KTM TIMELINE - THE RISE OF THE ORANGE GIANT

KTM Sportmotorcycles has a deeply rooted motorsport tradition, building race-ready motorcycles for competitive and recreational riding. More than 130 world championship titles, victories at Dakar and countless national championships are proof of the company’s great technical expertise. Recently, the company has entered into the streetbike category with a variety of sporting and adventure-touring road-going machines. 1934 Austrian engineer Hans Trunkenpolz opens a metal-working shop in Mattighofen, Austria. The name of the business is Kraftfahrzeuge Trunkenpolz Mattighofen 1951 The company’s first motorcycle is developed – the R100.

1953 The company becomes officially known as ‘Kronreif, Trunkenpolz, Mattighofen’ (KTM). A team of 20 employees is producing three motorcycles per day.

1954 The 100th KTM motorcycle is delivered.

1955 A businessman, Ernst Kronreif becomes a sizeable shareholder of the company, which is renamed Kronreif & Trunkenpolz Mattighofen. KTM Tourist (125cc) model is developed.

1957 KTM builds first sports motorcycle – the Trophy 125cc.

1959 Motorcycle production ceases. First KTM Pony scooter and moped are introduced.

1963 The Comet moped is introduced.

1966 The 10,000th Comet rolls off the line.

1968 The cross-country Penton Six Days dirt bike is produced and exported to the United States.

1970 KTM begins producing its own engines. (Previously, many of the dirt bikes had been equipped with Sachs motors.) New 250cc motocross bike is developed.

1973 KTM begins production of the 250 Cross and Enduro bike.

1974 Production of the KTM Hobby III begins.

1975 KTM introduces the road model Comet Grand Prix 125 RS.

1976 KTM produces its own 125cc engine.

1978 KTM America Inc. established in Lorain, Ohio. 50cc product range extended. 1981 Production of first water-cooled 125cc motocross bikes.

1982 Motocross models outfitted with new Pro Lever rear suspension. Company develops its first 4-stroke engine with water cooling.

1986 KTM becomes the first manufacturer to offer front and rear disc brakes on an off-road machine.

1987 Production begins on the KTM 4-stroke engine – single cylinder, 560cc, overhead camshaft.

1988 KTM stops production of scooters. 1989 Hans Trunkenpolz, founder, dies.

1991 KTM files for bankruptcy. The company is split into four independent arms – radiators, motorcycles, bicycles and tooling. 1992 Newly formed motorcycle division opens – KTM Sportsmotorcycle GmbH. 1994 KTM Sportsmotorcycle GmbH renamed KTM-Sportsmotorcycle AG. Production of Duke series of road models begins. 1995 Company acquires Husaberg AB and takes over White Power Suspension (NL). 1996 Production begins for KTM LC4 engine with electric starter. 1997 LC4 Supermoto road model is introduced. Also, KTM’s first adventure bike – the LC4 Adventure – is introduced. 1998 PDS Linkless suspension system is developed for 2-stroke models. Also, new 125 and 200cc engines and new Z design are introduced. 1999 Production begins on new 4-stroke engine – RACING 400/520. Also, the first KTM engines with separate lubrication (125 and 200cc) are introduced. 2001 Fabrizio Meoni wins the Dakar rally on an LC4 660R. KTM completely dominates the motorcycle class for the future of the event, which runs for the last time in 2007. 2003 Company introduces 950 Adventure and presents 990 Duke. Backed by Red Bull, the company enters the 125cc World Championship. After a couple of challenging years developing the machine, Mika Kallio will finish second overall in ’05 & ’06.

2004 KTM launches the 990 Super Duke and introduces the 990 RC8 Venom and the 950 Supermoto at the Intermot in Munich. After earlier agreeing in principle to supply motorcycles to two out-of-work actors, so they can make a documentary about a trip across Eurasia and North America, KTM abruptly drops the project. Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman get BMWs instead, and make “The Long Way Round.”

2005 KTM launches the 950 Supermoto and introduces the 990 Adventure and the 950 Super Enduro R. The company announces a strategic partnership with Polaris, with the goal of shared R&D, and more importantly shared distribution networks. The plan is to try this relationship out for two years and, if it proves fruitful, to merge the two companies. 2006 The partnership with Polaris is dramatically downgraded. KTM announces that from now on, the company will simply supply Polaris with a few motors for ATVs. 2007 The company supplies all the 125cc motorcycles for the Red Bull Rookies Cup. An experiment if there ever was one, KTM builds the ultimate go-kart in the X-Bow. 2009 Wanting to get its feet wet in road racing, KTM enters a factory-backed team fielding RC8s in the IDM (German) championship. At the end of the year, factory rider Stefen Nebel ties for the championship. RACING POWERHOUSE KTM at the 2019 Dakar Rally.

