KTM has hiked the price of the entry-level Duke 125 again for the third time in 3 months
KTM India has yet again announced a price hike for the Duke 125 bringing up the price tag to Rs. 1.30 lakh (ex-showroom). The latest hike comes as the third one in three months since the bike was launched in November last year at a price of Rs 1.24 lakh.
While the exact reason for the hike is unknown, reports suggest that it could be because of the increasing manufacturing costs. This comes after all KTM models were recently subjected to a minor hike, increasing the prices of Duke 125 by a mere Rs 250. The 125’s latest price tag puts it in a new bracket predominantly consisting of the Yamaha MT-15.
However, in the aforementioned battle, Yamaha’s naked streetfighter might have an upper hand considering the mechanicals and the brand name. At Rs. 1.36 Lakh (ex-showroom), the Yamaha MT15 gets a bigger capacity engine and offers more power.
So far, KTM has been enjoying healthy returns from the Duke 125, clocking over 2,000 units every month. It outsells Duke 200 and Duke 390 combined with other models as well.
At its heart, the KTM Duke 125 has a 124.6cc liquid-cooled DOHC engine that produces 14.3 bhp and 12 Nm of peak torque through a 6-speed gearbox.
The Duke 125 is closing in on Yamaha’s taily which clocks over 3000 units every month. The figures are still lesser than R15 V3, but the naked streetfighter also loses some bits from the R15 V3.
The suspension, braking setup and the design of KTM Duke 125 are derived from the Duke 200 as it uses upside-down WP shocks at the front and a monoshock absorber at the back. It will be interesting to see what impact the price hike will make on the sales of the Duke 125 in the coming months.