Orange goes green | KTM E-Duke to herald brand’s electric motorcycle debut
The KTM E-Duke - the Austrian manufacturer's version of the upcoming Husqvarna E-Pilen - will herald the firm's entry into the electric motorcycle market
The first electric motorcycle to come from KTM has been identified as the KTM E-Duke, the Austrian firm’s version of the low capacity equivalent Husqvarna E-Pilen.
As Europe’s largest motorcycle manufacturer, the Pierer Group has been one of the forerunners towards developing an electric motorcycle model plan in the coming years ahead of a planned phasing out of fossil fuelled vehicles.
However, rather than setting the tone with its biggest KTM nameplate, Pierer has instead delegated development towards its sister Husqvarna brand, which will bring two EV models to the market this year in the E-Pilen and Vektorr scooter.
Until recently it was unclear how KTM plans to launch its first electric model but a leaked document from a model planning meeting reveals plans for the KTM E-Duke, which will be based on the E-Pilen.
New from the ground up, the E-Pilen and Vektorr are the first models to launch exclusively with a Husqvarna badge since it was taken over by Pierer, the Swedish marque having filled its roadgoing range with redressed versions of existing KTM models.
This time the tactic will be going in the other direction with the E-Duke set to retain the same 125cc equivalent powertrain of 10kW nominal power from a 5.5kW battery capacity. Both the E-Pilen - which has been revealed in near-production form already - and the E-Duke, plus the Vektorr, are expected to be built in India as part of its collaboration with Bajaj.
Going forward, KTM has previously expressed bold plans for its electric future, stating it wants any EV model to reflect its ‘Ready to Race’ performance image.
However, the E-Duke will seemingly be aimed squarely at the urban market, with a powertrain designed for short day-to-day riding between charges in an attempt to keep overall prices down against their cheaper petrol-fuelled stablemates.
Moreover, the emergence of the E-Duke serves to fuel rumours that KTM might also make its long-awaited move into the scooter market with a version of the Vektorr.
