KTM’s 790 series is doing quite well in the market. Perhaps, that’s the reason KTM is planning to expand its range of products with another new bike based on its existing 790s. Which is the new bike? Apparently, KTM is working on a 790 SMC.
A few spy shots of the test mule have surfaced the Internet. Clearly, the test mule is in the very early stage of development. We can see that most of its parts have been borrowed from KTM’s available line-up.
KTM has used its LC8c parallel-twin engine that we’ve seen in the 790 Duke and 790 Adventure to power up this test bike. So, we can expect to have similar power and torque figures. The chassis and the frame also appear to have been borrowed from the 790s.
There is a lot of tape work on the fuel tank, perhaps, at this moment KTM is unsure about its design that’s why it’s experimenting with the available parts to see how it would look on a supermoto bike. The same can be said for the seat as it doesn’t seem to be a proper fit. As far as the aesthetics go, they all are very similar to that of the existing 790s. What different here is the front mudguard which looks like that of the 690 SMC R.
As of now, it would be too early to comment on the availability/launch of the 790 SMC. But considering the current status of the spy shots, we think the earliest would be sometime in 2021. However, we would like to see something at this year’s EICMA or Intermot.
