Team Orange KTM recently unveiled the new 2024 990 Duke as the latest addition to the popular Duke Lineup at the EICMA 2023 show. The KTM 990 Duke is the best of the brand’s sport-oriented street naked motorbike and there will also be a fully-faired RC 990 as well.
KTM 990 Duke – The absolute Monster with Sporty DNA
It wouldn’t be wrong to call this bike monster since the 947 cc parallel-twin engine produces a massive 123 hp of peak power, 103 Nm of peak torque and a whole lot of adrenaline rush.
However, when compared to the 890 Duke’s 889cc unit, the one only has a small 58cc increase in displacement which results in 2 hp and 4 Nm more. But though this gain doesn’t look big enough on paper, there are bound to be some changes in real-life scenarios, such as a change in the in-gear acceleration.
And before talking about the specs and features, can we just look at the design of the 990 Duke? I mean KTM has always been famous for their aggressive sporty bike designs but this one might just take the cake for their best design so far. The bike especially the front kind of resembles the bullet ants which are known for being quite deadly and quick, so you can add up the connection between these two.
Also, the headlight itself looks very futuristic and complements the bike very well. Overall, the bike looks very tanky and a powerful streetfighter that is ready to take on the urban jungle. But looks are subjective, so the Duke’s looks might not be everyone’s cup of tea.
Moving on, the bike has features such as a bi-directional quick shifter, cornering ABS, Cruise Control, traction control, five riding modes, a 5-inch TFT dashboard with Bluetooth and more.
Interstingly, there are also subscription-based features which allow the KTM’s Performance and Track modes to use lap timer, switchable ABS and TCS and provide access to the bike’s lean angle data for track excursions for free for the first 1,500 km.
That being said, in India KTM currently only sells its single-cylinder bikes in collaboration with Bajaj including the Duke, RC and Adventure range. So, will KTM bring the freshly revealed 990 Duke to the Indian shores? That’s something only time will tell.
