2016 KTM RC 390
The
KTM RC 390 stood quietly, almost unnoticed at the KTM stall at the EICMA show
in Milan. Most people did not notice the 2016 updates, perhaps because, as
usual, KTM displayed a fully kitted out, powerpart-ed RC 390 instead of a
bone-stock model. In fact, a fairly
significant update even though the engine, bodywork and the frame were largely
the same as the previous year’s model.
The
first of the big changes is the arrival of ride by wire. The 2016 KTM
RC 390’s throttle cable will be connected to the ECU rather than the throttle
body. The ECU, in turn, will decide how much fuel should be sprayed into the
intakes by the throttle bodies, depending on the throttle position and various
other sensor inputs. What it does imply is that should KTM see
sense in deploying traction control or other advanced electronics, it will be
very easy to implement.
The
second of the big changes is the new exhaust which sticks out on the side of
the back next to the swingarm. The new exhaust design also allows KTM to use a
new, narrower V-section lower fairing that should stop the complaints of the
previous years’ flat bottom-ed fairing grinding down and causing clearance
problems. Since the engine is the same, it makes sense that this new fairing
element should be retrofittable to older RC 390s as long as an aftermarket
exhaust is used to move the older boxy exhaust that sits under the engine.
Both
of these changes were made for the simplest of reasons. KTM say the forthcoming
Euro4 norms are super tight and ride by wire and the new exhaust are both
required to meet and pass those norms. The 2016 model might be slightly ahead
of schedule but KTM say that almost all of their models will have to switch to
ride by wire and new exhaust designs to meet the emissions norms.
