now that KTM has made the 2007 EXCs (450 & 525) street legal!!! What kind of durability can we expect from a 525 ridden on the street??? you know we're gonna have to put bags on them & make them into "adventure tourers" Can you put 10-20,000 miles a year on a 525?? there not meant to be a replacement for the LC4 are they?? don't you have to replace the heads or something after so many hours of use?? LT
I don't think they will replace an LC4 in any way. My KTM mechanic (rides very little onroad but quite a bit offroad) is all excited by the streetable versions. When I asked what the maintenence intervals would be - he said (in all seriousness) "I bet you can go 4-500 miles between oil changes." I didn't have the heart to tell him that I ride about 500 miles a week - so there ain't no way I'm gonna change my oil each week. When you ride 100 miles offroad and are accustomed to servicing your bike after each ride - I can see how 500 miles looks pretty sweet. Guess I'll be waiting for the real LC4 replacement - I like more sedentary maintenance intervals myself. I follow the Ron Popeil "set it and forget it....for a while" plan. Dean
No experience with KTM's, but I'm jonesing for a street-legal EXC. But my intended use would be to haul it out west for off-road riding. Street use would consist of basically connecting trails via public road. I'd say being a 'racing' 4-stroke, it would be unsuited for that kind of road mileage. They don't hold much oil and as far as I've heard, don't have cush drives. Racing motors are designed to be very light weight, sacrificing high-mileage durability. I think any one who puts a lot of hours on a racing 4-stroke will tell you that they require a lot of maintenance & fairly constant freshening up. For that kind of road miles you need a BMW 650GS, KLR650, XR650L, etc. Compromise off-road but bullet-proof when pounding pavement. Just my opinion
10-20k miles a year??? That must be some good stuff you've been smoking.... "Don't bogart that joint my friend Pass it over to me Don't bogart that joint my friend Pass it over to me Roll another one Just like the other one You've been holding on to it And I sure will like a hit" - Fraternity Of Man
Based on my past experiance with KTM, I owned the 450 EXC for three years, with only 1.3 liters oil... Unless they up the oil capacity, the oil change interval will not change. Not to mention, with very little oil, there is a higher chance of transmision break down ... Share the same oil bath.. Now, thing could have changed...I hope so. Time will only tell.
Someone on this site put together a hell of a ride report and video of two RFS ktms doing the entire length of the trans america trail. You can cover some ground...but you'll be doing some work on the bike.
I've done 400+ mile rides without an oil change on my 02 EXC. That is not my normal routine, but as far as I'm concerned it can be done. They are not daily drivers, but the reliability track record on the EXCs is solid.
I have a '04 525 EXC that I've made street legal here in Colorado. I ride it up in the hills to where I like to ride dirt (30 miles one-way). Ride all day then home. Last weekend I did 144 miles 90% dirt with no trouble from the bike. One thing I did was to put on a HT Oil Cooler www.ht-racing.com (see pic) I now have 53% more oil, plus it cools the oil. The cooler was not cheep but either is a new top end. I also have wolfman bags for it and some brackets I made to keep the right side off the pipe. I rode my 525 to the West Fest, rode for five days then back home. Changed the oil when I got back home, looked fine, checked the valves and they were sopt on. I'm sure I did more then 500 miles on this trip. Europe has EXC's street legal for years with out any trouble. If you want to find out more about the EXC go to www.ktmtalk.com and look around. Brackets Bags
Those snobs at ktmtalk wouldn't even respond to me because I have a yahoo account. You can't browse the forums if you don't pay for an email account. Fuck them
I wish I could fast-forward and read this thread 4 years from now. Then we will know how well these RFS bikes hold up as long-term dualsports. I saw a 525EXC parked next to a Honda XR650R. The Honda looked like a Goldwing in comparison. The KTM was much narrower, and didn't have anywhere near the mass of the Honda. The KTM had no metal at all from the back of the seat rearward, just a plastic fender that looked like it flapped in the breeze. That's probably why the bike weighs so little, and is a great dirt bike, but as an "adventure tourer"? I don't know how one can put a rear rack or bags on the rear of the KTM and expect it to hold up for a 1000 mile trip.
The KTM, IMO will never be a 1000 mile DS type of bike. If your going to ride like I do it should be fine, but if your looking for a bike for 1000 mile rides then get a 640 or the like. Even with a diffrent seat on it you wouldn't like it. @ yater. The guy who runs KTMtalk dose run a tight ship for sure. I know lots of people that don't like the way its run and I see your point, but it is a good place for KTM info.
These bikes have been steet legal here in Germany right from the beginning. There is a special long run rally version of the EXC525, that's called XC DESSERT 525. It's got a 13l tank and an aditional electric cooler vent. The main drawback is the small amount of engine oil, which has only 1.2 l. Bike weighs 114kg without fuel. Regards, Svendura
I only have a yahoo email account, and all I did was email the admin, made a case for why I wanted to join ktmtalk, and they let me right in. I don't know why you think they are snobs over there. I have gotten a lot of really helpful info at that site. There are a lot of very helpful people like Jeb, DJH, and even our very own Creeper. Sometimes all you have to do is ask. As for the EXC on road, check out this thread right here: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=157296 Lots of good info going on in this thread. Personally, I understand that the EXC line was only made street legal so you could connect trails. Can you ride it like an adventure bike? Probably, but the question is "for how long?"
For $99, I put a KTM radiator fan on my EXC. It comes on when slow going, and shuts off pretty quickly after I stop, so I know it's doing it's job and everything isn't getting too hot. I'm going to make a guess that the street legal bikes have these as well. My bike has never puked coolant. If I was doing more road miles, stretches of highway, I would spring for the HT cooler. It has gotten good reviews. Yeah, it's another $400, but I think of this bike as something I will have for many years to come. It's cheap insurance. I imagine that if you could find a good place to mount it, any number of oil coolers could be added to the bike for a lot less money. All are going to help and add capacity. I saw an article on Thumpertalk in the WR450 section, where a guy mounted a car-related cooler on the front of his radiator, held on by his radiator guards. Good idea. Out of the way, more oil capacity, and cheap.
I'm a Husky fan,,,,,, so if my question seem's idiotic, gimme some slack. K,, question is why do I keep reading that a cush drive is mandatory, without it your KTM will explode & life as we know it will be over,,,, but I've never read about a tranny failure due to street riding????