Announcement

**dishayu** · 01-24-2013, 04:25 AM

Originally posted by The Mountain View Post

The transmission always shifted well, without any undue effort or stiffness, except that I did hit neutral one time going from 1 to 2 as I accelerated away from a light. All other shifts were precise without feeling heavy or overly notchy. Again, the bike I rode is quite new, so I expect the transmission will smooth out with time.

It still happens to me more often than i'm happy with, like i mentioned a page or 2 back. I've done a bit more than 2k on the bike now and i have conceded that it's just a bad quality gearbox. Although i have never encountered any other issues with it, as such.

Originally posted by vikundefined View Post

do you really think the acceleration is not significantly stronger than fz-s because i myself own r15 and when i test rode duke it felt way more faster than r15

I agree with Mountain here. I actually said the same thing the day after a bought the bike. Sure, it's faster accelerating, but it's not in a different realm. Doesn't take you by surprise, it induces more of a "hmm... nice" reaction rather than "wooaaah!!" reaction.

**vikundefined** · 01-24-2013, 05:50 AM

I agree with Mountain here. I actually said the same thing the day after a bought the bike. Sure, it's faster accelerating, but it's not in a different realm. Doesn't take you by surprise, it induces more of a "hmm... nice" reaction rather than "wooaaah!!" reaction.[/QUOTE]

I am not sure if i should get duke then, because i was buying it mainly due to its accelaration and initial pickup.

**yellowspunk** · 01-24-2013, 05:56 AM

Originally posted by vikundefined View Post

I am not sure if i should get duke then, because i was buying it mainly due to its accelaration and initial pickup.

You will not know if its WOW or HMMMMM unless you test ride it yourself dude! someone's wow can be somebody else's hmmm and vice versa..

**The Mountain** · 01-24-2013, 09:24 AM

Originally posted by dishayu View Post

I agree with Mountain here. I actually said the same thing the day after a bought the bike. Sure, it's faster accelerating, but it's not in a different realm. Doesn't take you by surprise, it induces more of a "hmm... nice" reaction rather than "wooaaah!!" reaction.

Originally posted by vikundefined View Post

I am not sure if i should get duke then, because i was buying it mainly due to its accelaration and initial pickup.

A lot of this depends on your personal benchmark. If you've never ridden anything else, the Duke will probably feel significantly stronger than other bikes. For example, the Duke's acceleration is probably about 20% stronger than the FZ-S. So if the FZ is your benchmark, this bike will be significantly stronger. My benchmark is the previous bikes I've owned, and for better or for worse they're what I use as a benchmark, so to me everything here is a small percentage of those other bikes. Acceleration in particular isn't going to be overwhelming to me because my previous bikes have "ruined" me for small bikes. The Duke to me just feels somewhat stronger than the FZ, though not markedly so, because both are small bikes.

**chinmayakar** · 01-24-2013, 10:42 AM

^^^Couldn't agree more. It all depends on your experience with bikes in the past. I took a long test ride on KTM 3 weeks back in Vashi. I wasnt blown away by the acceleration or pickup. However, after I came back to my P230, I thought my bike was faster, eager to raise the front wheel up. But, when I took a test ride of CBR250R, I quite liked the acceleration, pickup, throttle response. It actually felt similar to my current ride.

The thing is I liked CBR250R, but have decided to stay away from Honda Products till they raise their ASS standards to that of Bajaj.

I guess I will have to wait for Bajaj to launch something that can make me happy (Pulsar/KTM/Ninja).

Hence I have decided to wait for the next wave of launches to happen before putting down my money.

**The Monk** · 01-24-2013, 12:04 PM

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

^^^Couldn't agree more. It all depends on your experience with bikes in the past. I took a long test ride on KTM 3 weeks back in Vashi. I wasnt blown away by the acceleration or pickup. However, after I came back to my P230, I thought my bike was faster, eager to raise the front wheel up. But, when I took a test ride of CBR250R, I quite liked the acceleration, pickup, throttle response. It actually felt similar to my current ride.

The thing is I liked CBR250R, but have decided to stay away from Honda Products till they raise their ASS standards to that of Bajaj.

I guess I will have to wait for Bajaj to launch something that can make me happy (Pulsar/KTM/Ninja).

Hence I have decided to wait for the next wave of launches to happen before putting down my money.

After riding your souped up pulsar I am sure the Duke wasn't too impressive on the acceleration front

With most Indian bikes as a benchmark, the bike has impressive acceleration. But more important than the acceleration is the nimbleness, you can throw it around like a rag doll and she will never complain. For Indian city riding a perfect bike. Except the top speed is at around 130 is not very impressive. But a good bike nonetheless.

