Ktm 450 Exc
KTM 450 EXC
CYCLE WORlD TEST
All-Access Enduro
RYAN DUDEK
KTM HAS JUST DELIVERED what every off-road enthusiast wants and needs whether they realize it or not: a dual-sport bike that is truly on par with real enduro bikes. So equal, in fact, that KTM insists that its new 450 EXC is not a dual-sporter but rather a full-on, no-bull enduro race-bike with a license plate. 4
That’s a true statement.
But I am here to tell you the addition of that plate and the DOT necessities turns the EXC into an awesome dual-sport bike, too.
KTM’s simple strategy: Take last year’s off-road-only 450 EXC, which won Best Enduro in CW’s Ten Best Bikes balloting, and make it street-legal. This is what Husqvarna did with its four-stroke enduros in 2006. Add blinkers, brake/taillight, mirrors, horn, emissions stuff and a quieter muffler.
The goal: Deliver a bike that you can either race right off the showroom floor or ride down the highway in complete legality. The outcome: success. The EXC needs no uncorking, and there is no throttle stop to remove or emissions equipment to strip off. All you have to do is lay out $7998 and ride away. Cool, huh? ______________________
Even though it is almost perfect in bone-stock form, the EXC runs a bit lean as delivered. What do you expect? It's not easy to pass those tough EPA standards. To make our test bike run optimally, we richened the jetting a bit. The pilot jet went from a 42 to a 48 and the needle was raised by two clip positions.
As our first order of test business, we took our vir gin 450 on a two-day trip in Baja California. Plan was to ride right from the office in Newport Beach, but that was squashed when the other members of our group didn't have street-legal dirtbikes. If only more manufacturers would get with the program. So we resorted to the old-fashioned method and trucked our bikes to the border, starting our ride in Tecate, Mexico, and ending up at Mike's Sky Ranch some 135 miles south. I quickly fol lowed up the Mex trip with an epic weekend of riding singletrack trails in the Piute Mountains.
After those off-road excursions, it seemed wrong on Monday to pull out of my driveway on the very same bike (mud included) and ride it to work. It almost felt illegal, maybe because I was hopping over curbs and deliberately hitting every dirt patch on the sides of the streets. And no, that wasn't me ripping through one of the parks in Long Beach, but I thought about it! For me, the EXC is like a dream come true, allowing me to ride my dirtbike to work or to the store or anywhere I feel like riding.
On the street, the EXC is not as much fun as most road-legal single-cylinder supermoto bikes; DOT dirt knobbies set your limits a lot lower. Besides, it has firm suspension, a tall seat and a saddle not intended for long periods of sitting. The fork is too stiff on pavement, causing the bars to bounce up-and-down while transferring every bump to the rider's arms, and the front end wallows slightly. The 37.5-inch seat height is only a bother at stoplights where I couldn't get both feet flat on the ground-and I'm 5-11 with a lengthy inseam.
But at least the tuned-for-dirt, liquid-cooled four-stroke Single works better on the street than the off-road chassis does. From a stoplight, the bike really scoots, and the exhaust note is sneaky-quiet so you don't draw attention when bombing around town. The six-speed transmis sion also works well for the pavement. Fifth gear is a one-to-one ratio and sixth is an overdrive, allowing the KTM to cruise at freeway speeds without buzzing the rider into submission. It was a pleasant surprise to ride a Single that doesn't need to be revved out to keep up with traffic on the fast paced SoCal freeways.
For off-road work, though, that tall street gearing has forced some compromises. This year's 450 EXC has 15/45 (3.0:1) final-drive gearing whereas last year's bike had a 14/50 (3.57:1) combination. As a result, first gear is too tall for slow trails and technical terrain. The hydraulic clutch doesn't help matters as it has a tendency to lurch and doesn't offer the best feel.
Thankfully, the 448cc motor almost makes up for those aforementioned flaws with a smooth, user-friendly powerband. Power is next to ideal for a wide range of riders even though it's not as aggressive as it was on the previous 450. The new muffler and emissions equipment mellow the power a little, so it doesn't have the same kind of motocross-like snap that the `06 model did. Even so, the `07 EXC still has enough steam to lift the front wheel any time you twist the throttle open.
As for the chassis, it makes up for its lack of street charm in the dirt. This is what people look for in a dual-sport, not a soft, second-rate streetbike setup. Why it has taken so long for any manufacturer to figure this out is a mystery. But don't give all the credit to KTM; as I mentioned earlier, Husqvarna is in its second year of dirt-worthy street-legal enduros.
