Duke will be manufactured at Bajaj Auto’s plant in Chakan and we expect prices to start around Rs. 2 lakhs, which is a bargain for such a high performance motorcycle.
