KTM has officially unveiled the latest and the fifth generation of the KTM 690 Duke for 2016 at the ongoing EICMA show in Milan. The 2016 KTM 690 Dukes gets a redesigned and more refined engine. Both the bikes are powered by a 690cc single-cylinder engine that makes 73 PS of power and 74.5 Nm of torque, the higher spec-R version though makes 75 PS of power, courtesy of the Akrapovic exhaust. The engine now revs an extra 1000 rpm which KTM says makes the power deliver uniformly.
The major changes to the engine includes intake camshaft with new bearings that also acts as an additional balancer that helps to cut down vibrations, twin spark plugs with individual mapping, all adding to the powerband. The new intake and exhaust systems have been optimised to be complaint with the EURO4 emission norms, claims KTM. It also gets slipper clutch as standard. This is the first LC4 engine from the KTM that is complaint with the EURO4 emission norms.
Coming to the base version, the 690 Duke now gets a new triple clamp set with a reduced 4 mm offsets . Both bikes uses inverted front forks, made by WP but the R version has an advantage here as it gets adjustable shocks.
The 690 Duke R version gets a load of features that include Akrapovic exhaust which increases the power from 73 hp to 75 hp. The bike also gets KTM's Motorcycle Stability Control (MSC), lean angle sensitive traction control, cornering ABS and KTM's motor slip regulation system with supermoto mode. The 690 Duke R also gets unique paint scheme which differentiates it from the base model, LED indicators and new seat with pillion cover. The 690 Duke R gets three riding modes as a standard feature (sport, street and rain). The base version get an optional 'Track Pack' which includes access to the three riding modes, the Motor Slip Regulation feature and traction control.
The pricing of the bikes haven't be announced yet and regarding the launch of the bikes here in India, only time will tell when KTM decides to launch it here. Tell us your opinion about the 2016 KTM 690 Duke and 690 Duke R in the comments below.By: Rakesh Gowda