Regular or S?

Found a KTM 950 and have got the "Me So Horny" thing for it.

Question: I am 6'4.5" 225 lbs do some off road. Should I wait for the S or just get the regular one. I'am thinking about waiting due to weight and hight

From everything I've read the standard is a better all around bike, handles better on the street, and is said to give up very little off road. Basically what has been said, is unless your pounding a 950 really hard off road, to the point of coming close to bottoming, the S is mearly about status. (Being 6'4 I used to think I would go for the S, but after the newness of my 640 wore off, I can see were being a little closer to the ground wouldn't be a bad thing.) I do love the Orange of the S though. Cheers, Mack

Jean Luc's thread about the B to V ride had comments about bottoming a few times with his standard 950. Not sure about how his suspension was setup however. Maybe he will have a look at this thread and add his opinion.

I bought the S model because I wanted the bike with all it offered. I say get what you want. If that means waiting then so be it.

Good luck,
Goss

I don't have one, but I too am 6'4.5" (250lbs though ) and I have sat on both at least. I for sure (as long as I could handle the color scheme) would get the S. The S felt real comfortable and suited my heighth perfectly. With all that being said, I am not sure I could handle the new blue/orange color. The black standard looks 100% better IMO.

i will say you the S is the bike for you.

you don't have any reach issues,that is the limitingfactor for many,so go at it.

and since you destroy the GS,we can asume the way you ride.

I'm also 6'6 285lbs The S fits me like a glove I have owned alot of bikes in my time and non has fit me as well as this one I have yet to bottom the suspension and I have been in the air. I went out of state to find one as I KNOW I COULD NOT HANG WITH THE BLUE/ORANGE This machine is the best for a big guy

Apart from the color I don't see any status in the S model. And the color has been 'solved' in 2004 too. I agree with Mack's comments. The regular model is a much better handling road bike. I was amazed just how big the difference was.

For sporty road use the longer suspension and higher C of G doesn't help the S. For for heavy off road use things are the other way around. But on small trails and tight stuff the non-S has an advantage off road too.

This is what I've read in more than a few tests of bike mags who tested both models on- and off road.

So if you're no Paris Dakar rookie :): and/or tall'n heavy fysically there is little real reason to buy an S IMO.

2004 S model will be colored as the photo below, not orange. I think orange looks a lot better.

Is the S that much different on road than the standard. No matter how much I plan to ride off road it will always be way less than 10% of the ride. I would rather give up a little off road capacity for the better steet handling. Also I am big and tall but ride fairly slow off road. I do not mind waiting if the S is really the deal, but if the Standard is a better all round bike thats the way I should go.

The question should be: What makes the best Dual purpose bike. Off course the S will be better off road but the correct balance of on/off is the desired out come.

From what you've described, there's no reason to wait for an S. In fact, if memory serves, even Jimmy Lewis prefers the shorter one. I'd have to dig up the post, though. Regardless, if you don't need the extra height, why bother with it?

You're much more likely to get a good deal on a standard model vs. the S. There are plenty of dealers out there who are sitting on the standard 950 and eager to discount. Not true for the S.

This is true about getting a better deal on the standard models lying around. On the other hand I don't see why an 1 1/2 of suspension should effect the bike's performance so adversely. I've ridden both the S and the standard and I couldn't tell the difference except for the color. I would go and sit on one and see if your comfortable with the stand over height and if your O.K. with that then negotiate.

If there is no difference in the ride I just as soon have the more suspension. I was lucky to find the standard 950 in these parts much less an S to sit on. My simple mind figures more is better.

Good to get an opinion from someone who has been on both. As far as price I would rather have the right bike than a couple of hundred in my pocket.

Just saw that one...

I only tried the non-S and so I can't compare, but when I asked Jimmy Lewis the exact same question his opinion was that with the right suspension setup there is nothing that the non-S cannot handle as well as the S. The only advantage of the S being the (very few?) times where additional clearance is required.

BJZ, you are very tall so you can handle the S but that will not add any comfort to your ride: meaning the distance between the seat and the footpegs is exactly the same.

You will love it, what ever model you choose

If J.L. says there is no difference except ground clearance I should probably get the the non S. be a little closer to the gound.

Any last comments................

Last wekend I was in Arizona riding in the foothills I was trying to learn how to use my gps Dang river beds look just like roads anyway I ended up going down a sany rocky wash that I had to go over a ledge that I knew would be trouble if I had to come back but my GPS showed a way out at the other end so down I went ( I thought it was a road) to make a long story short I had to come back and go up Thank goodness I had the extra ground clearance I would have still been there as it was It took three tries. The picture below show why I had to turn back

So many people, so many opinions and everybody is preaching towards his own more or less IMO.

How anybody cannot feel the difference between the two on the road is jawdropping to say the very least. Depends on how your ride it too I guess...

Personal opinions on this forum aside, all comparing tests from bike mags around Europe have come to the same conclusion. The regular version is the superior road bike. Full stop. Without exception (at least the ones that I have seen, quite a lot). It's quicker handling, better steering, more stable and much less weavy when pushed. These basic characteristics apply for every bike regarding longer suspension travel, higher up mass etc. The ADV is an exceptional bike but this applies even for our beloved 950... :):

The same bike mags also voted the S as the better bike for serious off road use. Without exception too. But with the emphasis on serious...

If I was not so big and the standard model was available in orange, as it will be later in the year I would buy the standard model too. The S is a very tall machine and for people with less than a 34" inseam it could be tough to keep upright on off camber turn arounds or other uneven ground. All of which is a common occourance offroad so its somewhat of a catch 22 Most dirt bikes have this same problem but they don't weigh 450 lbs

After bottoming out my R100GS to the point of bending the tubes and trashing the steering head bearings, I went for the 950 S.

With my 32" inseam, the S can occasionally be a pain-in-the-ass, but it ain’t all that bad.

Fall over? Pick it up & forget about it.

For the record, I prefer the S. And there isn't really that much differance, all things considered. And watch what you read, journalists, especially moto journailists, don't know shit!

JIMMY