Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

came stock with one of the older '87 odometer drive units, was too fast. But when replaced with one of the newer drive units, which most of the KTMs now have, we found the odometer to be very accurate. Also featured on the KTM are sano-looking and sturdy Acerbismade plastic, Metzeler tires, a 2.5 gallon gas lank, a Regina-made 0ring drive chain and an aluminum front fender brace. The KTM, however, has no guards. Riding Kick starting the KTM isn't exactly easy, but the motor usually fires to life on the first kick, hot or cold. The left-side kick starter lever is very short and requires a hefty slab, but the location of the lever is easy to reach, making it simple to get a good, clean kick while either standmg alongside the motorcycle or on top of it. Finding the choke lever is a little difficult. It's hidden behind the folding kickstarter and the frame. In stock form, the KTM comes jetted a tad too rich; after one trip out on the KTM, we leaned out both the pilotjet and mainjet by one size. The leaner jets make the KTM's motor much more responsive at high· and low RPMs. After jetting the KTM correctly, we found the KTM's power delivery to act more Like a motocrosser than a true-blooded enduro bike - we Liked that. The KTM250 has a near-perfect powerband for just about every type of terrain. It feels pipey, but the motor pulls exceptionally hard off the bottom without any sudden kickin-the-butt burst of horsepower, which many motocross-turnedenduro mounts tend to have. The Water crossings never fazed the KTM, even the brakes were uneffected by the wet. Fenders are wide. sturdy and efficient. ' KTM puLLs hard off the bottom and throughout the powerband, but, at the same time, it puLLs predictably and controllably. Most 250<:c, two-stroke motorcycles ma?ints on time. If the trail is more WIde-open, it stiLI can get the job done quickly and efficiently. It's easy to feel that the motor started out life as a motocrosser - it has more motocross traits than enduro traits. Motorwise, not only did our KTM test bike perform well, it also stood up to many miles of hard-core enduro riding without showing a hint of falling apart. Our KTM always Slarted right up, sounded clean without any rattles or vibration. It was one very tight unit. Suspension on the KTM is firstrate. Right out of the crate, both the front and rear suspension need a little dialing in to clean up some harshness, but once that's been handled, the KTM soaks up the bumps quite well. High-speed trails bring out the best of the upside down White Power fork that comes stock on the KTM. Fork action is okay, but what really stands out is the rigidity and stability of the fork. This is very noticable on faster trails cluttered with rocks, rutS and dips; there's no fork flex compared to standard forks. Bottoming was rare. Turning the KTM is simple. The motorcycle turns smoothly and holds its line; there's no tendency to oversteer. Cornering is a tad on the lazy side but it's no problem. In the brake department, we purposefully over-used the KTM's rear brake on occasions to see if we could get it to fade - it never did, and braking action was superb. Control !he $3598 price tag for the KTM isn't so bad when you consider the cost to modify a stock Japanese 250cc motocrosser into an enduro bike. 24

• Cover