On Monday, Austrian sports bike manufacturer KTM launched the 790 Duke in India at an introductory price of Rs 8.64 lakh ex-showroom.
Positioned in between the Duke 390 and the 1290 Superduke R, the 790 ‘Scalpel’ is a made-in-India naked motorcycle that promises to blend superbike performance with the agility of a street bike.
The 790 is powered by a parallel twin 799cc engine making 103 HP and 87 Nm of torque. The bike has a PASC antihopping clutch (KTM’s version of a slipper clutch) that can let you downshift to pull more power and accelerate faster without locking up the rear wheels in a spin.
The India-assembled 790 was launched in Europe in 2019 where it became popular in the middleweight naked category, competing with the heavier Yamaha FZ-09 as well as with the smaller 650cc motorcycles from Yamaha, Triumph, Suzuki and Harley Davidson.
The 790 can do the 0-100kph run in under five seconds, and has a top speed of over 220kph.
To keep you safe, it comes with dual-channel ABS and a 300mm disc brake up front with a 240mm disc at the rear.
In addition, it has electronic riding modes that let you switch between Track (with launch control), rain, street and sport. A ‘SuperMoto’ mode disables ABS on the rear wheel and keeps it only for the front—for use in motorsport.
Official bookings started on September 23 in nine cities: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Surat, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Guwahati.
"The super-premium motorcycle segment in India has been picking steam over the last few years, backed by a growing performance biking culture," Bajaj Auto President (Probiking) Sumeet Narang said in a statement.
KTM has nurtured a base of over two lakh biking enthusiasts in the last seven years through its Duke and RC range, with never-seen-before technology and performance, he added.
KTM entered the country in 2012 in partnership with Bajaj Auto, and currently has presence across 365 cities with 460 stores. At present, Bajaj Auto owns 48 per cent stake in KTM AG.
An off-roading version of the Duke 790, the 790 Adventure R, has yet to be announced for India.
With inputs from PTI
