KTM is going to bring RC390 and RC200 in less than a weeks time, since the inception of the RC390 KTM has managed to create a hype World over, based on Duke 390 the RC390 would be the potent racing machine. Everybody knows about the capability of Duke 390, it is by far the most value for money bike available in premium quarter liter class in India, in fact it gives you the maximum out of every single penny you have shelled over it, currently no other bike comes even closer to it in terms of value for money proposition. KTM Duke 390 bearing a single cylinder 373.2cc 4-stroke liquid cooled engine has the top notch pickup and best power to weight ratio in its class, achieving the Top Speed of 170 Kmph was never being that easy for a stock motorcycle having single pot on the disposal, wind blast is the only down side which you encounter while achieving the Top speed and then you can not forget that it is the naked bike with minimal aerodynamics into play. Here KTM RC390 being the faired one and specially designed and developed by KTM engineers keeping race track orientation in mind gives the obvious reason to every bike enthusiast to get excited. The RC390 had created the hype much before it was actually going for the mass production. Perhaps this is the reason why KTM has not put much efforts on the publicity and marketing front of the RC390 and RC200 and still manages to get overwhelming response from the market.
The RC390 is not only sharing the chassis of the Duke 390 but also sharing the same 373.2cc liquid cooled engine with short stroke characteristics and same technical specifications but having the fairing the RC390 manages to get 179Kmph which is 8-9Kmph more than the Top speed of Duke 390. The RC390 has same chassis with now further more stiff setup for the better flickabilty on the track. The bike also has split seat which is still on the stiffer side and definitely not comfortable for the long journeys. The fuel tank of RC390 is reduced in capacity and now it has fuel capacity of 9.5 liters making the bike impractical for long tours. Contradicting the straight handle bar of Duke 390 the RC390 has Clip-ons which further adds to the crouching riding posture. The RC390 also has twin projector headlamps augmenting not only the aesthetics of the bike but providing better visibility at night rides. The new RC390 would be on the same Metzeler tyres as of Duke 390 and rest of the dimensions would also be more or less same as Duke 390.The KTM RC390 is expected to be priced aggressively and Rs 20000 to Rs 30000 more than Duke 390 but we would say that even little more expensive than this the RC390 will not be a bad choice at all.
By: Farhan Kashif