10 Motorcycles That Prove You Don’t Need 200 HP To Have Fun

Have you ever heard of the saying “The more, the merrier”? The engineers of the automotive industry seem to love it a lot, because every year, manufacturers release products with more power. The most powerful motorcycles today exceed 200 horsepower. But in reality, nobody needs that sort of performance in the real world, and not enough owners visit racetracks enough to exploit that pace fully.

There is a middle ground, and that is engineering a motorcycle that doesn’t need the power of 200 horses to make things fun. There are a few different ways to do this; the most obvious one is to reduce weight. Not easy with motorcycles, since they are light anyway. There are also the traditional fun motorcycles that allow you to have a laugh at legal speeds: small naked bikes and supermotards. We’ve got here a list of ten motorcycles that prove you don’t need 200 horsepower to have fun.

To give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from authoritative sources, such as KTM USA, Ducati USA, and Aprilia Motorcycles. We ‘ve arranged them with increasing power to give the list some order.

KTM 390 SMC R

Power: 44 Horsepower

The 390 SMC R is one of the many different models that use the 399 cc single cylinder engine from KTM to great effect. It puts out the same 44 horsepower and 28.7 pound-feet as the 390 Enduro R, but slaps on sticky tarmac tires on 17-inch spoke rims. It shares quite a few things with the dual sport bike, other than the suspension settings. On the shared list are: the trellis frame, subframe, brakes, TFT color instrument cluster, six axis IMU, ride modes, and an optional quickshifter. Despite all these features, it remains the most affordable supermoto available in the market today!

KTM 690 SMC R

Power: 79 Horsepower

The 690 SMC R follows a similar but not identical recipe as the smaller 390 SMC R. It does share components with other models in the KTM group, but it isn’t an all-new design. It is, instead, a refresh of the older version. It was a needed update to comply with new emission norms, but KTM somehow has managed to eke out even more power from the engine, making it the most powerful single cylinder in production today. You also get the TFT color display, a six-axis IMU, and a by-wire throttle. That means ride modes, cornering ABS and traction control, wheel lift mitigation, and even Bluetooth connectivity and turn-by-turn navigation!

Stark Varg EX

Power: 80 Horsepower

The Stark Varg EX is one of the new wave of dual sport bikes powered by electricity. Sure, it might not be as light as a traditional dual sport, but it certainly knows how to show you a good time. Its liquid-cooled motor offers a staggering 764 pound-feet at the rear wheel, and has the potential to run for a maximum of six hours. In contrast, it takes just 2 hours to top the batteries up from empty. Stark has also kitted it out with fully adjustable suspension from KYB, brakes from Brembo, IP69K waterproof and shock resistance, and OTA updates.

Aprilia Tuono 660 Factory

Power: 105 Horsepower

The Tuono has always been the wild child of the naked bikes. It is the most aggressive conversion of a sport bike among all the nakeds derived from sport bikes. The Tuono 660 is no different: it is available only in the Factory variant in the US market, so what you get is premium components as well. That starts with the 105 horsepower engine, and then keeps adding to it.

Among the unique features are an aluminum frame, a swingarm that mounts directly onto the engine crankcase to save weight, a movable swingarm pivot point, fully adjustable Öhlins suspension, Brembo brakes with floating front rotors, a radial master cylinder for the front, and a fixed caliper for the rear. Then there’s the class-leading APRC suite of electronics with features like a multi-map ABS.

Zero SR/F

Power: 111 Horsepower

The SR/F has been around for a while now, but it hasn’t lost any of its zing thanks to the 111 horsepower and 140 pound-feet from its liquid-cooled electric motor. Ride it carefully, and you will be able to eke out nearly 180 miles from it as well. That’s without the optional ‘Power Tank’ additional battery pack that fits where the traditional gas tank would be. The SR/F is a premium product, with ride modes, OTA updates, and Bluetooth connectivity. You can speed up the charging process with a 6 kW charger, that takes the battery pack from 0-95 percent in just 1.1 hours.

Ducati Hypermotard 950

Power: 114 horsepower

The Hypermotard 950 is a rare throwback Ducati – it has an engine with Desmodromic valves and a single-sided swingarm. An update is on the horizon, though, so expect both of these bits to go away on the new Hypermotard V2. This remains the bigger of the Hypermotards, with the smaller Hypermotard 698 being a thumper. Meanwhile, you get everything you’d expect from a premium Ducati with the 950 but in a very manageable package. Oh, and in the right hands, it is a proper hooligan machine.

Triumph Street Triple 765 RS

Power: 128 Horsepower

The Street Triple 765 is one of the easiest motorcycles to ride because of how light and approachable it is. But in Street Triple 765 RS form, Triumph has given it a feature set that makes it one of the best naked middleweight bikes today. You get a little extra power over the base model, bringing it up to 128 horsepower. You also get all the electronics you’d expect from a premium middleweight naked, including a six-axis IMU, standard two-way quickshifter, and a TFT screen. You also get the unique soundtrack of an inline three cylinder engine.

KTM RC 8C

Power: 132 Horsepower

The RC 8C doesn’t perform very well when you look at the price to performance ratio, but what KTM has done is put its MotoGP knowledge into a motorcycle that embodies the spirit of a lightweight trackday bike, but left out the pant-wetting performance of a true MotoGP machine. This might be just a parallel twin engine that generates only 132 horsepower, but the curb weight is quite low, and the engines revs really high (peak power arrives at 13,500 RPM). There are some unique features like the subframe that also integrates the fuel tank, coupled with a full electronics suite suitable for a race day.

Ducati Diavel V4 RS

Power: 182 Horsepower

The Diavel V4 was already a really quick bike, and it didn’t need any more performance. But Ducati went ahead and did it anyway. The Diavel V4 RS gets an engine similar to that of the Multistrada V4 RS, complete with Desmodromic valvetrain and twin pulse firing order. The result is 182 horsepower and a 0-60 MPH time of 2.43 seconds – among the fastest-accelerating bikes in the world, irrespective of displacement and segment. It backs up this insane acceleration with a chassis and electronics package that help you go around corners better than you’d expect a cruiser to.

KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo

Power: 188 horsepower

KTM’s 1390 range of motorcycles has been a long time coming, but so far only the Duke has been launched. Its full name is the 1390 Super Duke R Evo, and that means that not only does it get a firebreathing powertrain with even more power (187 horsepower and 107 pound-feet), it also has a full electronics suite and semi-active suspension from KTM’s in-house brand, WP, to back it up. Like the Diavel, this one is loud and proud, and if you’re the kind of person who doesn’t like attention, it’s probably best to steer away from one of these.