Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127963
On e lo o k a t th e 400 / 520' s SO HC fou r-valve eng ine and its h erit a ge is ob v io us - a nd this is n o s u rp r ise, as KTM owns the Swedish Husa be rg company, and it is clear th at technology has been sh ared . However , th at is no t say tha t the KTM is not uniqu e. Wher eas all Hu s abe rg s (a nd KTM LC4s , fo r that matter ) are left-sid e kick and right-sid e d rive, th e new KTM is the o p posite, which sh ou ld ce rta in ly m a ke a lot o f KTM rid ers happy. And KTM wen t' one bett er ye t, as the s ix -s p ee d tr a n ny is enga g ed by a h ydra u li c clu tch . Th e en g ine ha s a ls o bee n ma d e r ead y to accep t electric sta rt. . T h e new, li ghtw ei g ht p owerpla n t h as been placed in a n ex is ting 250cc tw o-st ro ke chassis, w hich, accordi ng to KTM officials, requ ired ve ry litt le modifica tion to acc ep t it. The rear su spensio n, of co u rs e, fea tu res th e lin k-less PDS system, bu t new 43mm WP upsid ed ow n fo rks can be found in the tri ple trees . And ge t this: Eve n in end uro trim, the total p ackag e weig hs so me th ree po und s less than the YZ400F (!), according to KTM spo kesmen . Bu t d on ' t ex p ect to rush into yo u r dealerships for a new 400 or 520 in '99. You wo n' t find o ne. Current p lan s call for KTM to sell off its limit ed inventorv of '98 compe tition mod els, all the whil~ debu ting th e 2000 mod el in World 500cc mot ocross and World en duro co mpetition as we ll as AMA co m p eti tion in 1999. Even so , the LC4 th a t in trodu ced KTM to th e fo u r-stro ke buyin g public (and vice versa ) rem ain 'i.'! strong stapl e of th e new lin eup, as is evidenced by se ve ra l new models, su ch as th e new 640 Dual Sport, 640 Adventure an d perhaps the m os t ra dica l of all LC4s, th e Duke II, which features r ad ical n ew styling tha t bears more than a passing resem bl an ce to KTM' s Unit co nce pt o f tw o years 'ago. . Last , a nd by no m eans least, co mes p er h a p s t he s lee p e r o f th e enti r e M unich sh ow - th e return of Bultaco . And not just wi th some Spanish-d eri vative pow erp lant su ch as the Derbi-powered .Lo b ito tha t has been heralded as the first bike to return the fabled Spanish marque to th e m arketplac e, bu t a rea l, hon est-t o-God , Bult aco-powered Bu ltaco. Well, it w as th ere, in th e form of a trials bike - th e Bullaco She ree . Sonamed because of registrati on troubles w it h th e old She rpa na me, the Sherco (S herp a and Bultaco, get it? ) h as been design ed fro m the grou nd up to take its rightful place back in th e th ick of World an d Na tio na l tria ls co m petition . The Sh e rc o fe at u re s a co m p a c t, liq ui d cooled 249cc tw o-stroke, w hich utilizes a hyd rauli c cl u tc h a n d a fiv e- speed tran smi s s ion a n d is pac ked into a perimet er-s ty le ch ro me-moly chassis. The fro nt fork is a Pai oli unit, offe ri ng 6.6 inches of travel, wh ile an a ile shoc k mates to the sw ingarm and provides 6.8 inc h es of travel. Wh eelba se is 53 .08 inches, and th e bik e weigh s in a t w ha t shou ld l)e a lightest-in-class 154 pou nds dry. So wha t's the bottom lin e ? If a nything, Munich was a reaffirmation that now is a g rea t time to be a mot orcycle fan , just as it has been througho u t th e seco nd half of the '90s. New products are a rri ving each year, bu t th e best is cl early yet to co me, a s it h as b e e n rumored that se veral products are being reined in for an all -out assau lt on th e new mill en ium . N ext yea r ' s W orld Sh ow , whi ch wi ll tak e p la ce a t the EICMA in Milan, will su rely be something to see. 1"X Booth 61 ~~ Silencers $25 Pipes $75 Booth ~NIT.sHIN 15 MX Tlres from $15 Graphic/Seat, Slings hot combos $5000 Team Stiffie combo $6000 .~ Booth 74 Sc:rlbner CSas Cans MIll STRE ET DIT ~DNTARID @ Rat sides -- 5 85 5 0UTII 'W STR EET REDUIfIIDS . . . . ® Crusty Vent Pant Crusty Vent Jacket Reversible Riding Jersey Crusty laundry Bag 00 RIVERSIDE t $95 $70'" $3200 $3100 NO CREDIT CARDS ORCHECKS ACCEPTED ON PARKING L OTSALE MEROIANDISE. QUANTIT1ES ARE UMITED. FIRST COME FIRST SERVED. ALL REGULAR , FORMS OF PAYMENT ACCEPTED FOR INSTORE PURCHASES. STREETexcel Sinter compounds from SBS - the best in sintered metal replacement pads with specifically engineered compounds for front (HS) an d rea r (lS). These Sin ter compo unds provide the ultima te in smooth, q uic k stoppin g power with fo rm ulati o ns th at all ow for faster cooling and m inimum to no fade , even under heavy use a nd re pea t ed hard braking. At a time like this , you sh ouldn 't be asking yourself " How are my brakes ?" Visit yo ur nearest dea ler today to find out which SBS brake pad s are the right choice for you. SBS - THE POWERTO STOP YOU . co 0\ 0\ ..... 1:'-' l-< (I) .n o .... u o 19