KTM Shifts Some Production to China
Yep, the 790 Duke and 790 Adventure will be made in Hangzhou, China, as a part of a new partnership between KTM and CF Moto. There’s a new nearly 25,000 square foot factory for it. Construction for the plant began in March 2018 and should be done by June 2020. After that KTM will shift some of its motorcycle production to that facility.
The production capacity is 50,000 motorcycles per year. However, according to MoreBikes, that can be increased to 100,000 per year if demand makes it necessary. This new manufacturing facility will also have a research and development department.
The 790 Duke and 790 Adventure will definitely be built there, but MoreBikes reports taht the new 890 Duke and CF Moto’s own models will come out of this facility, too. This will allow KTM’s Mattighofen, Austria facility to focus on the motorcycle company’s flagship models. These models include the 1290 Super Adventure, 1290 Super Duke GT, and the 1290 Super Duke R.
It’s interesting to see KTM make this move, but it’s not really surprising. With manufacturing costs being so low in China and quality still staying pretty high in many cases, it only makes sense. It’ll be interesting to see if this impacts quality at all or if it changes customer perception of the brand.