KTM currently holds 96 MXGP, MX1, and MX2 world championships since 1974 and 114 E1, E2, E3, and Super Enduro world titles beginning in 1990. The company has claimed 260 world championship titles and has 3 consecutive championships in AMA Supercross between 2015 and 2017. KTM made their Dakar Rally debut in 1994 and claimed positions 2nd through 12th in 1998’s event. Between 2001 and 2018, no other manufacturer has had such a stranglehold over the World’s Deadliest Rally Race as KTM. Other cross country rally events undertaken by KTM include the Atlas Rally and the Rallye du Maroc. KTM has 37 world titles in cross country rally races and are 15-time winners of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing in the MotoGP World Championship. A pair of KTM R16s in Red Bull Racing and KTM livery, featuring the famous KTM orange color.

Success has also come to KTM on pavement as well as off-road. In 2003, KTM got involved in road racing; specifically in the 125cc and 250cc classes. KTM won the 2005 Grand Prix constructor’s championship and the Moto3 manufacturer’s title in 2012, followed by manufacturer’s titles in 2014 and 2016, along with the Moto3 class world title in that same year. KTM also fields entries in the MotoGP and Moto2 classes and has been an active competitor in the Superbike International German Championships between 2009 and 2011.

Sorry! You can't drive one of these on the street. 2019 KTM X-Bow race cars. In 2008, KTM entered the world of hypercars with the X-Bow. The X-Bow is a mid/rear-engine, rear-wheel drive ultra-lightweight sports car designed for street and racetrack use (except in North America, where it can only be purchased as a track-only race car). Carbon fiber construction allows the X-Bow to weigh a shade over 1,700 lbs., a fraction of the curb weight of the everyday passenger car. The current iteration uses an Audi-sourced turbocharged 2.5 litre engine that makes between 295 and 346 horsepower (depending on tune) and sends it to the rear wheels VIA a standard 6-speed manual transmission or a performance 6-speed sequential manual transmission with a racetrack-bred dual-clutch automatic gearbox to be available in the future. Top speed is 150 MPH and 0-60 averages at 3.3 seconds. On the professional racing circuit, the X-Bow won the supersports class of the 2009 British GT Championship, the GT4 class in the 2011 season, and a 2016 GTS championship in the USAC-sanctioned GT World Challenge series.

RANGE OF PERFORMANCE KTM motorcycles are at home on the street, on the track, or in the dirt. KTM is synonymous with 2-wheel racing on dirt and on asphalt.

KTM specializes in high-performance motorcycles for street, off-road, and racetrack use. Their off-road motorcycle lineup is split into four categories: Motocross, Cross-Country, Enduro, and Free Ride. Motocross bikes include the 105, 126, 150, and 250cc SX series (50, 65, and 85 are youth bikes), and the KTM SX-F. The Cross-Country XC bikes includes 150, 250 and 300 cc two-stroke models and 250, 350 and 450 cc four-stroke models. The Endure EXC line is comprised of 250, 350, 450, and 510cc four-stroke motorcycles and the Endure R with a 690 cc engine. The Free Ride series includes the Freeride 250R and the all-electric Freeride E-SX, E-XC, and the street version E-SM which are available for the European market.

KTM’s street bike line traces its lineage back to the original 1994 Duke 620. These bikes are assigned to six categories: Supermoto (690 SMC R, 625 SMC, and 560 SMR), Adventure Tourers (1090 Adventure and 2190 Super Adventure), Sports Tourer (1290 Superduke GT), Naked Bikes (stripped down, standard versions of the Duke and Superduke), Supersport (RC 390 and RC16 race bike), and the recently-discontinued Superbike which consisted of the 1190 RC8 homologated street/racing motorcycle.

Whether you race on dirt or on asphalt, catch air or rip through hairpin turns, Race Driven is the motorcycle and ATV enthusiast's #1 stop for performance and aftermarket parts. Information taken from KTM’s official site (http://www.ktm.com/History.101.4.html)