Oh! Oh!!

skid jackson

New member
Nooooooooooo!!!!

I Swapped rides with a buddy who has an 08 ktm 200 exc or whatever the letters are these days .... Rode it for about 10 miles. This thing was the polar opposite of the 03 200 exc I had. It was bone stock, the suspension worked well, it seemed to turn just fine, nice smooth power band, all stuffed into a nice tight 125 frame. It was lighter than my 300, seemed easier to ride and I did not have to worry about the motor Lightin' off If I got a little ham fisted .... I liked it.....
A lot!!! hmmm might be some orange in my future ....
Damn I hate the sounds of that .... But it was a really nice ride!!
 
It's an XCW. Did the vibration bother you? I rode an '01, the vibration was ruthless. How did the suspension compare to a GG?
 
Do a little research and you will find the 03 200 KTM motor had about the worst hit and power band of any of the KTM 200 motors. Suspension since then has improved quite a bit. The 08's were pretty good and the 09's are very good stock now. The motor is totally awesome and can be tuned any way you want it to work and the weight is an honset to god 210lbs. At least 20lbs less than the Gasser. No matter what anyone says here it's a great bike and something I did consider and would love to try....or a current GG 200 as well. It also has a 6 speed tranny which sadly the 250 and 300 KTM's do not (BUT SHOULD!).

See if you can get a spin on Billy Burns GG Six Day 200 bike if he still has it so you can compare a current Gasser to the KTM before you go swimming in orange waters. Kinda boring when everyone has the same bikes IMO.
 
I'm very aware of the differences between the 08 and 03 ktm's. I'd definitely like to do a back to back 200 ride off but don't see that happening. I really like the fact that the ktm is in the 125 frame. It just seems so mt bike like. The gasser is going to be the same size as the 250 and 300, No?? Honestly I never thought I would be casting an eye toward the orange waters after dealing with that 03. the 08 was kick to ride tho. gonna have to do some research.
 
I have an 07 200xcw also. It's a great bike for flicking around in the tight stuff. I'm a little older than most dirt riders (55) and find myself getting tired after a hard days riding on it. It really is a point and shoot aggressive bike for a small bore.

Skidad, unlike the 250/300, the KTM 200 engine was unchanged from inception until a carb change in 07 and minor engine changes in 08. It has an adjustable power valve that's easily set to tune the hit. Similiar to the GG, it's one of the few bikes that the year doesn't make much difference engine wise. There's been continuous improvements in the frame and suspension though. My kids have an 04 and a 1999 that both ride exceptionally well. The '99 has conventional forks that have been extensively reworked and perform quite well.

I'm 6'2" and don't find the ergos any more cramped than my 07 EC300. Frankly, I would hate to choose which bike to get rid of, they are both great.
 
My thoughts on KTMs:

-Yes, they are lighter than Gassers.
-Even for 09, they still don't turn.
-I hate KTM kick.
-airbox is awesome.
-maintenance is easy.
-very reliable.
-motors have too much hit (I've only ridden the XC models, and only the 250 and 300).
-XC transmission tops out too early.


Personally, I won't ride a KTM because I can't get used to the handling and rear suspension. Linkless is weird.
 
On KTMtalk, ALOT of those guys are complaining about the suspension and lack of bottom on newer 200's. Alot. This disinclines me to buy one. And the only people who seem to complain about the poor turning are GG owners.
 
The one I rode was an 08 which has had major frame work done ...
It seemed to turned fine to me. The 07 and earlier have a different frame. The motor had no hit. I was riding it in stock form so maybe it is a bit choked up but power delivery was pretty smooth and easy to manage. I found it easier and faster to run through the woods on than my 300. I've also read threads about guys saying the suspension was too stiff but the one I was on was stock and seemed fine. As far as the 200 goes I think they made major changes in 08 that made the bike alot easier to ride.
 
Skid. Are you sure that 125 and 250 frames are different? exept for the tighter radius of the under engine tubes? I know that jap motocrossers shared fundamentally the same chassis between the tiddler and the 250. I know because cactusreid put a 250 motor into a 125 chassis and only modified the under those engine tubes.
 
bear not sure what the diff is between the 250 and 125. Just was going on what I was told ... that ktm made some changes to the 08 chassis to get it to turn. I figured it was in response to hearing people crab about how thier ktm didn't turn and how well gassers did turn. I know guys who have 07's that make complaints that sound just like my 03. the 08 I rode was nothing like the 03. I figured they reworked the chassis to get it to turn and, dialed back the hit to make it easier to ride and reworked the valving to make it more plush. In any case, unlike the 03, the 08 sure got me smiling!
 
hmm poking around the gas gas and ktm sites I noticed that the all the bikes have the same wheel base. gasser 200 and 250 and 300 plus ktm 200 and 250 are all 58" wheel base. gasser uses 62.5/65 bore and stroke on thier 200 while ktm is 64/60. Do those numbers tell you anything about engine characteristics?? To bad there wasn't an 08 or 09 gasser 200 close by to test ride. small dealer network might cost these guys a sale .... I'll have to do a little more digging before I pull the trigger.
 
