KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- The E Duke prototype is on display at KTM's headquarters in Austria.
- The chassis seems to be derived from the current 390 Duke.
- The prototype is likely powered by a 5.5kWh air-cooled battery pack.
Seems like the KTM E Duke is finally closer to becoming a reality, with images and videos of an electric Duke prototype doing the rounds, courtesy of renowned stunt rider Rokbagoros. This prototype is currently on display at KTM's Austria HQ, just days after the announcement regarding Bajaj's takeover.
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KTM E Duke Prototype Details
Sometime in 2022, KTM revealed that an electric version of the Duke was being developed. Three years later, the Austrian bikemaker has given us a glimpse into the future with the E Duke prototype, and there are many noteworthy things worth spotting.
The E Duke continues to sit on a trellis frame, and the electric motor sits right where the engine does on a regular Duke. The motor is a chain-driven unit, and the bike also sports the adjustable WP Apex front forks, an offset rear monoshock, light alloy rims, a rather unique seat which appears to be 3D-printed, and ByBre disc brakes. The 'tank' features open spaces which suggests that the battery could perhaps be air-cooled, and not liquid-cooled like most modern units.
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There are no official specifications released by KTM just yet. However, if we go back to the presentation 2022, the bikemaker mentioned a few nominal numbers. The E-Duke's motor could possibly displace a claimed 10kW output, while backed by a 5.5kWh battery pack. These numbers are highly likely to change in the future, and we can expect the E Duke to attempt and replicate the hooligan nature of its combustion-engined siblings. However, it will be interesting to see how KTM does so, without sacrificing range for daily usage.
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If the E Duke enters production, there are chances it could be produced in India and exported to the rest of the world, given Bajaj's plans to become a majority stakeholder in KTM. However, we still expect this to happen later into the future. Hence, we can perhaps expect a global debut, or at least a working model closer to production to be shown at the 2026 EICMA.
It would also not be far-fetched to imagine an electric Bajaj Pulsar derivative being made off of the same platform, but that's probably us geting ahead of ourselves.
Or is it?
Verdict
Electric motorcycles are a complex idea, and for a company like KTM which has just bounced back from a tough period, it will surely take them some time to materialize the idea of an electric Duke. It will be interesting to see how the Austrian bikemaker retains the hooligan ethos of the combustion bikes in an electric package.