**splus** · 01-24-2013, 03:50 PM

Originally posted by The Mountain View Post

Ok, got home earlier than I expected. So, here it is:

I was able to get something approximating a test-ride about 2 hours ago here in Bhubaneswar. I had to take someone from the dealer on the back, and they charged me a nominal fee of Rs.50. I was restricted to a very short loop of maybe 2km all on the same road. So, to review, the bike I had was one of several the dealer had, which had been used for a demonstration in the area. I don't know if they brought them in specially, or if they were pulled from local stock. Anyway, the bike I rode had a malfunctioning speedometer, so I had only a vague idea of how fast I was going. Other than that, the bike performed well. It fired right up, to what felt to be a fairly fast idle. Despite my being heavy, and not being able to adjust the suspension prior to riding, the bike didn't feel overly bouncy or wallow-y, and stayed mostly controlled over the short path the dealer used for the test ride. There was one traffic circle, about 6 traffic signals, and one U-turn. The bike stayed stable through the circle, even taking it at about 50km/h. I would have gone faster, but there were a few other vehicles wandering through the circle, so I never got an entirely clear line all the way through. I was able to take the bike far enough over to get within half a centimeter or so of the edges of the tires. Without a passenger, I would probably feel comfortable enough to lean the bike far enough to produce sparks from the footpeg feelers.

I was able to be at the very front of the line at a traffic signal, so I was able to get a good sense of the acceleration. When I was given the signal to go, I wound the bike out as hard as it would go, though not all the way to redline as the bike did only have about 20km on it. Given that, the acceleration was acceptable, though not wrenching. It probably would have been better without the passenger. I would judge it to be noticeably but not significantly stronger accelerating than an FZ-S, though the real test will only come once I can ride one solo.The clutch is very light and easy to modulate, and the engine is very responsive, so I got a good launch. The clutch on the bike I rode engaged when the lever was just barely away from the handlebar, so there is very little freeplay, though even with that the clutch is still easy to handle. No doubt because of the fuel injection, the bike always responded promptly to the throttle, and only once did it stall, at the first light I had to stop for. I didn't have any further trouble, so I attribute that to my not being "adjusted" to the bike's idiosyncrasies yet. I was able to restart instantly, so other than the short silence from the engine, there was no other indication the bike had stalled, and I didn't hold up traffic at all. The transmission always shifted well, without any undue effort or stiffness, except that I did hit neutral one time going from 1 to 2 as I accelerated away from a light. All other shifts were precise without feeling heavy or overly notchy. Again, the bike I rode is quite new, so I expect the transmission will smooth out with time. I found the brakes to be a bit grabby on initial application, but otherwise fine, and well-suited to the bike. Both the front and rear provide plenty of easy-to-control braking force, and the bike can be stopped in a very short distance if both brakes are used. Once they've bedded in, the initial grabbiness should go away, and the brakes are otherwise very forgiving.

The ergonomics of the bike are pretty good overall. I'm pretty large, at 5' 10" with size 11 (India size)/Euro 46 feet, and very large hands. I never felt the brake/clutch were too small or too far away, and even wearing heavy riding gloves I didn't have any problem with any hand controls. The handlebar felt a bit close to my body, but otherwise positioned well, and the riding position was neutral overall. Both the brake and shift lever were fine despite my large feet even with my riding boots on. I did feel that the gauge cluster was a bit low-set, so it was hard to find without taking my eyes off the road too much, and the display is cluttered and hard to read initially. Again, I would imagine that with time and familiarity it would become easier to get information from it. Being used to bikes with nice large, clear analog gauges probably makes it a bit harder for me. Most of my "big" bikes have had tachometers and speedometers large enough to read with my peripheral vision or at most a brief glance; this one requires actually taking a second to decipher, especially the tach. The seat is firm, and surprisingly wide.

In summary, it was better than I expected overall. The bike is very light and controllable, with decent brakes, fairly robust acceleration, and excellent handling. The controls are well laid-out and work well, though the gauges are hard to read at a glance. The bike feels a bit cramped in the bar-to-seat distance, but is fine on the legs, and should be fairly comfortable over longer distances. It's not a monster, but is interesting enough. I will say that even my short ride showed me that after even 6 months to a year of ownership this bike would be nothing special to me, and I'm going to find myself more and more frequently wanting more than the bike can give.

Originally posted by The Mountain View Post

A lot of this depends on your personal benchmark. If you've never ridden anything else, the Duke will probably feel significantly stronger than other bikes. For example, the Duke's acceleration is probably about 20% stronger than the FZ-S. So if the FZ is your benchmark, this bike will be significantly stronger. My benchmark is the previous bikes I've owned, and for better or for worse they're what I use as a benchmark, so to me everything here is a small percentage of those other bikes. Acceleration in particular isn't going to be overwhelming to me because my previous bikes have "ruined" me for small bikes. The Duke to me just feels somewhat stronger than the FZ, though not markedly so, because both are small bikes.

