KTM 390 Adventure: The secret is finally out

KUALA LUMPUR: The KTM 390 has been a closely guarded secret, but the company has now issued an official statement that the bike will launch in 2019. The KTM 390 adventure is a middleweight performance bike based on Duke 390 and some of the features have been borrowed from the 950 Adventure.

There is an ever-growing demand for smaller-displacement adventure bikes and KTM has taken this perfect opportunity to release such an offer. As the 390 series is already a huge success, it won’t be much of a surprise if the Adventure model becomes a success too.

Bajaj and KTM have managed to keep this bike a big secret for a very long time. They have been working on this bike for quite some years now and several spy shots have been released to tease the launch of this bike. It is also rumoured that the KTM Adventure 390 can handle hardcore off-road riding pretty well.

The bike will directly compete against BMW G 310 GS, Kawasaki Versys-X 250 and Royal Enfield Himalayan 400. KTM will try to get ahead of its rivals by providing something more in terms of specifications.

KTM 390 will likely feature the same engine as the Duke 390. This single 373cc single-cylinder, liquid cooled engine offers 44 PS power and 35 Nm torque mated to a 6-speed gearbox. The bike also might offer features like long-travel suspension, updated traction control, and knobby tyres. The bike might also include the TFT screen like the 1290 Super Adventure.

The bike will mostly have features like comfortable seating, pannier mounts, high intensity LED headlamp along with wheels measuring 19” front 17” rear and dual sports tyres which will have multiple spokes. With the likely inclusion of the dual front brakes and Anti-Lock Braking System, the bike can also be ridden even in the most rugged terrain.

The bike is said to be priced around Php 78,000 (ex-showroom) and it will most probably make its global debut at the EICMA motorcycle show in Italy, later in November this year.