Australasian Dirt Bike – May 2019

keptlikearacebike,theywillbejust
thatandrewardyouwithmany
hoursofracing.
Ihaveseenaproblemwithpast
modelswherethekickstartidlergear
shearedoff,causingmetaltorun
aroundinthegearbox.Itcreates
significantnoiseandcanlockupthe
engine.Ihaveseenthisonafew
models,whichKTMrepairedunder
warrantyandIhavebeeninformed
thattheparthasbeenreplacedsothe
problemnolongerhappens.

WHEREDOTHEYFITIN?
The85SXisaracebike.Itisa
high-endracebikedesignedfor
seriousracing.Whilemanykidsdo
it,theyarenotdesignedtobe
ploddedaroundafarm.Theyare
designedtoraceandwin.Theyare
welldesignedandfeatureWP
suspensionthatisdesignedtoallow

a little racer to ride as fast as they

can around a motocross track.

They come with all the gear needed

to go racing. They have plenty of

power and good quality suspension

set up for a large range of riders. They

have years of development behind

them and have been designed to steer

and handle well. They are at the

higher end of the price scale, which

means they are expensive to buy and

just cruise around a farm on and they

wouldn’t be my first choice for an

inexperienced rider or someone

learning to ride. If your choice is to go

racing and win then the 85SX should

be right at the top of your list.

ARE THEY COMPETITIVE?

I feel like I have basically answered

this question already but for anyone

who is still on the fence, the 85SX is

very competitive. In fact they are one

JMX TEST I 2019 KTM 85SX

KeihinPWKcarburettorisagoodone Tapered swing arm, just like the big boysFormularearbrakecaliperrunstwinpistons

Air-springchamberisintheleftforkleg

Coolant pump feeds twin radiators

of only three brands that I believe are

at the top level. And one of those

other two, the Husqvarna TC85, is

basically a white KTM. The entire

bike is designed around racing. It is a

purpose-built race machine, and foots

the bill perfectly as a “Ready To Race”

kids machine.

If you want to be on the best

equipment then the KTM is a tough

bike to look past. There are loads of

aftermarket parts available for them

and the suspension is totally

adjustable so it can be tuned to suit

the little racer on the bike. The price

tag is a little higher than other

brands, and so are the spare parts.

But if you want the best equipment

thenyouhavetopayforit.

Gotsomethingtosayaboutthisyarn?

[email protected]

More images and info at adbmag.com.au

In recent years KTM brought the

styling of their kids bike range

into line with their adult bikes

84 |MAY 2019 http://www.adbmag.com.au