Report: 2016 KTM 200 Duke to get automatic headlamps in India

After a busy second half in 2015 and a host of unveilings at the EICMA last year, KTM flashed promising signs for the year 2016. The motorbike major that manufactures two-wheelers for India at Bajaj’s facility in Chakan could be readying for its first major announcement of the year with an updated bike.

According to oncars.in, the 200 Duke has been spotted at the company’s dealership, where it received a new automatic headlamp feature as standard fitting. As per the government’s safety guidelines, auto-headlights will be mandatory on all two-wheelers in the country from April 2017, the report added.

The website also states that the new models could hit the markets by next month, once the current stock of bikes is cleared. Related images confirm the addition of the new feature as the designers have ditched the on-off headlight switch on the saddle. The automatic headlamp is not only expected to step up the safety but also to enhance the visibility for the rider.

Automatic headlights are already mandatory in several other countries like USA, Russia and Canada.

The KTM lineup has been updated in the European market and it thus comes in with very little surprise that an update in for the Indian streets is also in the pipeline.

We had recently reported that the expected facelift of the RC390 could also hit the markets in the early months of 2016. Visually nothing much is expected to change in the powerhouse, except for the underbelly exhaust that can be ditched in favour of a traditional side-mounted can. This change complies with the new Euro-4 emission norm that will be coming into effect soon.

While this news managed to create quite a buzz, KTM CEO Stefan Pierer further added fuel to the fire by recently revealing in an interview that the entire KTM bike range could be overhauled and the motorcycles based on the new platform are expected to be available in India by 2017.