The 150–160cc street naked segment is dominated by the Yamaha MT-15, a motorcycle powered by the renowned 150cc liquid-cooled engine that made its debut on the R15. The motorcycle quickly gained fame for its light footprint and its rev-happy engine. The nimble motorcycle looked like it was on a league of its own, but now, there is competition.
KTM, after seeing no success with the Duke 125, decided to go one segment up and launched the 160 Duke in India. Priced at Rs 1.85 lakh, the new baby Duke competes directly with the Yamaha MT-15 in more than one way. Here’s how the two compare against each other.
New KTM 160 Duke vs Yamaha MT-15: Introduction
The new 160 Duke follows a familiar design to its older siblings, with an aggressive styling, featuring an angular headlight design and large shrouds on the tank. The motorcycle is underpinned by a trellis frame, and the motorcycle gets USD forks, a monoshock at the rear, 17-inch wheels, disc brakes at both ends with dual-channel ABS, and a 5-inch LCD instrument cluster.
The Yamaha MT-15 follows its larger siblings as well in terms of design, featuring a unique headlight setup that makes the motorcycle stand out. The Yamaha MT-15, too, gets USD forks, a monoshock at the rear, full LED lighting, 17-inch alloy wheels, disc brakes at both ends, dual-channel ABS, and a colour TFT instrument console with navigation and music control. The Yamaha takes it up a notch by offering a traction control system.
New KTM 160 Duke vs Yamaha MT-15: Engine specifications
In terms of power, the KTM 160 Duke and the Yamaha MT-15 stand out from the competition. Both motorcycles are powered by a single-cylinder liquid-cooled engine mated to a six-speed gearbox. Neither motorcycle has a quickshifter.
| Specifications | KTM 160 Duke | Yamaha MT-15 |
| Engine | 160cc, liquid-cooled single | 155cc, liquid-cooled single |
| Power | 19 bhp | 18.1 bhp |
| Torque | 15.5 Nm | 14.1 Nm |
| Gearbox | 6-speed | 6-speed |
When the specifications are compared, both produce similar power and torque.
While the two motorcycles lock horns in terms of styling, features, and performance, they also compete with other motorcycles in the segment, such as the Hero Xtreme 160R, Honda Hornet 2.0, and the Bajaj NS160, amongst others. The new KTM 160 Duke is priced slightly higher than the Yamaha, but the difference is not much.
