KTM 200 Duke ABS vs Bajaj Pulsar NS200 ABS vs TVS Apache RTR 200 4V ABS – Competition Check

The KTM 200 Duke now has an ABS version, but there are two options if you’re in the market for a 200cc motorcycle with ABS – the Bajaj Pulsar NS200 and the TVS Apache RTR 200.

Let’s take a look at the KTM first. It’s been around longer than the other two, but it still has the highest engine output figures, at nearly 25bhp and 19Nm from its 200cc engine. It gets liquid cooling as well as fuel injection, which isn’t a combination that the other two offer. In addition, the cycle parts are better in almost every respect. The chassis is a trellis frame, the front forks are upside-down ones, the front brake calliper is radially mounted and has opposed pistons, and the ABS is a dual-channel one. The instrument cluster does look a little dated, but it also offers the most comprehensive information. 

The Bajaj Pulsar NS200 ABS shares its engine’s origins with the Duke, but it takes a vastly different route. It uses three spark plugs and carburetion with liquid cooling to generate 23bhp and 18Nm from its 200cc engine. It has a perimeter frame for a chassis, and the ABS is the only one here that is single channel. The instrumentation is the most dated looking of the three, with an analogue tachometer that dominates, but the blue backlighting makes it look a little modern. 

The TVS Apache RTR 200 4V ABS has the longest name of the three here, but it also is the most traditional of the lot in some ways. Its 198cc engine is air/oil cooled, and generates 21bhp and 18Nm. It transmits its power through a five-speed gearbox, where the other two use six speeds. The ABS system is a dual-channel one, though, and the all-digital instrument cluster looks the most modern of the lot, with its white backlighting. It also offers a host of information unique to itself, including top speed, 0-60 kmph time, and a lap timer. The frame it uses is a  more conventional double cradle frame. 

The TVS is the most affordable of the three, at Rs 1.11 lakh. The Bajaj costs just over Rs 1000 more, at Rs 1.12 lakh, despite the single-channel ABS. You have to pay a hefty premium to step up to the KTM, at Rs 1.61 lakh. All prices ex-showroom, Delhi.