With BMW Motorrad confirming that the G 310 GS will be making it to India next year, its competitor, the KTM 390 Adventure seems to have finally found some new spokes in its wheels. Earlier this year, Bajaj Auto’s Head of Operations had confirmed during the launch of the 2017 RC twins that the KTM 390 Adventure had been in the pipeline for some time now. He mentioned that while the model did not make it in the last generation, the new generation KTM Duke platform offers better flexibility to build a Naked, Supersport and an Adventure. He further confirmed that the upcoming 390 Adventure will be produced in India and exported to markets globally.
Caught in the flesh for the first time, the KTM 390 Adventure borrows its headlamp from the 390 Duke. Since it is still in a testing phase, it was caught running a larger spoke type front and a rear alloy wheel. For the same reason, the engine bash plate and the pillion footrest look unfinished too. However, the front forks are covered by the fender, the rider sits comfortable and upright with another split seat for the pillion, there’s a tiny windscreen to protect the rider, and like the 390 Duke, a part of the sub-frame remains exposed. Unlike the rather extreme looking test mule which was spotted last year, this particular 390 Adventure appears to be more road focused and should appeal to a wider audience. Brakes and rear swingarm have been lifted as if from the Duke and should make it to the final version too.
Another test mule was caught alongside the KTM 390 Adventure and looking at its raked-out front wheel, it looks like a KTM 390 Scrambler is in the works too. Apart from minimal bodywork, a beak type front fender, the 390 Scrambler retains the compact proportions of the Duke, but runs spoke type wheels up front, a smaller disc, a different headlight assembly and flat bars. With the upcoming 2017 EICMA just a couple weeks away, we expect KTM to make an announcement about both these products at the show. They could even surprise us and take the covers off. Cross your fingers.
Images: Motorradonline