VOL. 51 ISSUE 49 DECEMBER 9, 2014 P37
SX-F FACTORY EDITION
T
he 2015 KTM 450 SX-F Factory
Edition is far more than an upgraded
version of the 2015 "standard"
450 SX-F—it's pretty much an all-new
motorcycle from knobbies to handle-
bars. When current RedBull KTM Team
Manager Roger DeCoster joined the
orange squad in 2011, this is the bike he
envisioned his factory team riders would
some day compete on. That day is here.
This bike is extremely compact and
light. Compared to the standard 450
SX-F, the Factory Edition, KTM claims,
is a full 10 pounds lighter, four of those
pounds lost in the ultra-compact motor
alone. And it still has electric starting!
The KTM's SOHC four-valve mill looks
tiny compared to most other 450 motors.
It also has a new exhaust system—it's
shorter in length, and the design of the
resonance chamber make it look like a
small two-stroke expansion chamber.
The FE also gets three-mode adjust-
able fueling via a button on the handle-
bar, and it also has launch control.
Front suspension is handled by WP's
4CS fork and the rear suspension is
handled by a new and shorter WP shock
that rides on new linkages. The frame is
all-new, as well.
Less than 500 KTM 450 SX-F Fac-
tory Editions will be available to the con-
sumer and will be available in February
with an MSRP of $10,199. Not bad for
what is essentially a factory works bike
for sale.
