KTM Duke 250 launch on February 23

KTM has been silent about one crucial detail regarding the launch of the 2017 Duke models on the 23rd of February. That as a lovely bonus, we will also be seeing the Duke 250 launching in India.

 

While this information was revealed by a reliable source, we apologise to KTM if we've taken a bit of the surprise element out of the equation. With the launch of the 2017 Duke 390 and 200 due in another two days, we are overwhelmed by the news of a third Duke sibling that will be joining the party.

 

While the Duke 390 and 200 have seen substantial styling and mechanical changes for 2017, the Duke 250 sits between these two in terms of what new equipment it will receive. While it does look quite similar to the Duke 390, closer inspection will reveal a slightly different story.

 

The Duke 250 will not get the LED headlight strips that are going to be present on the new Duke 390. It will also be bereft of the 390's snazzy new TFT instrument cluster and will share its console with the Duke 200 instead.

 

Test mules spotted around the Pune area are reported to be shod with MRF Revz C1 tyres that are seen on Bajaj's Dominar 400; it will not get the more premium and stickier Metzeler rubber that the 390 dons.

 

While it will share its dimensions and styling with its Duke siblings, seat height on the 250 and the new 390 sits at 830mm. This is a bit higher than the 810mm seat height of the older 390 and 200 and is the result of a new two-part frame that features on the Duke 390 and the 250. The 200, however, will continue with the older bike's single-piece frame. 

The newer design philosophy has gotten even more aggressive and this is supposed to be a sharper machine to ride than the older models.

 

The international spec Duke 250 produces 31hp of power at 9000rpm and 24 Nm of torque at 7250rpm from its single-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine. We expect to see these figures remain for the Indian models.

 

The most crucial question will be pricing. While its quite obvious that it will sit somewhere in between the Duke 390 and 200, we will have a clear answer once the bike launches this Thursday, 23rd February 2017. The bike will hit KTM showrooms on the day of launch.