KTM 200 EXC reviews

I purchased this bike recently and I have to say I'm impressed! I haven't had a bike for some time and my last bike was a 1990 KX250...I thought that was fast. This bike goes 85 with throttle to go. Bike performs great right from delivery; I think the front needs to be a little stiffer but great bike. I would want a 200 or 250 if I were going to do a lot of tight single track. However, for the desert it's great. I do find the seat very firm...Enjoy Show less

Just moved up from a KDX 200 that I really liked. But My son got a KTM 125 EXC and one day I rode it up a rocky hill helping him. Wow, it just crawled up the almost rock hill. Impressed, I found a used 2003 KTM EXC 200 on ebay and went for it. What a difference. Where I would of been down in the woods on some bad situations with my KDX, the KTM just brought me through them like nothing. Power is there, low end is there. Wonderful woods bike. Still making friends with it. I am an old guy, age 52, and the bike is easy to handle and the weight issue is great. Love it. Show less

I purchased the 450 in March after not having been on a bike in over 20 years. (Last bike was an Ossa Phantom)Took it out to Durhamtown, rode entire day, and put 60 miles on it. What a surprise. It rode like a luxury car compared to past bikes. Very forgiving. didn't drop or stall it all day. I would recommend this bike to someone even with little experience on a big bore Show less

I just bought my 06 450, felt faster, and more confident on it immediately. I also own a 04 250 exc smoker that was good until I rode my first 450 ktm. I went out the next week and bought it! The 450 tracks much better than the 250 and in the rocks and roots it just eats them up where the 250 seems unstable and bounces around. The only time I notice the weight difference is putting it on the stand or picking it up after a spill. Just don't crash and you will hardly notice the extra 25 lbs. Show less

Bought this bike used with about 25 hours on it. I had ridden CR's, YZ's, Harleys and BMW's a long time ago, but wanted a good bike that seemed to have a following. KTM seemed to fit the bill and I wanted something that would have the power to pull my big butt around. Man did I find it. I knew I had done well when the guys I was riding with wanted to ride my 450 EXC. They have been riding dirt for many years and wanted a piece of this. All they could do was get off and shake their heads. They said they didn't like riding it 'cause it made them not want to ride theirs (KLX300R & '02 KTM 400EXC). It did throw me on my butt within the first 10 minutes. Just it's way of letting me know who was boss. We rode for several hours in deep sand and tank ruts on a military reservation. I could only tell how good my bike was when I rode theirs. Great bike and KTM has a real following. Show less

After 15 years of motocross racing, I settled for some trail riding adventure. What a perfect ride the 525EXC turned out to be. I had never ridden one and was skeptical of the size coming off 250F moto bikes. But, what a pleasant bike! So docile, yet it HAS POWER! Ergonomics feel great for a tall rider. It is a well put together bike. It is quality from the bars, the hydraulic clutch, to the wheels, etc. After 1300+ miles of grueling woods and desert riding, in only two months, the bike still feels new (doesn't look it) and had not one problem. AWESOME! Show less

This is by far the best woods bike I have ridden. Other than moving the needle and the handlebars I have seen no reason to change anything. I ride in the rocks and roots of southern Mo. This bike does everything so well that I feel like I am cheating when I ride with my friends. Thanks KTM for what I think is the perfect woods bike. In the last 6 years I have had 4 250s 1 200, 1 380, 1 300, and 1 520, none of these bikes come close to what this bike can do. Show less

This bike is the perfect all around, off road motorcycle. The power is never ending; the suspension is perfect for off road use (but too soft for serious MX use). The quality is top notch, and the bike is easy to work on. It looks like it will go through a lot of rear tires. I put the KTM OEM street legal kit on it, and now I ride it around town as well. The kit is excellent quality. I took it out on the highway and I got it up to 96 MPH which is too fast for any off road riding I do. I would gear it down, but then it would almost have too much torque. The bike is perfect in every way for me, and my only hope is it will have long term reliability to go with the performance. I would certainly buy another one; the extra cost over the jap bikes means nothing after riding this bike once. Show less

From the start, this stock bike is extremely docile and tractable since the bottom end is softer than previous years. The red spring provides some excitement, but is still soft and manageable. The suspension was too soft for me being around 235 pounds with gear, so the stiffer springs >46 really improve the handling. I raised the forks 2 marks for better turning, and was definitively an improvement. Eventually you get used to the soft power, in my opinion, because the higher internal gear, for what I placed a 52 rear sprocked... that made it a bit stronger getting out of the curves, but fast enough you crave for more explosive power. This bike does not lack top-end, despite a smaller diameter carburator. Once I stopped racing at the end of the year, an SX 2005 top-end was installed converting a good bike in a better fire breather. It is still very tractable. It was easy to go faster, but did not cause rider's fatigue. I went more adventurous and got a JD kit, which enriched the areas in the 1/4 of the throttle that the stock needle had. I put a Fatty pipe which enriched the already powerful midrange after the Sx top end. The top-end was "seasoned" with a 38 mm carburator which made it a killer top-ender. I think that this bike can be very versatile for the rookie, as well as the seasoned rider, but for the latter the power is far from "pro-class", specially on races where speed and fast power is needed against MX japanese counterparts. I believe this bike is well made, but I'm more impressed with the tuneability of the machine where you can customize the type of power you want. Having this bike for 2 years makes me realize I want to keep it, specially when for 2006 the concept of the "XC" SX type of engine is the winning ticket. Show less

Riding this bike in twisty technical stuff is like stealing sweets from kids. I have moved from a KTM 250 exc (2002) and a 2004 CR 250R, and riding this bike is like cheating, seriously, I feel guilty each time I take it out. If you don't believe me, ride one.. Show less