Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/389578
2015 KTM RC390 FIRST RIDE P106 as stock) to manufacture it in its well-equipped factory at Chakan. Over 50,000 Indian-built KTMs have now found homes around the world since produc- tion began there almost three years ago – 30,000 of them in the past 12 months - including CKD kits manufactured there for local assembly by affiliates in Ma- laysia, China, Brazil, Argentina and Colombia. KTM is now truly a world brand, with 2000 deal- ers in 110 countries, and it's the Bajaj-built bikes that have driven this expansion – combined with KTM's ongoing competition suc- cess on and off road alike. Fifty percent of the Austrian firm's turnover now relates to on- road products, an indication of its shifting priorities as it reaches market dominance of the off-road market, risking ultimate satura- tion. That leaves the on-road seg- ment as its key growth market sector for future expansion, with 14 different models on offer in a growing range. And six of those are made by Bajaj in India. The RC390 is the highest per- formance Bajaj-built model, and its liquid-cooled wet sump four- valve single-cylinder engine with chain-driven DOHC is essentially unchanged from the Duke 390 motor. It also shares the same six-speed transmission with iden- tical gear ratios as well as the same exhaust. The compact power unit weigh- ing just 79 pounds measures an over-square 89 x 60 mm for a capacity of 373cc, contrasting with the 72 x 49 mm dimensions yielding 199.5cc of the RC200 that's been introduced alongside it – a bike based closely on the RC125. But just as in creating the smaller Duke motors, KTM's R&D team (headed by project leader Sebastian Sekira) uses lessons learned in developing their highly-stressed motocross engines that have scored a clean sweep of the World MX titles for the past three years, in develop- ing their midi-mono sportbike's powerplant. The major engine castings, including the crank- case and cylinder head, are all unchanged from the 390 Duke, with the forged one-piece plain- bearing crank carrying a forged steel connecting rod bearing a three-ring forged piston sliding in the chrome-bore Nikasil cylinder. The chain-driven twin over- head camshafts operate the four valves by Formula 1-style DLC/ diamond like carbon-coated alu- minum finger followers that re- duce friction to a minimum (same as on KTM's RC8R Superbike) with a single gear-driven counter- balancer that does a good job of eliminating undue vibration. Even revving the willing engine to its 10,500-rpm rev-limiter doesn't result in any of the tingles nor- mally endemic in such a motor. The RC390 motor features a high 12.5:1 compression that's compatible with 95-octane un- leaded fuel, with the same cam profiles as on the 390 Duke, and a large 46mm Dell'Orto throttle The RC390 is made in India by KTM partner Bajaj, but it's a full-sized motorcycle with a lot of performance.