KTM has unveiled the new Duke 390 at the 2012 EICMA in Italy. The good news is that this more powerful version of the Duke 200 is also made in India and will be launched here soon. The even better is the fact that it shares lot of components with the 200 and will be shockingly affordable.
As the name suggests, the displacement of the Duke 390 is vaguely close to 390cc. It is actually 375cc (yes, Pulsar 375 is what we thought of as well when we heard the number) single cylinder unit developing 43bhp and 35Nm of torque. Considering it weighs just 13kgs more than the Duke 200, rest assure that this one is going to be a proper street hooligan. The liquid-cooled engine has advanced fuel injection system and it is mated to six-speed manual gearbox.
The KTM Duke 390 can carry half litre extra fuel than the 200 and weighs a bit more; but it looks almost exactly the same as its younger sibling. This is because everything from light-weight chassis, suspension to swing-arm’s design are the same.
The looks bit is a little disappointing, but the sticker price can be as low as Rs 1.9 lakh; and with that pricing not too many people will crib about it. Also, Bajaj has successfully applied this with the Bajaj 150 and 180 before.
The bike will be launched in the international mrket next month, when we will know the finer details. The India launch is expected to be somewhere in February or March, it will be available in least two variants – with ABS and without ABS.
