New KTM Quad.

[Racbaja]

I just got the opportunity to ride the new KTM quad (on the street). Lots of top end and great brakes. Brother just purchased one of the first KTMs in California. The quad is typical KTM and a looker. I will have him chime in when he takes it out tomarrow.

Ron Plunkett
Plunkett Racing

[Wasson Racing]

Sweet let me know how it runs.

[byrd_man]

did he get the 450 or the 525? were lookin at one for next year for bitd

[HardCharger81]

How similar is it to the Polaris quad? I realize they use the same motor, but do they share more parts?

[byrd_man]

No the ktms are totally different and 100x better than the polaris.

[Plunkettmotorsports]

Well I took the 525 out for a little shake down ride. The bike has a ton of power, but needs a taller gear for desert riding (perfect for motocross). The suspension needed a little fine tuning but soaks big ruts and jumps like they were nothing. There are few things that I would like to change. One would be taller and wider handle bars, hi-flite seat, and of course taller tires. This is only because I race in the desert, but if you are in to motorcross you're good to go. This bike is the fastest stock out of the box bike I have ever riden.

[Nick Sexton]

my race YFZ has a similar set up to the KTM. those Ohlins shocks are almost the same as the ones i run and man those are some sweet shocks far better than any set of elkas, tcs, fox, or what ever. with a little help from Percision Concepts that thing will be one killer bike. the KTM does have a little bit more room to grow, being 45.6 inches wide will make it pretty unstable even with a steering stabalizer, extend it to around 51 inches and it will be good to go.

[chango 22]

my race YFZ has a similar set up to the KTM. those Ohlins shocks are almost the same as the ones i run and man those are some sweet shocks far better than any set of elkas, tcs, fox, or what ever. with a little help from Percision Concepts that thing will be one killer bike. the KTM does have a little bit more room to grow, being 45.6 inches wide will make it pretty unstable even with a steering stabalizer, extend it to around 51 inches and it will be good to go.

extend it to 51" and he will be DQed at any AMA race.Scott I will be checking you since i have nothing to do this season..I won't be able to ride till the end of the year.Still not all there up stairs.

[Socalloco]

I read some of these posts on here sometimes and just crack up. Ohlins are great shocks, but I would stop right there. They are not far better than any shock manufacturer you mentioned. I would guess if anyone could really make that claim it would be Fox for their air shocks which work very well and are technologically different than the other shocks you mentioned. Then, Elka could make that claim because they are winning championships left and right (I don't think that they are any better than the rest).

Shawn is correct...AMA sanctioned events are governed by the rules set forth by the AMA. Those rules state the maximum width of an ATV shall not exceed 50".

Hey Nick...have you raced your bike yet? Did you do the D37 race this past weekend? We are looking forward to seeing you on the starting line in a week and a half or so at the Rattlesnake Chase in District 38. Check out www.amad38.com for more info.

[chango 22]

I read some of these posts on here sometimes and just crack up. Ohlins are great shocks, but I would stop right there. They are not far better than any shock manufacturer you mentioned. I would guess if anyone could really make that claim it would be Fox for their air shocks which work very well and are technologically different than the other shocks you mentioned. Then, Elka could make that claim because they are winning championships left and right (I don't think that they are any better than the rest).

Shawn is correct...AMA sanctioned events are governed by the rules set forth by the AMA. Those rules state the maximum width of an ATV shall not exceed 50".

Hey Nick...have you raced your bike yet? Did you do the D37 race this past weekend? We are looking forward to seeing you on the starting line in a week and a half or so at the Rattlesnake Chase in District 38. Check out www.amad38.com for more info.I agree you can make any shock great if you know what you're doing with it. Jason are you going to finish out this season?Two wheeler next season?Tell your POPs to get well soon...

[dangersound]

www.ktmatv.com .. the oficial website

[dr shaw6]

extend it to 51" and he will be DQed at any AMA race.Scott I will be checking you since i have nothing to do this season..I won't be able to ride till the end of the year.Still not all there up stairs.

I have never been checked. Not D-38, D-37, SCORE, or BITD. Lets see how many entries our district will lose once they start enforcing a rule that is old and needs to be updated. 1" inch might make a differance with the ladies but it wont make you any faster on a quad or give you an un fair advantage. It might even be a dis-advantage if you ask me. There are many times that I wish I had a narrower front end especially in D-38 and D-37 courses.

[Socalloco]

My plan is to finish out the season. Although, to be honest, I think we have too many races on our schedule. I have no plans for next season quite yet but just got a tempting offer for BITD. I am pretty sure I will not chase points in '08. But you never know. It gets addicting.

[4oshun12]

I have never been checked. Not D-38, D-37, SCORE, or BITD. Lets see how many entries our district will lose once they start enforcing a rule that is old and needs to be updated. 1" inch might make a differance with the ladies but it wont make you any faster on a quad or give you an un fair advantage. It might even be a dis-advantage if you ask me. There are many times that I wish I had a narrower front end especially in D-38 and D-37 courses.

Ha ha one inch might make a difference with the ladies.................

[Vtr_Racing]

Gotta watch it on the width too! More bump steer. We tried plus 3 on our 450r and it was a handful.

