KTM RC 250 / Duke 250 exports from India begin

Austrian motorcycle maker and Bajaj Auto’s partner - KTM, had revealed the Duke and RC in 250cc avatars earlier this year. Target markets for bikes powered by the new engine remained unknown, but a recent update on Zauba has revealed that KTM has started exports of the 250cc RC and Duke from India.

Markets like Austria, Thailand, Japan, Turkey and Hong Kong will receive the bikes as completely built units (CBUs), while Malaysia will receive them as completely knocked down (CKD) units. Based on KTM’s 373.2cc single cylinder engine, this 250cc motor produces 31 BHP @ 9,000 rpm and 24 Nm of torque @ 7,250 rpm. This equates to around 6 BHP and nearly 5 Nm of torque more than the Duke / RC 200.

KTM hasn’t confirmed any plans to launch 250cc variants of the Duke and RC in India. Given that the RC series was launched in India less than year ago, it is unlikely that an update this significant will be made so soon. It is interesting to note that multiple units of the Duke / RC 250 are equipped with ABS. The gap between the Duke / RC 200 and Duke 390 / RC 390 is quite narrow. Unless KTM chooses to go with Bajaj’s strategy of launching the same model with minor displacement gaps, the 250 could be seen as a successor to the 200 in the future.