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**AmitRavi07** · 07-24-2013, 01:00 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

No one is cribbing how 200 is better than 390. People are expressing their view point just as you expressed. Also, perception matters.

Completely agree. D390 is a good bike and so is D200. I have ridden both, and although D200 is more "pushy" and D390 feels laid back, both are great bikes and equally easy to ride in and around city. The clutch of D390 felt a bit stiff at first, but, considering that the bike was new, the clutch would loosen up after a while. This happens with all the new bikes having cable clutches.

**deepak82** · 07-24-2013, 01:15 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Well I think the 390's pricing has been a bit unfair to d200 owners, I guess most of them would have gone for the 390 if both bikes would have been launched together so it's very obvious for them to get a bit disappointed..

**AmitRavi07** · 07-24-2013, 01:22 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Just found this review:

**socialdistortion** · 07-24-2013, 02:11 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by deepak82 View Post

Well I think the 390's pricing has been a bit unfair to d200 owners, I guess most of them would have gone for the 390 if both bikes would have been launched together so it's very obvious for them to get a bit disappointed..

And the new lot of 390 owners will feel the same when the RC 390 launches and so on.

**Satellite.kid** · 07-24-2013, 02:35 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by socialdistortion View Post

And the new lot of 390 owners will feel the same when the RC 390 launches and so on.

Not really. Because RC390 will be a faired sportbike. So even it is priced not too far above from Duke 390, guys will still probably have a clear preference between a faired version of a bike or a naked version (which apparently is not the case with Duke 200 and 390).

**splus** · 07-24-2013, 02:35 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by deepak82 View Post

Well I think the 390's pricing has been a bit unfair to d200 owners, I guess most of them would have gone for the 390 if both bikes would have been launched together so it's very obvious for them to get a bit disappointed..

I think you know that's not the real reason. Please read some posts above again and try to understand. (btw, D200 owners will be a large chunk of D390 buyers anyway.)

The issue here is that I want my STREET bike to have good pull in low rpms.
If I want a relaxed power in low rpms then I'd be looking to buy some other kind of bike, not a street naked bike. I don't care about wheelies, I just want that power to be available there as well, not just at the top.
Simple as that.

D200 owners are just spoiled with a good pull in low revs and have expected even better pull in D390. That's the only thing we're disappointed in...
Nobody's disappointed about the power above 5k rpm, that's perfect.

**chinmayakar** · 07-24-2013, 02:54 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by splus View Post

I think you know that's not the real reason. Please read some posts above again and try to understand. (btw, D200 owners will be a large chunk of D390 buyers anyway.)

The issue here is that I want my STREET bike to have good pull in low rpms.
If I want a relaxed power in low rpms then I'd be looking to buy some other kind of bike, not a street naked bike. I don't care about wheelies, I just want that power to be available there as well, not just at the top.
Simple as that.

D200 owners are just spoiled with a good pull in low revs and have expected even better pull in D390. That's the only thing we're disappointed in...
Nobody's disappointed about the power above 5k rpm, that's perfect.

Splus its futile trying to make someone understand. I guess lot of folks here are intolerant towards anything against D390 (which in our case it isn't). All they want to hear is, it has amazing acceleration, 0-100 in 7 secs, top speed of 160 Km/hr.

All they forget is it is an open forum where everybody is bound by a common interest towards 2 wheels and share the same passion.

It is exact same situation when P200 NS wa launched and a poor soul went to test ride and his experience was not in line what others expected. The way he was attacked after that only shows there's still more time before xbhp has mature followers. And, with this I am out of this conversation as I have realised it is futile to talk sense.

**sparky** · 07-24-2013, 03:22 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

Splus its futile trying to make someone understand. I guess lot of folks here are intolerant towards anything against D390 (which in our case it isn't). All they want to hear is, it has amazing acceleration, 0-100 in 7 secs, top speed of 160 Km/hr.

Well, it cuts both ways my friend. I feel the D200 owners on this thread are in the same vein trying to distort the minor differences in the ride quality w.r.t D200 and make it a deal breaker issue.

In short both D200 and D390 are great racing bikes and each owner will enjoy it no matter what. But probably the D390 buyers are getting a better deal overall compared to D200, I wonder if is this what is causing the discord?

**Doga** · 07-24-2013, 03:24 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by splus View Post

I was comparing them for good 5 min, I was curious about it...
Duke's MRFs are very rounded, in fact too rounded, almost like a V. That's why they look narrower. CBR 250 and FZ have flat tires, good for straight line but crap for cornering. FZ also slides left-right a lot in muddy terrain because of those flat tires, which is not the case with Duke.

D390s Metz are almost identical to D200s MRFs in shape but they are just slightly more normal shape, less V, more O, than D200. Just slightly, you really have to look hard.
So they should look tiny bit fatter (not really noticeable) and together with 1cm lower seat for rider's lower center of gravity, provide little better cornering and handling because of more uniform rounded shape. Not to mention the grip...

