KTM 200 Duke !

[edwin]

I bought this bike on Oct 23 , 2021. Because of a hectic work schedule , and other factors , I have not been able to ride it much. But it may be an MPG monster. And it has an FCD ! But it maxes out at 99.9 MPG and seems to be
instant MPG only. I could be wrong about that , I am hoping it also shows trip MPG ( it has two tripmeters ). I would post a pic , but I'm not sure how to get a pic out of my phone. As I learn more about this bike , I will post more.
First thing on my list : get my motorcycle license renewed ! I have not ridden
in over 20 years and I let it lapse. Now I need to take both tests.

Edwin

[Daschicken]

I cross shopped between the 200 duke and the new five speed grom. I haven't gotten to ride the new grom yet, but I did try out the duke. To me, it is a weird mix of too slow and too fast for what I wanted. Too fast to go full throttle everywhere, and I didn't find it as fun as I was expecting. Plus I was quoted $5000 for a $3999 bike that had been sitting on the lot for a year. The dealer shopping experience sucks, probably just going to wait until more examples pop up on the used market.

Email the picture to yourself, download it on a PC, then you can embed it here.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

That's a nice-looking motorcycle, yet quite expensive. Most folks in my country go for the air-cooled 250cc Honda and Yamaha when they're looking for a thumper within this same displacement range.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

That's a nice-looking motorcycle, yet quite expensive. Most folks in my country go for the air-cooled 250cc Honda and Yamaha when they're looking for a thumper within this same displacement range.

The Duke 200 is the least expensive full-size motorcycle for sale in the USA from an established manufacturer.


Edwin - congrats on the new bike. The Duke 200 is a great value and well worth the small premium over a minibike like the Grom. How do you like the brakes (I'm curious about the feel from the 2 channel ABS)

[edwin]

Brakes ? I haven't used them very much , lol. Engine braking does most of the work.
I'm still ( slowly ) learning how to ride again. And it's not exactly the best season for riding in the Chicago area.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by edwin

Brakes ? I haven't used them very much , lol. Engine braking does most of the work.
I'm still ( slowly ) learning how to ride again. And it's not exactly the best season for riding in the Chicago area.

One of the nice things about a bike with ABS is you can go out to an empty parking lot or street and learn how fast your bike will actually stop without fear of locking the front and crashing. Many riders only use a fraction of the available stopping power on a bike.

As to weather 45 - 65F is the perfect riding temperature to me. Afternoons should be nice this time of year but I'm sure the mornings are a bit frosty.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by JSH

One of the nice things about a bike with ABS is you can go out to an empty parking lot or street and learn how fast your bike will actually stop without fear of locking the front and crashing. Many riders only use a fraction of the available stopping power on a bike.

That's a good point. On a sidenote, in some parts of my country, many people were still more favorable to all-around drum brakes on small motorcycles before ABS started becoming available. Besides a handful of 125 to 160cc utilitarian motorcycles, nowadays it's nearly impossible to find anything without discs all-around, and between 150 to 250cc some feature ABS at least on the front brake.

[wheelbender6]

My only problem with the Duke 200 is that it looks like a KTM, LOL. I'd like to see a version with more classic styling and only a very small amount of orange paint. More like a Suzuki TU 250 or Yamaha SR400.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by wheelbender6

My only problem with the Duke 200 is that it looks like a KTM, LOL. I'd like to see a version with more classic styling and only a very small amount of orange paint. More like a Suzuki TU 250 or Yamaha SR400.

KTM does one in white. They don't do retro styling.




Royal Enfield lives and breaths retro.

Classic 350:



Meteor 350:

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by JSH

They don't do retro styling.

And its frame doesn't seem so easily suitable for a custom retro-themed build.

Can you believe this 2018 Honda CG 160...


...is the very same model-year of this one?



Its straight frame matches a retro style in a way the truss-frame of the KTM won't match so easily.

Royal Enfield lives and breaths retro

I used to like the Royal Enfield Classic when its engine was actually old-school, even when it switched from a design with a dettached transmission to the unitary construction as it retained the pushrod valvetrain without a timing chain. Well, even though the current SOHC engine is not as old-school as its predecessor, and the Classic 500 had been indirectly replaced by the Meteor 350 in my country, at least the Classic 350 still retained much of its authentic old-school appearance.