Topic: The Motorcycling Thread

[ktm525]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

[Jaeger]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

I don't know who decides that for motorcycles but 1980 was over half a century ago, so I wouldn't argue the point.

[JohnnyMac]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

I don't know who decides that for motorcycles but 1980 was over half a century ago, so I wouldn't argue the point.

It was 43 years ago yes, not half a century.  These terms are kind of hard to nail down, how about we call the DR "retro" and the Enfield "vintage". 

[rrocket]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

I don't know who decides that for motorcycles but 1980 was over half a century ago, so I wouldn't argue the point.

It was 43 years ago yes, not half a century.  These terms are kind of hard to nail down, how about we call the DR "retro" and the Enfield "vintage".

I don't think the DR looks retro.

YMMV.

[ktm525]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

I don't know who decides that for motorcycles but 1980 was over half a century ago, so I wouldn't argue the point.

It was 43 years ago yes, not half a century.  These terms are kind of hard to nail down, how about we call the DR "retro" and the Enfield "vintage".

I don't think the DR looks retro.

YMMV.

Those of similar vintage rarely think so.     How about classic or time capsule? 

[rrocket]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

I don't know who decides that for motorcycles but 1980 was over half a century ago, so I wouldn't argue the point.

It was 43 years ago yes, not half a century.  These terms are kind of hard to nail down, how about we call the DR "retro" and the Enfield "vintage".

I don't think the DR looks retro.

YMMV.

Those of similar vintage rarely think so.     How about classic or time capsule? 

Universal Japanese Dual Sport?

Certainly one of the most durable, fixable-anywhere-by-anyone motorcycles ever.

You take a DR650 when a KLR650 is too mechanically complex! LOL [emoji38]

[ktm525]

Yeah it's a shame what they did to the KLR however I think the DR650 is near the end.

[Jaeger]

DR650 doesn't have dual rear shocks

I was talking about the Enfield. The DR is retro in it's own way. Is an 80s design retro?

I don't know who decides that for motorcycles but 1980 was over half a century ago, so I wouldn't argue the point.

It was 43 years ago yes, not half a century.  These terms are kind of hard to nail down, how about we call the DR "retro" and the Enfield "vintage".

Math is hard. 

[ktm525]

accelerator pumps are good. They give a little squirt of fuel to eliminate off idle bog and responsiveness.

You have a stall issue?

[Jaeger]

The little bike has no issue whatsoever keeping up with the flow of traffic through town.

[blur911]

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[rrocket]

Wow! This seems like a big deal. People super stoked about this bike. And several who've tried it have bought one. Unicorn dual sport? When some guy sells his KTM Six Days 500 to buy one, I'd say probably!  Coming to Canada via Alberta. 

Adv. People have been asking..begging...for something like this forever. And it looks like the Kove delivers. Add to the fact they finished Dakar (and implemented some design fixes based on this to the civilian bikes) and I'd say they are legit.

Lots of outstanding design touches and attention to detail where it matters.

I think this sounds spectacular.

I'd buy one.

https://canadamotoguide.com/2023/04/18/kove-450rally-is-coming-to-canada/

https://youtu.be/tQEaExEdZes

[ktm525]

This is in a different class than a KTM500 six days enduro. If someone sold a KTM 500 to buy this then he was on the wrong bike to begin with. This bike is 320 lbs vs 250lbs for the KTM. But then again what is 70 lbs?    Of course the Kove has a rally tower which is perfect for all those douchy Euros or wanna be Euros who actually have no place to ride off road but can pretend they are riding the Paris to Dakar down to the local pastry shop.  This this prices close to a KTM 500. I would forgo the rally tower and buy the pumpkin.

One dealer out of rural Alberta? Carstairs?  I'll let someone else be the beta tester at that price. Our tour leader down in Costa Rica tried some chinese offerings and they basically fell apart in about 2 months. That was first try though so perhaps they were the Hyundai Pony of the off road world.

[Arthur Dent]

Carstairs is a tiny place. Sort of between ktm525 and me.

[ktm525]

Looked at this more. Ron says he would put money down on it so he will be our tester. Are you getting the base or the race version? 

It will be interesting if they can meet emissions. KTM basically has to tune their 4 stroke enduro (not the 690) bikes to the point of being so lean that they do not run well out of the box. You have to spend money to correct the fueling with aftermarket solutions. Smaller manufacturers like Beta have sipped under the radar in years past but I believe those loopholes are tightening. Will these make it past emissions? I guess next year we may find out. Hopefully they add dealers. They are a pitster dealer though. The pitsters are ok for a trail bike. Basically cloned parts from several manufacturers. Yamaha. Honda, KTM. I wouldn't trust them if taking air lol.

[rrocket]

This is in a different class than a KTM500 six days enduro. If someone sold a KTM 500 to buy this then he was on the wrong bike to begin with.

You need to watch the video. Guy had ridden and tested everything under the sun. Owns 2 of them and is a huge KTM500 slappy if you watch his other videos. Thinks the KTM 500 is best off road bike in the world.

Which is why him buying one of these is meaningful.

And if bike journos are like car journos, getting them to spend their own money on a bike is a miracle!!

[ktm525]

This is in a different class than a KTM500 six days enduro. If someone sold a KTM 500 to buy this then he was on the wrong bike to begin with.

