We are exactly 5 days away from the RCs launch and by now everyone also knows that the faired bikes are not any more powerful than their naked siblings – something that we have been saying from day one, and neither would the RC390 have a top speed of over 200 kmph…
Still, owing to their revised steering geometry and shorter wheelbase the RCs are expected to be more agile than the Dukes on a track and clocking that 179 kmph top speed (on the speedometer) would be relatively easier on the faired RCs too.
Everything said, the most important factor in determining ‘how well’ the newest KTMs would sell would eventually be their price. Let us talk about the respective prices then…
RC200 Expected Price:
Most would remember the introductory price of the Duke 200, which was INR 1.32 lakh on-road in Delhi. The bike now costs around INR 1.5 lakh on-road in Delhi and KTM should not be demanding a premium of anything more than 20 thousand rupees for the RC 200. Anything more and it would get precariously close to the Duke 390 – and that is something that will not affect the Duke 390’s sales, but the RC 200’s!
So our expected on road Delhi RC200 Price is Rs 1.70 Lakhs
RC390 Expected Price:
The RC390 on the other hand may be priced at a difference of about Rs 35,000 – 40,000 on the on-road prices. That is not because of anything else but we believe that the Duke 390 was underpriced for what it offered. Nowhere in the world are these 44 horses offered at such cheap prices.
So, we expect the RC390 to be priced closer to Rs 2.4 Lakh on-road in Delhi, which will also make it a terrific buying preposition!
The naked Dukes carry a price difference of around 50 thousand rupees and we expect the faired KTMs to have a slightly larger difference and then Bajaj will have to stuff their Pulsar 400SS somewhere in between all these!
This is our projection and expectation, and we can only wait now for everything to be out in the open on the 9th of this month.
Meanwhile, do mention your expected prices in the comments below and let us see who comes the closest…
Related: At a Top Speed of 179kmph, KTM RC390 is a Pocket Rocket