"You can't compete with established companies in the streetbike market by copying their products," says KTM boss Stefan Pierer. "You have to do it your own way, or not at all." With the 990 Super Duke, KTM has done just that.
In fact, KTM has created a whole new market segment with this motorcycle. It is lightweight and sporty, agile but muscular, minimalist but substantial-feeling. There is a yawning generational gap between KTM's new Super Duke and any of the existing V-twin roadsters, whether naked Euro-bikes such as Aprilia's Tuono or Ducati's Monster, or half-faired Japanese machines such as Suzuki's SV1000. This is no small achievement for KTM, a firm that was essentially belly-up in December 1992. Now it's Europe's second-largest manufacturer in terms of volume.
As the sun set over the Atlantic Ocean and I sat back with a beer for a last look at the Super Duke's unmistakable styling during the bike's world launch in late November, I couldn't help but smile when the editor in chief of one of Europe's biggest bike magazines said, "When I read that first piece you wrote about the 950 Duke prototype two years ago, I said to myself, `What's Alan on? Did they give him too much Austrian schnapps after he rode the bike, or introduce him to a compliant blonde Tyrolean milkmaid to skew his perspective?' But now that I've ridden it, I reckon you observed classic British understatement. This bike is the most two-wheeled fun I've had in years, and I defy anyone who calls themselves a serious biker not to say the same after they try it!"
If I thought the prototype I rode merited nine points out of 10, the production version earns a solid 9.5. KTM has made the best even better, mainly in terms of refinement, but also in performance. Here's why.
Thumb the Super Duke's electric starter and listen to the high-pitched but meaty-sounding 75-degree V-twin crank to life. Blip the throttle and watch the analog tachometer's needle whip around its face. KTM's LC8 engine revs so quickly it's difficult to believe it originally powered a sand-slinging off-road bike.
Despite a new counterbalancer, the 75-degree V-twin's footpegs still vibrate, especially b
Thanks to superbly mapped Keihin fuel injection, the Super Duke pulls hard from as low as 2500 revs with zero driveline snatch. This mild-yet-wild character is a direct consequence of the twin-butterfly throttle now employed. The result is immediate pickup when you open the throttle. It accelerates ultra-strongly, too, delivering a fantastic yet linear drive toward the 10,200-rpm rev limiter. Maximum power is rated at 120 horsepower; torque peaks at 7500 rpm, with no dips or steps in delivery.
Enjoyed this Post? Subscribe to our RSS Feed, or use your favorite social media to recommend us to friends and colleagues!