You need to watch the video. Guy had ridden and tested everything under the sun. Owns 2 of them and is a huge KTM500 slappy if you watch his other videos. Thinks the KTM 500 is best off road bike in the world.

Which is why him buying one of these is meaningful.

And if bike journos are like car journos, getting them to spend their own money on a bike is a miracle!!

I have no idea on what his motives are? You Tube traffic ? Clicks? Most of this content is drivel. I trust no one.

When is the delivery date for yours?

I still have to be convinced.  We were riding with a guy last year on a GPX pitster (same company?) 250 2 stroke. Fork seals blew out on day three, Was having trouble sourcing heavier springs, rebound on the shock gave out after a month. Basically it fell apart and parts were hard to find. It was ok as a rec bike but get an aggressive 200lb rider on it and it did not like it. Perhaps this is different. Perhaps.

So far what I have seen in the flesh is that GPX are junk. Hyundai did go from the Pony to Scoupe so maybe, just maybe.

But lets compare:  I could spend $18700 for a Kove Rally (maybe decent components at that price) or buy a Husky 501s for  $14000. That leave $4700 to add a rally tower, add a larger tank and do some tuning. I end up with a bike that is 70 lbs lighter (maybe 60 with the tower) and more horsepower built in a first world country with no human rights abuses. Seems clear cut to me.

The first tranche of Koves are not imported as street legal. Where do you ride a bike with a rally tower? The local supercross track? 

[rrocket]

I have no idea on what his motives are? You Tube traffic ? Clicks? Most of this content is drivel. I trust no one.

When is the delivery date for yours?
 

Thats fine. I get it. If it was from some nobody "bloggers" and not guys/magazines that I have been following awhile I might be skeptical too. But coming from the sources/forums I've long followed I'm a believer. And when multiple journos ditch their trusted bikes and individually toss the word "unicorn" around it's legit IMO. Last time I heard them this excited was for the AJP PR7.

I'll wait until I can buy in Ontario. Even though it's easy enough to circumvent the "off road" designation here. I'm also guessing since the first year will be limited numbers, you'll likely pay a premium.

Also, pricing is $12k CDN. Which is cheaper than a KTM500.  And the weight is only 14lbs more than KTM's $26,000 USD 450 Rally Replica (306lbs).

[ktm525]

Ok I watched his video. He even ranks the Kove off road below the Honda CRF450 which in turn is destroyed by a KTM 500. The Kove is an off-road only bike at this point.

The Kove Rally is 368 lbs and has 51 HP. It needs Ozempic.

The 500/501  is 243/250lbs and has about 40 HP corked and 58 HP uncorked.

The cheaper Kove  bike adds like 48 pounds of blubber. over the fancy version. I missed that the first time, I didn't realize it was so heavy. They must have replaced all the fancy performance bits with pig-iron.

The reviewer loves the bike because he makes a small commission off each one sold.  Sounds like an objective review.  This whole Kove thing reminds me of 70s & 80s motocross where the Pros were on factory works bikes and manufacturers would try to pawn off a similar looking but inferior product to Joe Q Public. That was the beauty of KTMs strategy in the 90s. What the pros raced the public could buy off the showroom floor. Ready to Race.

Buy the Kove 450 like you said you would and I'll meet you in the parking lot with the FE501. 










 

[rrocket]

Ok I watched his video. He even ranks the Kove off road below the Honda CRF450 which in turn is destroyed by a KTM 500. The Kove is an off-road only bike at this point.

The Kove Rally is 368 lbs and has 51 HP. It needs Ozempic.

The 500/501  is 243/250lbs and has about 40 HP corked and 58 HP uncorked.

And yet the Kove runs away and hides from the KTM500exc in the video on the street. p

I'm not sure why you keep comparing Enduro weights to Rally weights? These are different motorcycles. Even KTMs six figure, Dakar winning rally bike weighs more than a stock KTM 500. I'm starting to think you don't really know Rally?

And I think you're misunderstanding something. Both bikes weigh 320lb. The extra 48lbs you see is when they reference the wet weight with 8 gallons of fuel...Which is 368lbs.

And that 320 lbs dry is excellent...right there with the KTM 450 Rally Replica. They BOTH have heavy curb weight because they hold 8+ gallons of fuel! So with 8 gallons of fuel, 368lbs. The KTM fully laden is 362lbs. And the "unicorn" AJP PR7 is 364lbs. Mighty impressive!

You certainly can build a Rally from the 500 EXC. I've explored it at length. It's $14.5k for the bike and $2000+ for the tower/fairing that I'd use (Rade Engineering). Then un-corking. Then making it more comfortable for the street. Then getting bigger fuel tank. And the list goes on and on. So yea, it's totally doable. How big is your wallet?

KTM did it too...and charges $28k US for it!

I'm totally satisfied with $12k for the Kove. Impressed even.

FWIW, Mike Johnson 4th in class Sonora rally. Then went to the NORRA 1000. 2nd. Really digging the passion of the founder of Kove for racing.

Love it!

This may have been the first article I read (apart from all the speculation threads at Advrider)

https://www.advpulse.com/adv-news/kove-450r-rally-review/#:~:text=With%20only%205%20years%20in,FIM%20World%20Supersport%20300%20Championship.