2017 KTM Duke 390 Review
Bike Tested: 2017 KTM Duke 390; Road Test No. 869; Test Location: Chakan, Mumbai
Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 2,73,055/-
The KTM Duke 390 outclasses everything when it comes to excitement and VFM
There have been very few motorcycles in the Indian market which have offered way more performance for the price and the KTM Duke 390 is one of them. An enthusiast’s delight, the flagship street-fighter for KTM in India offered a terrific riding experience in its first generation but not much has changed on that front in the second generation as the Austrian company has focussed on making the Duke 390 a more refined and premium package. A price hike of Rs. 30,000/- has robbed the Duke 390 of its VFM tag, or has it? We had the hooligan with us for a spell to arrive at a conclusion.
Motor Quest: More powerful sibling of the Duke 200, the KTM Duke 390 is the second product to be launched under the Bajaj-KTM partnership. It was first showcased at the EICMA 2012 and hit Indian shores by June 2013. This street-fighter’s performance and sticker price made the value-for-money factor shoot through the roof. Two years later, a mild update was given to improve its quality and iron out the niggles and issues. The thoroughly-revamped second generation Duke 390 broke cover at the EICMA 2016 and went on sale early this year. Even after a price increase, the 2017 Duke 390 still retains its value-for-money crown. All these years, Bajaj Auto’s facility, located in Chakan, Pune, has been handling domestic as well as global production.
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Generous use of black prevents things from going overboard
Styling – Gone are the days when the Duke 390 was chaffed for being too similar to its lesser counterpart in appearance. Designers have made sure that the second generation goes through a drastic change, and how! The 2017 Duke 390 looks as sculpted as a 5% body fat athlete in its new Predator-inspired costume. Sharper tank shrouds surround the reshaped tank in a seamless manner while the beefy braking hardware, coupled with that meticulously designed 20-LED headlamp, adds to the big-bike feel.
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In the herd of Japs, these neon orange alloy wheels scream for attention!
Rest of the motorcycle flaunts a pretty standard street-fighter design with the right amount of colour and muscle. The main frame and wheels are finished in orange and the bolt-on sub-frame gets a coat of white to match the only colour scheme on offer. New side-mounted exhaust takes care of aesthetics as well as emissions. The aurals, we aren’t too sure. Excellent quality of the UV-resistant paint and perfect fit and finish levels act as icing on the orange cake!
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New TFT display of the 2017 Duke 390 takes center stage
Instrument Cluster and Switchgear – If there is one element of the 2017 Duke 390 that will make even Busa owners sit up and take notice, it has to be the 5.0-inch colour TFT console (called Combination Meter in the service manual). The new unit looks like a smartphone but throws out bundles of information including service reminder, trip details, electronic gear position indicator, battery voltage, low oil pressure, distance to empty and a lot more. Important messages are flashed in a yellow strip at the top while critical problems are displayed at the bottom on a red strip. Heck, it even supports smartphone integration via Bluetooth which is something unheard of in this price category! The home screen can be customised to show 8 different parameters via the quick selector. At the moment, the system does not support all mobile phones. However, we found that the iPhone works like a charm.
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Buttons are backlit in a soothing shade of white
There is an ambient light sensor in place to automatically switch between day/night modes (black cluster at night). Data is displayed in a very organised manner and is surprisingly easy to decipher. KTM has done away with the shift light as the colour-changing tachometer has now taken charge which goes red near the redline. Backlit switchgear is carried over from the erstwhile Duke 390 but gets additional switches to tweak the instrument cluster and ABS settings. While the buttons and adjustable levers are good quality and easy to operate, the left side of the handlebar feels a wee bit cluttered due to the sheer number of buttons and switches surrounding it. The other side is largely unoccupied with only a starter button and a kill switch. Speaking of the starter button, it gets a one-touch feature to eliminate the need of keeping the button pressed till the engine comes to life. A thoughtful touch, indeed!
