RUST magazine: Rust#3

quantum leap in the next five years, from there
on we can expect either more complex machinery
(heavier, slower and encumbered with all manner
of gas-cleaning systems), or even a switch
towards hybrid petrol/electric powerplants
(complex, though potentially more powerful).
But for now, what’s coming from KTM should
constitute the peak for petrol-powered enduro
motorcycle technology as we know it. So enjoy
it while you still can!
Tomorrow’s Technology Today
So what will a 2017 EXC be like? Well to help
us find out, we got hold of a lightly enduro-ised
2016 KTM 250XC-F - which features the new
engine and frame technologies - to see what
kind of differences we could expect to see come
late Spring 2016.
I should make it clear from the outset that
experience has taught us that XC models rarely
feel anything like as good for our needs as the
factory EXC versions. Whether it’s the power
delivery or the heavily sprung suspension, there’s
something about the nature of XCs which doesn’t
quite work as well on our typical enduro going.
But this does seem to vary from model to model.
And so to this particular bike which according
to the spec features the MX engine but with a
different ignition curve, along with a wider ratio
six-speed trans. Suspension-wise, as far as we
can tell, it’s essentially a mix of MX and EXC
components, and this one had been dialed-in
ma