#design

Recently, MO was given the rare opportunity to go behind the scenes at KTM and look inside the walls of its hallowed R&D department. Riding a wave of recent success with its strong sales and rapidly growing portfolio in the past decade, KTM felt the time was right to celebrate a little and give its fans a glimpse into what makes a KTM a KTM. While in Austria touring the KTM factory, we also got a chance to visit with Gerald Kiska and tour his studio. While there, we also got a sneak peek into its inner workings, and how a KTM (or Husqvarna) goes from computer sketch to production motorcycle.

The rendering above comes courtesy of www.IndianCarsBikes.in which illustrates its ideas for what the upcoming Royal Enfield Himalayan might look like. We think it probably overestimates the amount of suspension travel and windscreen height. The exhaust design also seems unlikely, with low routing that would be damaged in off-road riding and a muffler that is way too small to adequately quiet a biggish Single.

Close your eyes and imagine your favorite motorcycle.

I don’t have any tattoos. Nothing against them, not even worried about needles. Nope, I suppose I’ve just never felt strongly enough about anything to have it permanently inked into my skin. Oh, I’ve come close before. For maybe the past eight years or so I’ve often had this recurring thought about inking myself with a design that pays homage to my Indonesian ancestry, but alas, I’ve never gone through with it. Whether it was a lack of funds, a change of heart, or simply putting it off, the design never made it onto my body.

We’re all familiar with the “less is more” expression, and that also holds true in the weight/cost equation of motorcycle materials. Simply put, for a given strength and durability, a lighter component is a more expensive piece.