The big change to the KTM enduro line in 08 was the change of the PDS angle being more laid down. The MX bikes got this in 07 and actually the 07 enduro chassis was new also. The shock is also a little bit longer. It's supposed to turn better but some actually prefer the 07 chassis but this could be the more finicky setup nature of the KTM PDS system and front to back balance. The stock 09 suspension has been getting great reviews. Both the forks and the shock got some significant changes.

Yes the KTM 200 uses the 125 chassis however dimentionally it's very very close in size to the 250 and 300. Because of the really light weight people assume it's a much smaller bike but it's not. This has been hashed out allot over on KTM Talk.

The motor is very tuneable. Different pipes, needles, ignitions, powervalve settings, flywheel weights, head mods and porting changes, gearbox ratios etc. can make the motor mild to wild. The one general concensus seems to be "a really fun bike" from anyone who gets to take a ride on one.

Skid, do you live in VT? If so I'm sure Billy Burns will let you ride his GG 200. It will have a Rekluse in it and probably a trials tire as Billy loves that combo for NE. Don't jump ship yet until you try a newer 200 GG. I'll bet you could still find some new 07 GG 200's around with some digging. Might find a really good deal on one of those. I thought I read there will be no 2009 GG 200's brought into the US but you might want to check with Go Fasters about that to be sure. Hopefully I'm wrong about that.
 
I have a friend who buys a couple new pumpkins a year, and an occasional Honda as well. He had an '08 200 he sold for an '08 e-start 300. He liked it, said the shock was better but the forks still sucked. No turning complaints. From the ones I've owned and ridden, new and older, I think the suspension is eaiser to set up on the bigger (heavier) bikes, but the 200s turn better. One of my biggest complaints with the 200 is the vibes, brutal for a small bike.

If I didn't ride a GG, I'd buy a Yamaha 250F, no question about it. I really like the newer aluminum framed bikes I've tried Easy to ride, good suspension, and very reliable as a woods bike, as your not bouncing off the limiter all the time like on the track.
 
I wish that gasgas would make a decent 200.I feel that the current designe, bore stroke is to under square to enable the engine to have any real potential, due in no small part to gasgas's modular use of its cases in all three of the bigger 2 strokes. Out of all the bikes Ive owned the sweetest motor of all was a worked over wr 200, 66.8 mm bore, counter balanced, servo controlled power valve. It was sweet , super controlable and would rev to the stratosphere. Unfortunatly it had its original street bike gearbox and frame as well as the suspension was pure crap.Despite its short comings it was so much fun to ride but sadly, despite all of the mods i did could only ever be considered about 80% there.
 
widebear...
I had one of those wr200's and it was pretty sweet. I rode that thing for 2 years and loved it. I would say your description is right on.
It was my favorite bike ever, til I hopped on the xc300 i have now. I was looking for a 200 when i came across the 300......
 
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I had a '98 & a 2000 KTM 200, & I've swapped for rides on several new 1s, including an '08. I think it's arguably KTM's best bike, & for riding fast in tight, flat woods it's hard to beat. but I'm not ready to swap my '07 GG 300 for another 1 (but if I did, it would be an '09 200 XC).
 
Nooooooooooo!!!!

I Swapped rides with a buddy who has an 08 ktm 200 exc or whatever the letters are these days .... Rode it for about 10 miles. This thing was the polar opposite of the 03 200 exc I had. It was bone stock, the suspension worked well, it seemed to turn just fine, nice smooth power band, all stuffed into a nice tight 125 frame. It was lighter than my 300, seemed easier to ride and I did not have to worry about the motor Lightin' off If I got a little ham fisted .... I liked it.....
A lot!!! hmmm might be some orange in my future ....
Damn I hate the sounds of that .... But it was a really nice ride!!
NOOO! DON'T GO OVER TO THE ORANGE SIDE!!!!
 
Nooooooooooo!!!!

I Swapped rides with a buddy who has an 08 ktm 200 exc or whatever the letters are these days .... Rode it for about 10 miles. This thing was the polar opposite of the 03 200 exc I had. It was bone stock, the suspension worked well, it seemed to turn just fine, nice smooth power band, all stuffed into a nice tight 125 frame. It was lighter than my 300, seemed easier to ride and I did not have to worry about the motor Lightin' off If I got a little ham fisted .... I liked it.....
A lot!!! hmmm might be some orange in my future ....
Damn I hate the sounds of that .... But it was a really nice ride!!
I told you back in the day to get the Gas-Gas 200.
 
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