KTM 390 Adventure is expected to make a strong impact in the segment with an aggressive price range; to rival BMW G310GS and RE Himalayan
KTM officially announced the launch timeline of the Duke 390 based adventure motorcycle just ahead of the BMW G310GS’ market entry back in June 2018. Scheduled to arrive next year, it will play a significant role in popularising entry-level premium adv segment in India in a highly desirable pricing going by KTM’s knack of positioning its products.
Currently, domestic brands are trying to make an early impact in the segment as Royal Enfield Himalayan will have a direct rival in the form of KTM 390 Adventure. Further lower in the segment, Hero MotoCorp is introducing XPulse 200, the spiritual successor of Impulse at around Rs. 1 lakh (ex-showroom).
Having been available since July, the BMW G310GS commands a waiting period of around three months as it has been well-received so far. It only has the Kawasaki Versys X-300, which is priced at a considerable premium over the Beamer, as its key competitor. The proceedings will change when 390 Adventure goes on sale in early or mid 2019.
KTM will be hoping to exploit the vast potential in the segment, just as it did with the Duke and RC 390s that boasted advanced technologies their rivals could not offer at an aggressive price bracket. The styling of the 390 Adventure will take plenty of inspiration from the flagship 1290 Super Adventure.
In a similar fashion to its 390 siblings, the 390 Adventure is expected to be manufactured at the Chakan facility and exported elsewhere along with addressing needs in the India market. While the locally produced G310GS’ pricing received criticism for being higher than globally sold model, KTM could stick by its strengths and give a bold price tag.
The test prototypes of the 390 Adventure were already spotted several times and the 373.2 cc single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, FI engine developing 44 PS and 35 Nm will more likely be shared with the Duke 390. It could be tuned for low-end torque delivery and feature a closer gear ratio to tackle the demands of off-roading.
The important features expected on the KTM 390 Adventure are dual-channel ABS,ride-by-wire, riding modes, long travel suspension setup, dual purpose tyres, adjustable swingarm, slipper clutch, LCD instrumentation and so on. KTM could surprise us by showcasing the 390 Adventure at EICMA but no signs of it have appeared yet. Its arrival could instigate Suzuki, that just brought in V-Strom 650XT, to consider V-Strom 250 for India.