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Tag: KTM Mecky

#inthisyear1959: Crisis and Shifting Focus

When the KTM Motohall opens its doors after four years of planning, its three stories will give visitors the opportunity to experience the history of KTM first hand. The second story is dedicated to the development of KTM motorcycles, starting with the 1953 R 100 and KTM’s first engine all the way to the present day. For many years, KTM has been the biggest and brightest European motorcycle manufacturer, but that was not always the case. KTM has found itself in difficult times on several occasions throughout the history of the company, which spans six and a half decades. One such time was the European motorcycle crisis of the late 1950s.



#inthisyear1957: The Mecky Moped and Lechner’s Triumphs

When the young KTM MotoGP team racked up the first world championship points in Termas de Río Hondo (Argentina) at the beginning of April, road racing at KTM already had a tradition spanning several decades. Sixty years ago, the star of Erwin Lechner first began to shine. The young rider achieved success after success in both road and offroad racing. At the same time, KTM designer Ludwig Apfelbeck conceived both the 4-valve racing engine and a small 2-stroker for the moped “Mecky”.



#inthisyear1956: Engineer Ludwig Apfelbeck starts working for KTM

Spectacular racing success and popular production machines: there is often a whole team of engineers behind successful designs, but things were different right up to the 1970s. Just as the name Kiska now represents the distinctive design of KTM models, many motorcycles were previously closely associated with their designer’s name. Precisely six decades ago, Hans Trunkenpolz, the head of KTM, succeeded in bringing the famous designer Ludwig Apfelbeck to Mattighofen.



#inthisyear1955: KTM presents the Mirabell Scooter

In the 1950s, scooters were just as common a sight on urban streets as they are today – even if the design was more than a little different. Scooters have long been a part of KTM’s proud history too. Sixty years ago the young motorcycle manufacturer introduced its first scooter: the Mirabell, named after Mirabell Palace, one of the most famous tourist destinations in Salzburg.