KTM RC 250 and 250 Duke unveiled at the Tokyo Motorcycle Show

The renowned Austrian auto maker- KTM surprised everyone at the 42nd Tokyo Motorcycle show by announcing the world premier of quarter litre versions of its popular RC and Duke motorcycles. Both the KTM RC 250 and 250 Duke are identical to their 390 versions and you can just differentiate them with the ‘250’ monikers, which have replaced the ‘390’ monikers on the new models. The company has also announced the prices of the new RC 250 and 250 Duke for Japan, which are 6,20,000 Yen and 5,50,000 Yen respectively.

KTM has also announced some new updates for the 2015 model of KTM 390 Duke and RC 390, which are:

* Slippers - as standard clutch
* Changed the throttle opening to 88 ? 77 degrees
* New design of grip
* The adoption of a new type generator

The company told that the new KTM 250 Duke and RC 250 will also get equipment of similar level as in 390 series. To name a few there will be dual disc brakes, dual-channel ABS, Metzeler tyres, etc.

The new 250cc engine, powering the RC 250 and 250 Duke is an altered version of the 373.2cc, 4-stroke, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, 4-valve, DOHC mill, which weighs just 37.2 kg. Using electronic fuel injection system, the new motor claims to deliver 30.8bhp of maximum power at 9,000rpm and a peak torque of 24Nm at 7,250rpm. The engine comes mated to a 6-speed, 1-down 5-up shift gearbox using a wet multi-plate clutch with back torque limiter (slipper arrangement).

With advance design and engineering, the new KTM RC 250 and 250 Duke claims to have class-leading power-to-weight ratio, which makes them ready to race ahead of the other quarter-litre offerings in the market. The company has not announced which countries will get these new machines, but globally they will compete with the likes of Kawasaki Z250SL, Ninja 250SL, Honda CBR250R, Yamaha R25 and other.

In the Indian market, the direct rivals of the KTM 250 Duke will be Ninja Z250 and upcoming Benelli TNT 25. The KTM RC 250 will compete with faired quarter-litre options like Honda CBR250R and Hyosung GT250R, while its closest competitor will be the upcoming Hero HX250R. Featuring almost similar specifications that of the 250cc KTMs, the HX250R could give a tough competition to the other offerings with its aggressive pricing.