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New CA plated, FI dual sport discussion thread

Reading a bunch of articles, it seems ktm will be bringing the AER fork to the enduro lineup at some point in the near future.
MXers and.most who have ridden it seem to like them but KTM feels the enduro crowd is put off by air forks still. They are waiting for that prejudice to die down a bit, probably a few more years.

One thing I read I didn't like on the Beta was the seperate engine and trans oil. I guess I have bad memories of ktm's xc4 engine problems.

I am starting to like the husky fe450. I know I like that bore and stroke power delivery from my 07 453 kit, it can only be better in a newer bike, right? 450 is a good middle ground between the too small 350 and too big 500. Also, linkage rear should be more progressive even if it is higher maintenance. Plus it's white.
 
See if you can get a ride on a 450 and 501 before you buy. That is not my understanding of how the 450 motor behaves. I feel the 500 is actually the gentler of the two motors, imho.
 
My vote goes for the husky 350! I might be biased but everyone who rides it, loves it. Mine is remapped - it's a 2016 but was done before everyone tightened down and stopped remapping. You cannot send an ecu out of state to be remapped anymore - do not let a seller convince you it can still happen. BUT if you can find a remapped one for sale :thumbup

I just saw a plated 2017 350 on fb for sale for $8k which is a screamin deal. Has like 1,000 miles/30hours on it. IDK why you would eliminate the husky because of the forks? I had my suspension set by JPH (Jason) and it's perfect. If you wanted to ride my 350 for a day you could - but it would be an unfair representation since it is mapped. Offer stands tho.
 
Thanks Rebekah

As far as FI bikes, I have a little time on:
2012 ktm 500 exc, bone stock- I coined the term "velvet hammer" for it
2012 350exc w/euro mapping
2016 husky fe350 w/jd tuner
2017 ktm 450 exc six days w/vortex
2015? Husaberg 350 stock

Not enough time or consistent terrain to make apples to apples though
 
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I have a plated 350 with a thumper 390 kit. Plenty of power, even in Baja, for me.(old guy former A rider) Don't let the 4cs forks scare you. Mine are set up by Kerft moto and are easily the best I've ever experienced.
 
I just read a thread on the ktm/husky 450 from James Dean of jd jetting.

He gets them from 39hp to 51 with basic mods:
- jd jetting powersurge box
-remove reed cage from intake
-remove external screen from Stock exhaust
- desmog ( for decel popping, not hp)

He says the reed removal makes the biggest difference.

He also tries different exhausts and says the stock does great with the screen out.

Very informative thread.

http://ktmtalk.com/showthread.php?5...EXC-with-Simple-Mods-Closed-Course-Race-Setup
 
So my desire to get a new FI bike is completely dampened.

We just completed a great 400 mile ride to gerlach and back and fatally killed 3 of 9 bikes, 2 of which were were the only 2 FI bikes on the ride.
My trusty old RFS ktm never missed a beat and towed both those bikes and riders to safety.
We also blew up a wr450 after an hour of high speed BLM road its 5 speed trans did not like.

My other friend with a 16 husky 350 had it die on her twice with an FI error code while riding locally and had to be towed out. It is at the dealer now.

So, 3 of 4 close friends with new FI bikes have been left high and dry in the last 2 weeks.
No bueno.

Seemingly Nothing you can do when the fi fails. We took one apart in Gerlach and checked everything, pulled the injector, etc till 1am in the hotel room. Just dead.

Compare that to the fact I rebuilt the carb on the wr in tight singletrack when the jet needle e clip popped off and the bike wouldn't run.

I think I'm sticking with carbs. Or maybe developing a kit to put an FCR on the fi bikes.
Or maybe an rfs in the new chassis...
Hmmmmm...
 
Several friends own KTM 500EXC's. Mostly good luck, no failures as you have described. Be thankful you guys were only around Gerlach ... and not Bolivia.

It's obvious there is more to be learned on F.I. systems and all ancillary components. If traveling, maybe best to take some spares? I think that may all you can do once something goes belly up. ???

Carbs are nice for correcting issues trail side, but do sacrifice MPG and not always great at high altitude. And if you're a klutz ... you can break a Carb too. :gsxrgrl

My DR650 Carb has been simple and reliable for thousands of miles. The FCR pumper Carb on my former WR250F was not so happy ... James Dean to the rescue ... finally. Took a year to sort out. Hard to get to and work on.

My recent 2017 KTM 690 was flawless ... but very low miles no so real test.

I guess it comes down to what you want to do with your bike, where and how far you intend to go. If you're just doing local weekend dirt riding then when something breaks ... you fix it. Or buy another $10,000 dirt bike.

Are some modern bikes failing more than they should? What do you guys think? Is this issue endemic or limited to one brand .. or what?

