The Austrian two and three-wheeler manufacturer, KTM, has been famous for building capable motorcycles with class-leading performance, sharp styling and value for money. Similar success story followed in India for KTM where it completely blew the competition out of shape and a few years later, we are still waiting for the competition to catch up. KTM has enjoyed a monopoly when it comes to both street naked and full faired track bikes i.e. the Duke and RC lineup. State of the art tech, immensely powerful engine and pricing are the main contributors to the company’s success in India.
The first spy shot of the KTM 790 Adventure was spotted back in December 2016 and with the test mule being in the initial stage hence not sporting the style elements, speculations of the 390 Adventure flooded media sites across the world. The company quickly reacted and confirmed that no such product was planned yet. Finally at EICMA this year, KTM revealed the Duke 790 based on which the company will develop the adventure version. The Duke 790 and the 790 adventure will share ample parts to keep the overall cost in check but the company claims that it won’t just be a Duke 790 with long travel suspension. The 790 Adventure will be developed ground up to be a hardcore offroader and will sport a unique identity when compared to its street naked sibling.
image credits- MoreBikes
The production version of the KTM 790 Adventure follows an identical design theme to that of the concept. The LED headlamp gained a wind deflector and the front fender has been replaced near to the front tire for more practical reasons. The exhaust hangs neatly on one side and the catalytic converter is housed under the engine. The 790 Adventure will share the engine with the duke and is expected to churn out 105 PS of power at 9,000 rpm and 86 Nm of torque at 8,000 rpm. The engine will come mated to a six-speed gearbox.
The suspension of the KTM 790 Adventure will have inverted forks at the front and will employ a monoshock at the rear. In order to tame any terrain, the offroader will come loaded with all-terrain knobby tires. Petal discs displayed on the concept have been done with and the test mule was spotted with conventional discs at both ends. The dual disc setup at the front gets radial calipers.
Going by the trend, expect KTM to showcase the production version in EICMA next year. Currently, the company has no plans of launching this in India, but globally it will compete with the Triumph Tiger 800 and the newly launched BMW F 750 GS and F 850 GS.