It also seems that KTM spent most of its R&D time on the EXC making it plateable rather than increasing performance. Not to worry, though, because it was the best enduro bike last year and could be again. The only performance-oriented changes for `07 are wave brake rotors and new suspension settings tuned for higherspeed Western-style open-ter rain riding
If you're an Eastern woods rider, there is no need to fret; the new set tings don't affect the stel lar backwoods performance KTMs are known for. At first, the fork felt harsh on the initial hit, but once we got some time on the bike, the fork broke in and lost its harshness. After that, both front and rear suspensions did a good job of smoothing out the bumps, whether big or little. Even on high-speed whoops, there wasnt a tendency for the bike to swap side-to-side. If the shock was mid-stroke, however, and I hit a rock or rut, the rear end would violently kick to one side. But after just one kick, the 450 always went right back into a straight line. I think the lack of a progressive shock linkage is what causes the kick.
Overall, the 450 EXC reminded me why it was our top enduro bike last year. I have to confess, though, that I like it much more as a trail bike than as a racebike. Sure, you could go out and race it right out of the box, but most people probably will notalthough the thought of racing it fl has crossed my mind. How fun would it be to use the horn when trying to overtake another racer and then flick the blinker on when you're about to cut back in front of him? That would be entertaining, but the EXC's street equipment is best used in the right circumstances-on the road.
Make no mistake, though: This is not an entry-level dual-sporter; it's an honest-to-God enduro that's a way bet ter dirtbike than streetbike-and as far as we're concerned, that's a very good thing. It's not quite perfect, but it is one of the best off-road bikes that can be legally licensed. Making it closer to perfect will be easy, requiring only a few minor changes. That's something we plan on doing, as we just added the 450 EXC to our long-term fleet. We'll soon fit a larger fuel tank, drop the front sprocket down a tooth and find blinkers that don't break off when you throw your leg over the bike. We also are thinking about ditching KTM's company's slogan, "Ready to Race." We prefer "Ready to Ride, every where!"
EDITORS' NOTES
I AM TRULY AMAZED BY THE AUSTRIAN company’s bold moves that are blowing away some stale air in the motorcycle market. KTM accentuates the fun in motorcycling with bikes like the new 990 Super Duke, 990 Adventure, 950 Super Enduro, 690 SM and now this, a street-legal dirtbike. If that’s not enough, Orange has a new 450 SX moto bike and a full line of cross-country racebikes. Give me more, give me more! I can’t wait to see what is in store for 2008. How about adding a lightweight street-legal 250 EXC based on the 250 XC-W. Just a thought.
If you asked me five years ago, I wouldn’t have dreamt of owning a pumpkin-colored motorcycle; performance wasn’t up to par and reliability was questionable. Now both have improved tenfold. KTM is at the top of my list and I wouldn’t think twice about owning one. My dilemma: Which one? Probably this EXC.
-Ryan Dudek, Off-Road Editor
THE KTM 450 EXC WAS ALREADY MY favorite off-road bike and there was very little I would’ve changed. Nice power, plush suspension, electric start and good reliability. It never crossed my mind that it needed a license plate on it, DUH! Now, like the offerings from Husky, there are two KTMs with excellent off-road credentials-the 450 and 525 EXCs-that can be dual-sported between those gnarly single-track sections. On our recent trip to Mike’s Sky Ranch in Baja, the EXC proved its worth, allowing us to connect sections of off-road by Mexican highway, cruising at 70 mph with ease.
Sometimes you don’t know what you need until it slaps you in the face, like this bike! As a matter of fact, this 450 EXC is going to be my long-term bike for 2007. I’m already fighting people off who want to borrow it. Ryan has even tried to convince me that it should be his long-termer. Sorry Dude-K, you snooze, you lose.
-Blake Conner, Associate Editor
“NOT FOR COMMUTING,” WAS THE CLEAR statement from KTM when we first heard that some of its enduro bikes were being made street-legal. No, grinding it out on the freeway just isn’t the KTM 450 EXC’s reason for being.
It’s not like the bike can’t get away with it. Many older KTMs had seats like anvils and the kind of vibration that might end your aspirations of starting a family. This new 450 is totally livable in both regards, plus has a killer Cruise Drive sixth gear that served well on 1-5 and might be just right for the Baja 500, too.
Anyway, I took the bike home via the freeway (sorry, KTM!) and then got up early the next day for my commute.
I found some local trails that weren’t quite on the way to the office, and in the dirt this bike reminded me of all the other great KTM off-roaders I’ve tried the last few years.
In fact, this bike is so much fun it looks like I may have to find a shack to live in at the end of a single-track trail, just so I can commute on it without feeling guilty.
-Mark Hoyer, Executive Editor
KTM 450 EXCA
$7988