I wondered what the collective here thinks of the recently announced Honda CRF450L? Yes, I've seen the thread here and read a bit elsewhere about this bike as well.

IMO, Honda have made yet another error in judging the market with this new bike.

One element that is Dual Sport specific that not ONE of the dozens of posts addressed on that other thread is ... SEAT HEIGHT! NO ONE mentioned it!
Are all those guys over 6ft tall?

New Honda is over 37 in. That's full competition dirt bike territory. The CRF250L is about 33 in. I think?

The other obvious boner most are concerned about (a deal breaker for most)
is the measly claimed 25 HP Honda list.

Is it EPA holding back Honda? If so, then how do KTM and Husky do it? I know "small" companies get special EPA temp. dispensation and can operate with more relaxed pollution levels, not sure if that still is relevant today?

Thoughts?
 
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I think Seat Height is a printed illusion. 37" on a bike with 14"of travel is more like 34.5-35" once you are in the saddle.
I'm a short gal riding a Beta 430RR-S as a dual sport and it performs really well.
IT has to do with definitions and what is driving the market. With so many GoPro videoes on YouTube touting these light weight plated dirt bikes as dual sports suddenly you have an upswing in Beta, Husky, and KTM sales. The Honda is meant to compete with these guys.
 
Surj commented that the 25hp on the CR450L was some weird Euro thing... Perhaps to be eliminated via some readily available hop up kit? Apparently he chatted with some folks from Honda who told him to expect a value in the 40s.
 
I should add, we had 1 dead 2015 Husaberg 350, 1 dead2012 ktm 350exc and my other friend that has died twice now is a 2016 husky fe350. So not one brand happening around me.
All bikes are well maintained and not abused or neglected.
I am researching what I need to fix these trailside.
 
Interesting the FI crapped out on my SO’s Beta 500 yesterday
 
I wish there was an electric dual sport that had a Mr. Fusion on it, so you'd just stop by the garbage and refuel.
 
augustiron said:
I should add, we had 1 dead 2015 Husaberg 350, 1 dead2012 ktm 350exc and my other friend that has died twice now is a 2016 husky fe350. So not one brand happening around me.
All bikes are well maintained and not abused or neglected.
I am researching what I need to fix these trailside.
Click to expand...
KTM and Husky engine are basically the same, I know for a while 'bergs used a lot of KTM stuff too, not sure if that was true for 2015
 
My guess is they all use similar or same injection components.
 
Rumbo Sur said:
One element that is Dual Sport specific that not ONE of the dozens of posts addressed on that other thread is ... SEAT HEIGHT! NO ONE mentioned it!
Are all those guys over 6ft tall?

New Honda is over 37 in. That's full competition dirt bike territory. The CRF250L is about 33 in. I think?
Click to expand...

My husky is 38.2 stock seat height, I am 5'4 on a good day, 29" inseam and not terribly heavy so while my 135# takes the seat down a peg, it's not much. I ride it and started racing D36 this season, without issue...though maybe I tip over more than the average bear :laughing point being, you don't need to be tall to ride a tall bike. I've ridden over some big rocks recently and am grateful for every inch of travel the husky has.
 

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Most of the probs I've seen with the newer FI bikes are: dead fuel pump, clogged injectors; clogged fuel lines/filters.

The smaller motors (350/250) have dual cams; 500/501 have single. More reported motor issues with the 350s, they rev higher and are more tightly strung so it makes sense.

KTM changed the big end bearings to the solid ones in 2014 (pretty sure) as they were seeing some failure with the rollers.

Oil capacity for both is around 1.5l; pretty decent for a dirt bike with plate. I've been surprised at how good my 500 is at dirt work, a little rough on the road but that's to be expected. Not sure why all those folks you ride with are having issues, I have read that you need to let the FI idle for 5 min after turning it on for it to reset parameters for altitude. If you were trucking up to your area then just took off and rode it would be hunting and running poor at low revs (that's what folks report) but shouldn't cause the bike to die. Hope that doesn't happen to mine, guys are getting 30-50000 mi before a tear down so I'm looking for that type of thing.
 
Husaberg died after 180 miles of truckee to gerlach, 20 miles outside gerlach and I towed it to town with my trusty carbed rfs, then a sag truck took it to truckee. It just straight turned off, no bogging or sputtering, just dead. Injector and spark only worked for a couple of cycles when cranking after we tore into it. Seems ecu related.

350 exc died after 350 miles of the ride, on 395 outside bordertown. Travelling at 65mph it started sputtering and died, I towed it 10 miles to bordertown where we got AAA to take it to truckee as the sag truck was full of dead bikes already. It had plenty of gas in the tank. New pump and filter on the way ( just a guess)

The husky fe350 lives in truckee, and just cut out twice and had to be towed out. Still waiting to hear from the shop.
 
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