[Plunkettmotorsports]

I just dropped off the bike with Tim at V2 products, he will be handling the shock set-up and also designing front a-arms for the bike. They will also be designing a few other products. So I hoping they can help me dial in suspension to my riding style. Hey shawn, I can't remember when you have been all there. Just joking, hope to see you in the dez on the 23rd.

[chango 22]

I have never been checked. Not D-38, D-37, SCORE, or BITD. Lets see how many entries our district will lose once they start enforcing a rule that is old and needs to be updated. 1" inch might make a differance with the ladies but it wont make you any faster on a quad or give you an un fair advantage. It might even be a dis-advantage if you ask me. There are many times that I wish I had a narrower front end especially in D-38 and D-37 courses.
It's a rule i didn't make it.I just don't like to see my friends given bad info.You never know when someone will jump up and use it when it comes down to a couple of points between 1st & 2nd place jackets at the end of the year..Scott i hope you charge this second half get your self a jacket..

[Socalloco]

Scott...it should be less of a problem with my Dad out for the foreseeable future. You might be able to work up to 2nd or 1st with a very strong 2nd half. I think you got by Reuben at the last race, right? You just need some more fast Vet Quad racers to finish between you and your competition. Shawn, are you clear to race, yet?

[Kbach66]

Just an FYI to anybody that might already have one of these, or is looking to get one soon....KTM notified dealers of a problem with the new ATV's.

In the pdf file, it says:

KTM is stopping all ATV sales (450 and 525) due to the potential problem of the rear brake calipers braking.

Your dealer should notify you asap and tell you not to ride it.

[Plunkettmotorsports]

I got a great Idea Jason. You guys can slow down a little or a lot and let me follow some of your lines. It was a big difference starting up on the first line of quads, me and Ruben had a great race going back and forth. I learned a lot getting to run against faster riders last race and hopefully I can just finish the all the races with no problems. The points will work themself out.

[Nick Sexton]

Broken rear calipers doesn't sound like a big problem, you can replace something like that easy.

[Kbach66]

Broken rear calipers doesn't sound like a big problem, you can replace something like that easy.

Oooops. I actually posted the wrong wording.

It said "We are in the process of investigating the potential of the rear brake carrier cracking."

The severity of the fix probably depends on if it's a frame issue, or a bracket issue.

[chango 22]

Scott...it should be less of a problem with my Dad out for the foreseeable future. You might be able to work up to 2nd or 1st with a very strong 2nd half. I think you got by Reuben at the last race, right? You just need some more fast Vet Quad racers to finish between you and your competition. Shawn, are you clear to race, yet?No all most fell out of a golf cart @ work LOL.Maybe next season..

[bajaxp]

Some guy said that the KTM is way better than the Polaris. Has he ridden both? I doubt it. I have and they are both quite good. Eichner is winning on the Polaris, it is $1700 less money, and Polaris has been building ATV's for 23 years...maybe one month for KTM. I ride a KTM 450 EXC, so don't have any reason to dis them...love the bike, but Polaris builds a great quad.

[Socalloco]

Let's get something straight. Eichner rides a Polaris because they pay him. Shoot, he would do well on my kid's Eton, but that does not make it a good quad. If you are the average racer you will not be as happy with a Polaris as you would be with the KTM or a Honda. I have not ridden a Polaris but took a good look at the dealership and was overwhelmed by the weight and I have spoken to people who race them (with sponsorship) and they are disappointed that they are not still racing their Honda. It is not that it wouldn't be a good bike for playing...it just is not intended to have the performance of some of the other quads out there.

[RacerX1]

Jason - you are so right! About Doug E. - he could ride my 1987 250R and still smoke us all!
(I love him)

Ok anyway - about that new KTM quad... I WANNA RIDE ONE!!! :D

[bajaxp]

Eichner is WINNING on the Polaris...in his second race, and this was on the IRS model. Plus the Outlaw 525S is lighter than a LTR450. You guys are just stuck on 'it ain't a Honda.'

My original point is that you make a lot more sense after you have ridden both quads, which I have. I think the KTM is a great first effort, but people are losing their minds over this thing...really no new technology in it.

[Socalloco]

Hmmmm...one win in the WORCS series compared to winning nearly all of the events last year on a Honda. Point proven.

Let me guess...your avatar has a picture of you in a Polaris Ranger?

Maybe I do like Hondas a little better as that is what I ride. Shoot, they were still winning races even when they weren't making any new performance quads. The old 250R was still one of the best performing quads until Yamaha made their YFZ and Honda came out with the current TRX.

I am excited about the KTM as it looks like the closest thing to a race bike that I have seen. If it works, it would have the fewest parts to change out to be race ready. I have a KTM 525 motorcycle and I LOVE that motor. I have always wanted to put one in a quad.

[bajaxp]

Point proven? Make a point other than you like Hondas. DE has been riding Hondas forever and has only had weeks before he WON on a Polaris.

I like the KTM quad, but I think that they will have a steep learing curve. Open your mind.

[BOLT Performance]

I bought my first Honda in 1979. I bought my first KTM 6 months ago. It's the right equipment for me now. But non of us will outride any of these brands. Debating their strengths and weaknesses is mostly noise and just something to do between riding.

http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/38/s6300928lx4.jpg
http://img475.imageshack.us/img475/4209/s6300929hl7.jpg
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/7053/s6300930yw5.jpg

[bajaxp]

Agreed!