KTM X-Bow Is Finally Coming To America… But There’s A (Big) Catch

We have good news and bad news. The good news is that, at long last, the KTM X-Bow is coming to America. The bad news is that you won’t be able to drive it on public roads.

Instead, the Austrian track-oriented roadster will be limited to just that: track driving. And to that end, the motorcycle manufacturer is launching it in a special specification.

After three quarters of a century making motorcycles, KTM branched out onto four wheels with the X-Bow 10 years ago. It solicited the services of Dallara to develop the chassis and sourced the engine from Audi. The sum total is a mid-engined, open-cockpit performance special that’s about as extreme as anything else on the road or track, even if it does only have a four-cylinder engine.

Two Versions For The US
For its first foray into the US market, the X-Bow is being launched in Comp R spec (pictured below in orange). It packs a 2.0-liter turbo four rated at 330 horsepower (220 kW) and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of torque, mated to a six-speed manual transmission. Weighing all of 1,759 pounds (780 kg), it’ll hit 62 mph (100 km/h) in 3.9 seconds and top out at 144 mph (232 km/h).

If that isn’t enough, though, KTM is also offering a more extreme Comp R 1st Edition. This one uses the same engine tuned to deliver 350 hp (258 kW) and 321 lb-ft (435 Nm) of torque. With a six-speed sequential transmission, it’ll hit 62 in 3.2 seconds and top out at 150 mph (241 km/h). Pictured in white, it also boasts a more aggressive aero package. So it weighs a little more at 1,786 lbs (810 kg), but that’s still a good 500-600 pounds lighter than a Mazda MX-5. And it ought to stay firmly planted to the tarmac, too.

Both versions will pull over 2G on the skidpad and have been homologated to Formula S&A standards from the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). They’ll be offered through HMC Racing in Wisconsin and ANSA Motorsports in Florida and, though we’ve yet to see pricing information, KTM and its partners are set to reveal more at the MotoGP race in Austin, Texas next week.