Will KTM RC150 Come One Day? A question we ask while we bathe ourselves in excitement as the probability will shake the market like fries in a peri-peri bag
The 150cc segment has been a bit stagnant until the introduction of the Suzuki Gixxer 155. It was then that other brands jumped in and then re-crowded the segment. That was the story of naked streetfighters, in the faired department; things still weren’t all that great. The two ubiquitous options to choose from were the Yamaha R15 and the Honda CBR 150R. The Gixxer SF which was launched later wasn’t quite in the fight of these premium 150’s.
Just when we thought that 150cc sportbikes are dead, Yamaha said that they will be launching the much awaited third generation of the R15. The newly revealed YZF R15 V3 was a departure from the old version in terms of design and tech. Who expected a 150cc machine to be equipped with (VVT) variable valve timing, slipper clutch and much more improved things over the previous version.
Things spiced up when Aprilia revealed the smaller avatar of their flagship race machine, the RSV4. Christened the RS150, the faired bike was an eyeball magnet at the 2018 Auto Expo and was kitted up with top-drawer hardware and electronics. Aprilia made it clear that they’ll be launching the bike sometime in 2019 which called for a loud applause.
So the question remains – Can 150cc still garner the needed sales especially when bigger bikes fall in the same price category?
If they are, then should one of the major players, KTM jump right into it? KTM does have the artillery it takes to rival the likes of the R15 and the yet to launch RS150. They can position the smaller 150cc variant of the RC below the 200, just like they did with the 250 Duke. Internationally a 125cc variant of the Duke is also on sale. Maybe KTM could downsize the 200cc motor to run the smaller RC or maybe they could bore out the 125. Something the aforementioned rivals have done. It will also be a challenge to price it right. If the mechanicals are identical to the RC 200, it will harder for KTM to price it lower, owing to the premium components.
These are just some of the things, there is more when such bikes go into production, as taxes and price cuts come into the picture. KTM with Bajaj has shown some serious price to performance ratio, it shouldn’t be difficult, but if they manage to do, this will be the big bad volumes bike for KTM in the Asian region where these bikes work and it has rivals ready. Countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia will drool over a KTM like this. A lucrative segment will allow defeating all its rival in global sales and could propel to new heights in terms of sales, profits and becoming a household (garage) name.
New RC200, RC250 and RC390 could be unveiled anytime now and there could be a KTM RC150 on that one day and we could be riding them too! For now, it’s hard to guarantee whether or not KTM will participate in this 150cc rat race. But what we can guarantee is that you’ll be scratching your head should you find yourself choosing one of these fun-to-ride sportbikes, which also are a lot easy on the wallet.
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