KTM has been taking up real estate in headlines for all the wrong reasons lately due to its financial troubles. Whether it's possibly pulling out of MotoGP or actually pulling out of sponsoring the Hard Enduro World Championship, it has been hard to get excited about the Austrian brand lately. But for those of you who bleed orange, this should brighten up your day.
The manufacturer recently announced the launch dates of some of the models we were most excited about after their EICMA reveal last November. The range is made up of the latest iterations of KTM's lightweight adventure, enduro, and supermoto machinery. And, having owned a KTM Duke 390 myself, I can confirm that these bikes should excite seasoned riders just as much as those who are starting their motorcycle journey.
North American adventure riders have had access to the 390 Adventure R since May, but come August will be able to get their hands on the more road-focused 390 Adventure X. For many, the 390 Enduro R drummed up the most excitement as an all-new platform, and you should be able to go to your local dealership and pick one up now as it dropped in May. If you were looking forward to the 125 Enduro R, well, sorry to burst your bubble, but that's not coming to North America.
I was most intrigued by the other all-new platform, the 390 SMC R, as the hooligan in me will never grow tired of a new supermoto. Again, you should be able to walk into a dealership and pick one up, as the 390 SMC R also launched in North America in May, but we won't be getting the 125 SMC R.
Affordable, lightweight rippers—it's hard to pass that up. Or is it?
If there's a KTM fire sale, and you've got year-old Duke 990s on sale for almost the same money as a new 390 SMC R, it's hard to see the lightweight model coming out on top in that situation. Now, start throwing heavily-discounted SuperDukes into the equation, and you have to wonder how much a fire sale would hurt the sales of these new models.
As excited as I am about these new lightweight KTMs, I know where I'd put my money if we're looking at huge discounts.
