KTM reveals 990 Duke

KTM has taken the covers off the new 990 Duke, which uses a 947cc parallel-twin engine that's derived from the 890 Duke R’s 889cc twin-cylinder motor. 

KTM has housed the 947cc mill in a new steel trellis frame that’s suspended by a USD fork and monoshock, both courtesy of WP. The USD fork is an open cartridge unit that’s adjustable for compression and rebound, while the monoshock is adjustable for rebound and preload. 

Braking duties are handled by a pair of 300mm discs at the front bitten down upon by KTM-branded 4-pot calipers, while a single 240mm disc mated to a single-piston caliper handles stopping duties at the rear. 

The design of the new 990 Duke can only be described as polarising with that very industrial vertically stacked twin-pod LED headlight flanked by a pair of LED DRLs and those oversized tank extensions. Let us know what you think of the 990 Duke’s design in the comments section below. 

Seat height stands at 825mm and KTM claims the 990 Duke has a ‘complete weight’ of 179kg, without specifically stating whether it's dry or kerb. Wheel sizes are pretty standard for the class with a 120/70-ZR17 tyre up front and a 180/55-ZR17 unit at the back. The 990 Duke runs on Bridgestone S22 rubber. 

A full suite of electronic rider aids are on offer including five riding modes, a bidirectional quickshifter, cornering ABS and traction control, wheelie control, launch control and for the first time on a parallel-twin Duke, even cruise control is part of the package. 

As is the case with all of KTM’s large-capacity models, you get access to the full suite for the first 1,500km, after which you have to pay to use certain features. In the case of the 990 Duke, these features include the Track and Performance modes which enable you to access the lap timer and turn off ABS and traction control fully as well as access to lean angle data. All of this is accessed via a 5-inch TFT dash that can be paired to your smartphone via the KTM Connect app. The switchgear on the left-hand side switch cube looks to be the same as the one found on the 2024 250 Duke and 390 Duke models. 

At the minute, KTM hasn’t revealed whether this 990 Duke will make its way to our shores, but considering its prolonged absence from the big-bike market in India, it is quite unlikely it will come here.