THERE’S NO DOUBT KTM’s RC16 MotoGP bike will be one of the talking points of the 2017 season, but more unconventional is the firm’s plan to sell a customer version. KTM isn’t just talking about supplying one or two satellite teams with RC16s, either – it’s offering a detuned version to any rider wealthy enough to afford the projected 100,000-plus (A$140,000-plus) price tag.
We’ve seen MotoGP replicas before: Ducati’s Desmosedici RR seemed expensive back in 2008 but looks like a bargain now; and Honda’s RC213V-S came in at A$244,000. But KTM’s approach is a little different.
Forget headlights, licence plates, warranties and all the other stuff that goes with a road- legal machine. KTM boss Stefan Pierer has gone on the record to say that modern superbikes are already too fast for the road, and the firm has no plans to replace its old RC8 V-twin superbike with something even more powerful. Instead, the RC16 will be sold as a track-only offering.
The idea isn’t that crazy. Dispensing with a road version means there are no emissions limits, no heavy and performance-dulling road- going addenda, and no need to make the bike work on road- going tyres. Instead, it can offer something even closer to a real MotoGP experience, slicks and all, without the development and production overheads of a road- going model.
With the money you’ll save on an RC213V-S you could buy a truck and trailer to lug your RC16 to and from trackdays, and if a customer decides they want to make their bike road legal, it’s no skin off KTM’s corporate nose.
KTM has fairly low sales targets, with an initial run of 100. Performance won’t be quite at the works racer’s 200kW levels but will still outperform any roadbike, with around 180kW on tap. Sales are due to start in 2018,
so get saving!
By Ben Purvis
