KTM has silently switched from the German Metzeler tyres to Indian MRF tyres on the KTM 390 Duke and the RC 390 in the Indian market. The 390 Duke and the RC 390 were offered with the ‘M5 Sportec’ tyres from Metzeler which have now been replaced with MRF ‘Revz C1’. This MRF range of tyre also does duty on the KTM 125 Duke, KTM 200 Duke and the corresponding RC iterations, RC 125 and RC 200.
The reason for the change hasn’t been shared officially with us, but dealers have confirmed that the new batch which was received were shod with MRF tyres. We suspect there could be some disruption in importing the Metzeler tyres because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Will this change from Metzeler to MRF be permanent? It is unclear as of now. As things smoothen out and imports resume in full swing, the specification could be revised to the older one. If the change is permanent, will the company adjust the price of the KTM 390 Duke and RC 390 according to the new tyre offering remains to be seen.
The KTM 390 Adventure however is still reaching showrooms with the Metzeler Tourance tyres. No change on this particular model as of now has been reported. MRF is likely to develop a new dual-sport tyre to be used on the upcoming KTM 250 Adventure, this tyre could likely replace the Metzeler on the 390 Adventure, in the near future if such disruption continues in importing Metzeler tyres. The brand however should slash prices on the models with more affordable MRF tyres.
In recent news, KTM upgraded its supersport range and announced new body colours on the 2020 KTM RC390, RC200 & RC125 in the Indian market. All three RC series motorcycles now come with Dark Galvano, Electronic Orange and Metallic Silver, respectively. The KTM RC125 which gets the new Dark Galvano colour option already comes with the Electronic Orange option. The KTM RC200 which now comes with the new Electronic Orange is also available with the Dark Galvano finish and the KTM RC390 which now comes with the Metallic Silver paint also comes with Ceramic White paint option.
