The origins of the SMT name in KTM’s vernacular go back to the original 990 SMT back in 2009. 14 years on, the SMT name returned to Mattighofen in 2023, and one further year later, another new version looks to be on its way.
For 2023, the SMT - or ‘Supermoto Touring’ - name was revived with the use of the 889cc LC8c parallel twin to create the KTM 890 SMT. With the LC8c being expanded last year for the new KTM 990 range, beginning with the KTM 990 Duke, it might be expected that the first move for the new SMT would be to expand to that new 947cc parallel twin. However, KTM has other plans.
KTM 890 SMT.
That 947cc engine will surely make its way into an SMT at some point, but a V-twin version looks to be more immediate. Spy shots published by the German publication Motorrad show a KTM SMT model in testing, using the new 1,350cc version of the LC8 engine that debuted late last year in the new 2024 KTM 1390 Super Duke range.
The engine is also expected to make its way into the Super Adventure range at some point, but the spy shots reveal that it will also be slotted into a big-bore SMT model.
The spy shots indicate that the 1390 SMT will have more in common with the larger bikes of KTM’s range than the 890 SMT, which is probably to be expected. For example, its chassis set-up is based on the 1290 Super Adventure S, and there are indications, as mentioned by Motorrad, that it will use WP semi-active suspension, which in turn indicates the possibility for a standard 1390 SMT, with non-active suspension, and a ‘1390 SMT Evo’ making use of the semi-active units.
Styling is cued from the newest in KTM’s Duke range, with the strange Predator-like face that upped the visual aggression on the 2024 Austrian nakeds.
As with the 890 SMT, its differentiator compared to other bikes in KTM’s range is that it sits kind of in the middle of everything, with 17-inch wheels front and back fitted with road tyres which - visually speaking - seem to be on the sportier end of things, but with long-travel suspension providing a more commanding riding position.
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Lead image credit: KTM/Rudi Schedl.