I like the look of the duke 200 tyres from the back. I am not talking about handling, but it looks good

Btw won't a fatter tyre give more confidence to novice riders(like me) in leaning in?

Originally posted by riot View Post

Bro you need to ride this bike a little more to see how it behaves. I spent a lot of time with it and rode it on some of the best Delhi roads. The power delievery is perfect for daily use. A more agressive bike would only result in the front popping wheelies everywhere. Take a 390 to a nice road with less traffic and keep it above 5k revs in every gear and you are gonna enjoy a LOT. It just keeps on pulling and never feels like its working hard. On nice twisty roads and i am sure it will give any 600 a run for its money.

You can always install a custom rear sprocket. How about a 52teeth sprocket? Thats gonna make it wheelie everywhere

.

BTW love ur userid bro, Doga is my all time fav comic character

.

Hey Riot, I am not too disappointed frankly. I found the 390 very very good. It felt light, handled well and pickup was great too. Just that everyone has a liking for the rant : "What could have been? "

We'd have liked the 390 to pounce almost like a rocket on etting go of the clutch.
Yeah man..Doga is peerless among all the other heroes, at least the Raj comics ones

I used to dig Manu's sketching of Doga and Mumbai.

There are few others too who like Doga. Also I see an avatar here which is Dhruva.

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

But what Doga said is what most of us felt. He is bang on with his analysis. The aggressive nature of the Duke's is tapered down in D390, but that is due to the fact that it will also perform duty as a faired sports bike, and in a faired sports bike, that is how you expect power to be delivered. On a naked, you do expect as much aggressiveness as possible.

But on the hindsight had KTM made D390 as much aggressive as D200, it would have been tough to handle with power wheelies popping up every now and then.

Pasting a section of a review that I read which very much talks about low bottom end that some of us observed and is bang on.

True, it might have become untamable then. But I'd like that

Originally posted by Satellite.kid View Post

Not really. Because RC390 will be a faired sportbike. So even it is priced not too far above from Duke 390, guys will still probably have a clear preference between a faired version of a bike or a naked version (which apparently is not the case with Duke 200 and 390).

Dude, that's not how most guys buy a bike. Agreed some people have tastes and they do not experiment. So a hardcore naked fan would stick to naked come what may. But majority of us don't do that. I for instance was considering the CBR but ended up with the duke. Now I may not be a motorcycle guru, but am not a 'galli-ka-cool-dude' who gives you the cc figure when you ask about the power rating.

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

Splus its futile trying to make someone understand. I guess lot of folks here are intolerant towards anything against D390 (which in our case it isn't). All they want to hear is, it has amazing acceleration, 0-100 in 7 secs, top speed of 160 Km/hr.

All they forget is it is an open forum where everybody is bound by a common interest towards 2 wheels and share the same passion.

It is exact same situation when P200 NS wa launched and a poor soul went to test ride and his experience was not in line what others expected. The way he was attacked after that only shows there's still more time before xbhp has mature followers. And, with this I am out of this conversation as I have realised it is futile to talk sense.

Hehe. Ok so you were panned in the 200 NS forum becuase they didn't like your review ?
Yes, I have noticed it. Btw like it or not, I ahve observed few guys in our own Duke 200 thread, who are intolerant about anything negative spoken about bike.
Another thing I have noticed. They would invariable 'demean' the CBR as if it's a worthless bike.
I feel that if you want to have a healthy discussion, you should be tolerant to stuff.

**splus** · 07-24-2013, 03:29 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by chinmayakar View Post

Splus its futile trying to make someone understand. I guess lot of folks here are intolerant towards anything against D390 (which in our case it isn't). All they want to hear is, it has amazing acceleration, 0-100 in 7 secs, top speed of 160 Km/hr.

All they forget is it is an open forum where everybody is bound by a common interest towards 2 wheels and share the same passion.

It is exact same situation when P200 NS wa launched and a poor soul went to test ride and his experience was not in line what others expected. The way he was attacked after that only shows there's still more time before xbhp has mature followers. And, with this I am out of this conversation as I have realised it is futile to talk sense.

I agree. I'm still hoping the level of maturity of people who are into D390 is higher than some other bikes.
I try to stay detached and let it be, not to allow blind fan boys to push me away from what I like. Because I like my Duke and only wish to see D390 get even better. Because it can be made better, and that's what we're discussing.

It's not difficult for KTM to tune their bikes according to customers input, it's how things work.
It's just that some people don't realize that if nobody gives any suggestion or complaint then everything in the world would never change and would always stay the same.

If Yamaha R15 v1 owners never complained and asked for fatter tires and cooler looks Yamaha would have never released cool looking R15 v2.

