Upcoming KTM 350 ADV Will Be The New 250? » MotorOctane

The new GST rules pushed the bike manufacturers to introduce more bikes below the 350cc segment. Indian bike maker, Bajaj, has already announced that it will be introducing the 350cc bikes in the KTM, Triumph and its own lineup. However, the market indications suggest otherwise, with KTM being more confident about bringing newer models above the 350cc segment. So, will the upcoming 350cc KTM ADV be another decoy just like the 250 ADV?
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Upcoming KTM 350 ADV – What’s New?

Last year, we saw a few additions in the ADV 390 lineup – the ADV X and the standard 390 ADV! Both models sold like hot pancakes, with more sales being for the ADV X, obviously for its affordability. Moreover, the ADV 390 X was placed quite right in terms of pricing, so that if someone came with a mind to buy the 250 ADV, they were directly pushed to have the 390 ADV X. That was majorly due to a very short price gap between the two motorcycles. 

However, later in time, the Indian Government changed everything for every bike maker. Yes, we are talking about the new GST rates. The bikes equipped with an engine capacity of more than 350cc were placed in a tax bracket that was way higher than the old structure, hence making it more expensive. Yes, Bajaj tried to hold the prices for a good time, but after some time, the KTM ADV models saw the price rise ,with the standard 390 ADV being priced at a whopping price of Rs 5 lakh! 

Later, Bajaj also announced that it will introduce new 350cc models in the KTM, Bajaj and Triumph lineup very soon. But the launch dates for these models are still not known. With the launch of the 350 ADV, both the 250 ADV and 390 ADV are expected to take a hit. But, we think that the plan is something else… 

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KTM 350 ADV Will Be The New 250 ADV?

Now, everyone knows why the 250 ADV never made more sense, because of the very small price gap. But once the 350 ADV comes into existence, it is expected to take the same place. With the tax gap, the 350 ADV will surely cut the price, but don’t expect it to be more affordable than the 250 ADV. The 250 ADV is currently priced at Rs 2.88 lakh (on-road, Mumbai). That said, we expect the 350 ADV to be priced at Rs 3.5 lakh (on-road, Mumbai). 

If the 350 ADV is priced at Rs 3.5 lakh, it again creates the same stance that was earlier observed with the 250 ADV and 390 ADV X, whereby a short extra payment will make you upgrade to a better engine with more features.

But why are we thinking like this? Well, KTM has already launched the 390 ADV R in the Indian market, with a slight twist. Yes, in global markets, the ADV 390 R is the top-spec model in the ADV line-up. However, in India, the ADV 390 R is the mid-spec variant positioned below the standard ADV 390. Saying that the KTM is already planning to strengthen its 390 ADV line-up.

This suggests that KTM is still trying to max out everything in the 390 segment. And surely, it won’t let the new 350cc models just eat the pie of sales from the 390 models. And even if the 350 ADV is priced fairly cheap, it will lose out on certain features like the cruise control and others, and get the features from the 250 ADV. Which will again make the 390 ADVs a go-to choice for the buyers.

While this is just a speculation, we are really waiting to see how the KTM positions its new 350cc segment bikes, price-wise. But for that, we would need to wait for some months.

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