KTM is developing a new Supersport, the 990 RC R, and while the model is not expected to be released until 2025, the process has been documented through the series Never stop!.
A recent episode featured Andre Klipphahn, the chief engineer of the project, who provided insights into the development process, including a particularly interesting aspect that sheds light on the testing and experimentation phases.
Klipphahn revealed that 12 prototypes were created: ‘For this project, we created 12 prototypes, each for a different department. For example, one of the bikes is for the designers, another for the electronics department, and two bikes are being used for reliability testing, validating the quality of each component’.
Before reaching the prototype stage, there is a comprehensive process, as explained by Klipphahn: ‘In a project like this, you set milestones: part 1, part 2, part 3… up to having the prototype. In this case, from the first milestone to when the bike goes into production, two years will have passed’.