KTM Duke 200 Review

November 30, 2012

I always used to think that bikes change character with changing RPMs.. And then I rode the KTM Duke 200.. If I had to describe the bike in one word it would be: MAD...!! So here it goes:
End of day's work I reach the KTM showroom just in time to get a test ride. I see some Dukes displayed in some weird positions and wonder how many guys it would require to get the bike onto the stands in those positions. When I sat astride the bike, the answer became clear: Not more than 2. The bike feels so light you feel that KTM just might have made even the engine out of plastic, which thankfully they haven't. The engine is tourquey and stays that way till you hit the rev limiter, which incidentally you hit very soon. Work up the gears and before you realise it, you are doing triple digit speeds in sixth gear, searching for the seventh. Drop the throttle and engine braking takes care of everything. The bike doesn't really need brakes but then I guess the Indian RTO must ve decided that brakes are just as important as that ugly looking sari guard on the side so KTM obliged by offering the best ones they could find around.

Then I thought enough of this going up and down the speeds in record time. Let me just enjoy a nice low rev, high gear easy ride, watching the sunset, lost in thought, soaking up the goan evening, etc. etc. Mission Impossible. I was still searching for a seventh gear to cruise in even at a meager 70 KPH. The engine braking still bites if you let go of the throttle at that speed in sixth gear. The bike is so tourqey that you can pull it up in sixth gear even from 30 kph without the engine getting even slightly uncomfortable but if you want a bike to enjoy a lazy sunday afternoon ride on, this is not the one. And then there's the sound. It is neither a thump nor a roar, nor a scream. It's a gargle.
Finally it's the million dollar question: Kitna deti hai..? The answer to which is 25 KMPL + or - 5 KMPL. That's 2 stroke territory. In fact in many ways, the Duke tries real hard to be something similar to a 2 stroke bike. But the bottom line remains: It's not. What it is though is a mad bike for mad people who find it extremely hard to sit in one place for more than 30 seconds.
Got bored of the fast, living on the edge of a knife kind of life. Had no regrets in cutting short the ride by taking a U-turn, returning to the showroom and handing over the keys back to the mechanic who had been my pillion through the test ride. Don't get me wrong. It's a great bike but you are either born for the Duke or you're not. I m not.
Ratings (On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being the least and 5 being the max):
Engine and Performance: 4 (Taller gears would ve helped saner riders)
Handling: 4
Build Quality: 5
Comfort: 2.5 if you or your girlfriend is fat, 2.51 otherwise
Value for Money: 5

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