KTM 790 Duke is currently available in BSIV-spec and brought into the country via CKD route before meeting local assembly
KTM India has today launched the much-awaited 790 Duke in the domestic market and is priced at Rs. 8.63 lakh (ex-showroom). “The Scalpel” is the first offering from the Austrian manufacturer in the superbike space and is built on a new tubular steel frame with the engine as a stressed member as opposed to the steel trellis frame found in outer KTMs sold locally.
KTM’s 790 Duke, as we previously informed, is available only with BSIV specification compliant engine currently. A lot of 100 units have been brought into the country via CKD channel and is locally assembled in Chakan facility. The naked streetfighter derives power from a 799 cc parallel twin-cylinder liquid-cooled LC8 engine which is good enough to produce a maximum power output of 105 horsepower and 86 Nm of peak torque.
It is connected to a six-speed transmission. The motorcycle comes equipped with advanced electronic aids like Bosch Cornering ABS with Supermoto mode that can be disengaged, launch control, bi-directional quickshifting function, four different riding modes (Sport, Street, Rain and custom Track), nine-level traction control with lean angle sensing tech, adjustable wheelie control and so on.
The 790 Duke is suspended on 43 mm upside-down non-adjustable WP front fork and pre-load monoshock WP rear suspension while a full TFT display shows all the necessary information. The braking duties are handled by a dual 300 mm front disc brake with radially mounted JJuan calipers and a single 240 mm disc brake at the back.
It competes against Suzuki GSX-S750, Kawasaki Z900, Triumph Street Triple S and Ducati Monster 821. Compared to them, the 790 Duke is the most equipped in terms of technologies but is pricier than the GSX-S750 and Z900. To be agile and have nimble riding characteristics, the 790 Duke has one-piece aluminium rear subframe and it has undergone some clever weight-saving measures overall.
Initially, KTM has made the 790 Duke available in nine cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune and Surat. KTM has also announced plans to expand its showroom and revamp the existing ones to offer better and more premium customer experience. The next big launch from KTM is the 390 Adventure and is set to make global premiere at the 2019 EICMA Show in Milan in November.