Should I wait for the Yamaha R3 or buy the KTM RC 390?

I have been waiting to buy the Yamaha R3, but the wait seems to be never-ending. Should I just buy the KTM RC 390? The Kawasaki Ninja 300 and 400 are other options, but the 300 looks too old and the 400 is too costly.

P Manjunath, Chennai

Autocar India says: Yamaha hasn’t sold the R3 in India since the BS6 norms kicked in in 2020, but the company has since hinted on multiple occasions that the R3 would return. The latest information is that the R3, and its naked sibling the MT-03, will launch some time towards the end of this financial year.

If you can wait, it would be worth it because the R3 has always been a motorcycle that combined a smooth and high revving twin-cylinder engine with sweet handling and a relatively comfy chassis.

Performance wise, the KTM may be just as quick, if not more so, but it can’t hold a candle to the charm of the Yamaha’s engine. However, be prepared to pay a hefty price as the R3 will initially launch as a CBU from Indonesia and cost significantly more than the KTM. Hopefully, Yamaha will manage to price the bike well under the Rs 5.20 lakh Kawasaki Ninja 400.

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2022 KTM RC 390 vs TVS Apache RR310 BTO comparison