Though we not too long ago reported the KTM X-Bow was virtually actually useless, it might have a brand new lease on life. Bajaj, which purchased out KTM, needs the model to give attention to bikes, so it is bought KTM Sportcar GmbH to a separate group of traders, hopefully saving the X-Bow sports activities automotive. KTM will proceed to license its identify and be concerned with the X-Bow ultimately, however KTM Sportcar GmbH will run independently of the principle firm. The X-Bow was at all times an odd duck in KTM’s lineup, so this makes a substantial amount of sense.
KTM confirmed to Austria’s Industrie Magazin that the De Mevius household, higher identified for the beer mega-conglomerate AB InBev, is heading up negotiations, together with different nameless traders. “AB” stands for Anheuser-Busch, which is only one of greater than 500 manufacturers the corporate owns that make it the most important brewer on the earth. This will likely look like an unlikely pairing, however the De Mevius household is actively concerned in motorsports. Gregoire De Mevius is a long-time rally and Dakar competitor who nonetheless enters the occasional rally at the moment. His sons, Guillaume and Ghislain, proceed racing in his dusty footsteps.
A brand new lineup
Whereas the X-Bow has advanced through the years, it is tough for a automotive firm to outlive with just one mannequin within the lineup (simply ask Saturn). The brand new house owners plan to handle that by including new fashions, or no less than variants, to present patrons a bit extra choice. It will embrace not solely the present track-focused fashions, but in addition street-legal supersports, which appears a pure enlargement. Vehicles just like the Radical SR3 have already gone there. Whereas not an awesome grocery getter, you would no less than drive it to the monitor, the place you would take pleasure in its full capabilities with out going on to jail afterward.
The brand new possession additionally intends to broaden the X-Bow vary in a much less intuitive course with off-road choices. This will likely appear bizarre for a monitor automotive, however given the De Mevius household’s rally and Dakar historical past, I would not be shocked if that is the place they are going with this. Think about X-Bow given the Rally Fighter therapy, attacking rally levels or leaping desert dunes. Maybe completely different variations can be accessible for every self-discipline, much like KTM’s completely different motorbike choices for motocross, enduro, and cross nation based mostly on the identical platforms. We’re simply speculating, as no particulars are but accessible, however it might be nice to see KTM tackling the levels on 4 wheels in addition to two. Regardless, evidently, like the person on the cart in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” the X-Bow is not fairly useless but.
h/t RideApart