Bottom end - don't hesitate to offer a constructive criticism or to ask for more. Especially if that can be solved with a simple ECU remap, zero extra cost to KTM. Or a simple sprocket change. Heck, I'll pay for it, just make it available...
Apparently it's a deal breaker for some potential customers.

**Satellite.kid** · 07-24-2013, 03:44 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by Doga View Post

...

Dude, that's not how most guys buy a bike. Agreed some people have tastes and they do not experiment. So a hardcore naked fan would stick to naked come what may. But majority of us don't do that. I for instance was considering the CBR but ended up with the duke. Now I may not be a motorcycle guru, but am not a 'galli-ka-cool-dude' who gives you the cc figure when you ask about the power rating.

....

When it comes to the "non initiated buyers" it's a different matter, otherwise i consider duke customers to be different from cbr customers since cbr is a more popular and a household name than any ktm in India at least. The point is the possible disappointment in future duke 390 owners that could occur if the RC390 is priced closer to duke 390. Logically, i believe that the faired version of duke cant be priced much higher if, along with engine, other body parts are same between RC and duke other than the fairing. If the cost difference is much, even then we will cry foul! Hence, i believe, the point of view in buying the motorcycle between an RC and duke can't be same as in between duke 200 and duke 390.

**vidhya** · 07-24-2013, 03:51 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by Satellite.kid View Post

Not really. Because RC390 will be a faired sportbike. So even it is priced not too far above from Duke 390, guys will still probably have a clear preference between a faired version of a bike or a naked version (which apparently is not the case with Duke 200 and 390).

+1. I loved naked bikes and even if RC 390 comes with SAME price as D 390, I would still pick up only D 390.

**socialdistortion** · 07-24-2013, 04:02 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by Satellite.kid View Post

Not really. Because RC390 will be a faired sportbike. So even it is priced not too far above from Duke 390, guys will still probably have a clear preference between a faired version of a bike or a naked version (which apparently is not the case with Duke 200 and 390).

What I meant to say was that it seems people mostly buy motorcycles that exist in a price range (compared to buying one that actually meets their needs.)

So if there exists a sports version and naked version within a similar price range, people are more likely to go for the faired version (even if the main need is city riding with zero track days). The poser value is very immense and that often sways the decision.

I'm glad KTM/Bajaj launched the naked version earlier since I can get it and forget about it. If the RC was anywhere closer, then I'd have to buy it for the sheer poser value even when I need the bike for mostly city commuting and once in a while touring.

**splus** · 07-24-2013, 04:03 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by sparky View Post

Well, it cuts both ways my friend. I feel the D200 owners on this thread are in the same vein trying to distort the minor differences in the ride quality w.r.t D200 and make it a deal breaker issue.

In short both D200 and D390 are great racing bikes and each owner will enjoy it no matter what. But probably the D390 buyers are getting a better deal overall compared to D200, I wonder if is this what is causing the discord?

I think we all agree about everything, it's just that some are pointing more toward one aspect if the bike, and some toward another.

Believe me, Duke 200/390 is FANTASTIC bike! When taking the power out of equation, it is practically the same bike. The bike handles great and is fun and easy to ride. The mass centralization is fantastic and it WORKS - it makes the bike safer to ride because it tends to keep it composed even if you make a mistake.
I could write so much more how good of a bike a Duke is, irrespective of power... I can not recommend it enough.

D390 is great bike in every way with stunning price for what you get.
But come on, don't tell me you wouldn't want to have some more power in the low end?

Trust me, after having D200 I know how much more fun it means to have good power in low rpms, and I firmly believe D390 would be a noticeably better bike if given more grunt in bottom end.

Peace to all, we all love Duke, and let's keep that as a basis of all discussion.

**kkamaleshh** · 07-24-2013, 04:28 PM

re: KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

Originally posted by splus View Post

I think we all agree about everything, it's just that some are pointing more toward one aspect if the bike, and some toward another.

Believe me, Duke 200/390 is FANTASTIC bike! When taking the power out of equation, it is practically the same bike. The bike handles great and is fun and easy to ride. The mass centralization is fantastic and it WORKS - it makes the bike safer to ride because it tends to keep it composed even if you make a mistake.
I could write so much more how good of a bike a Duke is, irrespective of power... I can not recommend it enough.

D390 is great bike in every way with stunning price for what you get.
But come on, don't tell me you wouldn't want to have some more power in the low end?

Trust me, after having D200 I know how much more fun it means to have good power in low rpms, and I firmly believe D390 would be a noticeably better bike if given more grunt in bottom end.

Peace to all, we all love Duke, and let's keep that as a basis of all discussion.

Lets stop comparing, and start something purposeful details and any news about delivery dates of the D390.

Sent from my ST18i using xBhp Connect mobile app

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KTM Duke 390 Launched in India at Rs 1.8 Lakhs: xBhp News

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