Our heritage

Racing is in our DNA

Revolutionary. Pure. Radical. In the form of the production version of the X-BOW, Austrian manufacturer KTM presented its interpretation of a super sports car for the 21st century back in 2008. The idea: to take Colin Chapman’s idea of a spartan, lightweight sports car reduced to the bare essentials and transfer it into the new millennium – with as many technological innovations as possible.

Together with the specialists at Italian sports car manufacturer Dallara, the composites experts Wethje, the think-tank KTM Technologies and engine partner Audi, KTM built what was probably the most exciting super sports car of the times in only 18 months. The extraordinary styling came from Kiska Design, who created not only an iconic modern sports car, but also the first serial produced car with a full carbon fibre monocoque chassis.

“Ready to Race” – this not only applied to KTM motorcycles, but also to the X-BOW. When developing the – back then – open-top sports car, KTM focused on both performance data and overall performance. More extreme, faster and more impressive. The results were quite outstanding. And form followed function. The KTM X-BOW had been designed down to the very last detail as an uncompromising driving machine, concentrating on the most important aspect: the driving experience!

Driven by Competition

That said, Motorsport had never been a marketing exercise with the KTM X-BOW either. It had always been the ultimate proving ground where every innovation was tested, refined and earned. A spirit deeply rooted in KTM's wider racing heritage. With decades of success across the world's toughest off-road competitions, including multiple Dakar victories, KTM had consistently demonstrated that extraordinary machines are forged under extraordinary conditions.

Accordingly, the KTM X-BOW took it to the racetracks around the world from the very beginning and wrote its own racing competition history that evolved over nearly two decades, just as the KTM X-BOW evolved itself. From its first title win in SRO GT4 competition in 2008 to one highly successful one-make racing series, the KTM X-BOW BATTLE. From international GT4 series victories with a dedicated GT4 racing car to fighting against GT3-manufacturers at the legendary Nürburgring Nordschleife with the KTM X-BOW GTX. And finally, winning international GT2 championship titles with the KTM X-BOW GT2.

FROM TRACK TO ROAD

And as the car evolved on the track, it evolved on the street as well. Starting with a 2,0 litre four cylinder and 240 hp in 2008, the KTM X-BOW got refined in terms of suspension components and power output in 2011: the engine was delivering 300 hp now and the car was named KTM X-BOW R. But KTM engineers were already working on the next huge step, launching the KTM X-BOW GT in 2013, equipped with a windscreen, allowing driver and co-driver to get rid of helmets. The premiere of the KTM X-BOW GT4 in 2017 brought the first closed-cockpit variant of the car, although the car was for track-use only.

Same applied for the KTM X-BOW GTX and its hardcore racing variant, the KTM X-BOW GT2, which served as precursors to their road-legal counterpart, the KTM X-BOW GT-XR. With its revelation in 2022, the brand delivered not merely an evolution but a genuine revolution. The car set new standards immediately, with breathtaking design and countless technological innovations, especially with the legendary Audi five-cylinder engine and stunning 500 hp, leading KTM X-BOW into a new era.

A new chapter

In 2025, KTM X-BOW opened an exciting new chapter when the company was acquired by a collective of investors led by Guillaume de Mévius. The ambition was clear: preserve everything that made KTM X-BOW unique while expanding its philosophy beyond the circuit and into the world of high-performance off-road mobility. The SSV category became the natural next frontier: where lightweight engineering, competition and adventure converge.

Raised in one of Belgium's most renowned motorsport families and competing at the highest level of rally raid, Guillaume brings first-hand experience from the world's most demanding races. His vision is built on the same principles that have defined KTM X-BOW since day one: engineering driven by competition, continuous innovation, and uncompromising performance.

Today, KTM X-BOW continues to evolve while remaining true to its original DNA: creating vehicles that push boundaries, challenge conventions and inspire those who always strive to go further.

OFF-ROAD With The Arrow

The KTM X-BOW Arrow is the first vehicle born from this new era.

Designed as a next-generation high-performance SSV, it combines nearly two decades of KTM X-BOW engineering expertise with Guillaume de Mévius' vision and real-world rally-raid experience. Developed alongside leading engineering and industrial partners, the Arrow applies the same uncompromising principles that defined the original X-BOW to an entirely new environment. One where performance, capability and reliability are equally at home on sand, rock, gravel and asphalt.

Forged in Competition

Like every KTM X-BOW before it, the Arrow was born in competition.

Long before becoming a production vehicle, it existed as an experimental development platform, built to validate technologies and engineering concepts in the harshest real-world conditions. Because the most valuable lessons are never learned in a laboratory: they are earned in competition.

Today, development continues in rally raid with Puck Klaassen behind the wheel. As one of the discipline's brightest young talents, she continues to push the platform to its limits, generating invaluable insights that shape the next generation of KTM X-BOW vehicles.

For us, racing is not where the story begins or ends. It is how every KTM X-BOW continues to move forward. From the road and the track to the world beyond the asphalt.

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