Good observations. Pity you didn't have an opportunity to try solo ride and with a little more engaging road...

I'd like to point out that it's always tricky to judge a test ride bike, especially if it's with another guy at the back.
Just to get a more accurate comparison, few times when I was test riding different bikes in past I did a test ride with both a bike I'm testing and with my old bike that I came to showroom with, and both rides with a same showroom guy at the back. At the back of our mind we often have a feel of our other bike when we ride it solo, whereas the test ride gives us the feel with a showroom guy at the back.
Duke, still being just a 200cc bike, has noticeably different experience when you ride it solo or with a pillion.

10 months ago I bought a used (but relatively new) FZ. It's a very nice bike and I liked it a lot. But I sold it a month later.
Why? Because it was powerless. It SOUNDS like it has a very good grunt but it just sounds than it pulls away. In regard to power, it's just another 150cc bike...
Duke, on the other hand, in regard to power, is NOT just another 200cc bike. When you open the throttle fully you regularly have your head getting kicked backwards. The bike really pulls. And if you're in power band above 7k rpm there's a HUGE difference between FZ and Duke.
FZ and Duke have almost identical weight but 14 horses is 14 horses, and 25 horses is 25 horses. That's 80% difference. I'd say that in mid range rpms on both bikes you can feel that difference less (but still much more than just 20%), but in higher rpms on both bikes you can DEFINITELY feel that 80% difference.

I tried the RaceDynamics pre-production ECU for Duke which gives much stronger mid range power, and with it the riding experience is quite different simply because most of the city ride you spend in mid range rpms... That's why I'm interested in those aftermarket ECU remaps - it's not much of an investment on top of 1.5 lakhs that Duke costs, but you get a lot for that.
BTW, I haven't tried Kiirus ECU, but few people here have said they felt quite a difference in power compared to stock Duke. I really wouldn't know, it's a bit confusing to read conflicting reports...

Again, IF you can wait till May AND afford another lakh then why not wait for Duke 390...

Mountain, you're spot on in regard to console. It's not very handy - it's low and you really need to spend at least a second to see what's there due to poor visibility. And no, you won't get used to it...

I wish it had an analog tacho or at least a more visible digital one, but it doesn't. It's one of Duke's shortcomings despite having loads of useful info. I just simply look at it less than I did on other bikes...

Front brake feels VERY grabby on a new bike, but very quickly it softens, and it becomes much weaker on a soft touch (even too much for my taste) but it stays very grabby on a stronger pull of the handle. Still, very good brakes, both front and rear.

I also feel the handle is slightly too close to the body. I really wish the front seat is 1 inch longer. In fact, it's not the rear seat that's too small, I think it's the front one that's too short, or it's just too close to the handle... But maybe it's just a personal preference, I prefer slightly more engaging seating position.

For me, personally, the best thing about Duke isn't it's power or handling but its character. It's nervy and agile but forgiving and easy to ride in a same time. Riding it gives a really good feeling. You simply feel good. I saw so many people trying it, and they all had a big, big grin on their faces after the ride. And the usual (and often only) comment is just "wow, wow!!!".

It all depends what one wants - if you want to have a small pocket rocket that's great for going around a city and another big bike for big bike feel and recreational rides outside the city then I think Duke 200 fits the bill perfectly. But then again, many big bike owners would be happy with just an easy scooter as their secondary bike...

If you want to have just one bike that could get you around a city and also give at least a partial big bike feel then sure, you'll find yourself wanting to upgrade from Duke 200 even just after 3-6 months.
I think Duke 390 will give a good flickability for easy rides around a city because of its lightness and also a partial big bike feel because of its power.

I personally wouldn't want to have ONLY a 600+cc bike. 600+cc bike is fun outside a city, but not so much in a chaotic and congested traffic of for short rides around. One would end up wanting and buying something lighter for going around...

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

^^^Couldn't agree more. It all depends on your experience with bikes in the past. I took a long test ride on KTM 3 weeks back in Vashi. I wasnt blown away by the acceleration or pickup. However, after I came back to my P230, I thought my bike was faster, eager to raise the front wheel up. But, when I took a test ride of CBR250R, I quite liked the acceleration, pickup, throttle response. It actually felt similar to my current ride.

The thing is I liked CBR250R, but have decided to stay away from Honda Products till they raise their ASS standards to that of Bajaj.

I guess I will have to wait for Bajaj to launch something that can make me happy (Pulsar/KTM/Ninja).

Hence I have decided to wait for the next wave of launches to happen before putting down my money.

Funny - when I tried CBR 250 my first thought was "How can anyone say this is faster from 0 to 100 kmh than Duke 200?! Duke blows it away in acceleration!".
But it felt very much that it would overtake Duke easily around 120 kmh and wouldn't stop there unlike Duke... CBR feels like building the momentum more and more towards the top speed, whereas Duke is not at all built for top speed. Two totally different machines...

Also, there's not much difference in CBR's power delivery below and above 7-8k rpm, whereas many people forget there's a BIG difference in power delivery in Duke below and above 7-8k rpm.
Duke's power delivery is actually almost comparable to R15, just with more power everywhere. It's almost like a race track bike in disguise of a street bike. Maybe that's why it easily beats both R15 and CBR 250 on a track...

**Abhishek2255** · 01-25-2013, 06:01 PM

Finally, I went to the service station with the cold start issue and got it fixed. Apparently some little objects known as seams (I don't know if that's how they are spelled*image attached*) were causing the problem. The guy there replaced two of these objects with new ones having a smaller width.

When I asked him as to what caused these tiny guys to increase in width, he was like its normal and happens after some 6k odd kilometers as they are located in the right hand side of the engine and are prone to instant heating and cooling which results in the expansion.

**mohan-san** · 01-26-2013, 10:30 AM

Originally posted by Abhishek2255 View Post

Finally, I went to the service station with the cold start issue and got it fixed. Apparently some little objects known as seams (I don't know if that's how they are spelled*image attached*) were causing the problem. The guy there replaced two of these objects with new ones having a smaller width.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]92030[/ATTACH]
When I asked him as to what caused these tiny guys to increase in width, he was like its normal and happens after some 6k odd kilometers as they are located in the right hand side of the engine and are prone to instant heating and cooling which results in the expansion.

I believe it is a 'shim', they are used to adjust the valve clearance according to info available on the internet.

**splus** · 01-26-2013, 11:19 AM

Re: KTM 200 Duke

Originally posted by Abhishek2255 View Post

Finally, I went to the service station with the cold start issue and got it fixed. Apparently some little objects known as seams (I don't know if that's how they are spelled*image attached*) were causing the problem. The guy there replaced two of these objects with new ones having a smaller width.

When I asked him as to what caused these tiny guys to increase in width, he was like its normal and happens after some 6k odd kilometers as they are located in the right hand side of the engine and are prone to instant heating and cooling which results in the expansion.

Hm, that's interesting...

Just out if curiosity, what's your riding style?
Do you go with ripping your bike without warming it up properly, esp in low temperatures?
Do you turn it off straight after riding it hard or in longer traffic?

If instant cooling and heating is the reason for this then I suppose we should try to avoid sudden changes in engine temperature (which is bad for everything, not just for these seams).
And I see you're from Delhi, I'm sure the cold winter (mostly) contributed to this...

**abilan** · 01-27-2013, 11:40 AM

What is the onroad price of ktm duke 200 in chennai?

**jeyessh** · 01-27-2013, 01:27 PM

Originally posted by abilan View Post

What is the onroad price of ktm duke 200 in chennai?

1.48 lakh in chennai ten days back...

**abilan** · 01-27-2013, 04:34 PM

Re: KTM 200 Duke

Originally posted by jeyessh View Post

1.48 lakh in chennai ten days back...

Thanks bro..

**dishayu** · 01-27-2013, 10:22 PM

2nd free service today. Apparently the missed 1st to 2nd shifts were caused by too much play in the shifter. The shifts feel crisp after the service. Good job done by Auto Service, BSK.

Cost me Rs. 1370 total, replaced Motul 300V by Motul 7100.

**Pain** · 01-28-2013, 01:53 AM

Got my Duke a week back. I have managed to cross 600 on odo.
Mostly i ride with a progressive acceleration of about 10 kmph per 3 to 5 secs.
Eventhough the service guy told me that the engine can handle much more prior to first service, i still dont want to take.any chances with the new bike.
Just for 1 time i did pull the bike to 30 kmph on first gear. Hope it was not a grave mistake.

Well the following were my observations during my ride and hope to get some advice from experienced riders.

Engine made a lot of heat in the first 3 days.. which i assume due to ware n tear of mechanical parts.
Feel little grunt/ vibs on my foot pegs around 3.5k rpm. But not as annoying as pulsars. They fade away once i pull the throttle .
I am a heavy clutch user, especially when going on unexpected pot holes too keep things simple (cut off engine and be ready to concentrate just on break controling)
Do let me know if this would strain engine more

.

Also since i am nearing my first free service in a week do let me know what engine oil i should put and the advantage of it over the standard engine oil offered by KTM.
I have attached my bike pics hopefully they are attached properly.
Cheers!

Attached Files

Announcement

KTM 200 Duke

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment