2021 KTM 450 SMR First Ride Review
Автокөліктер мен көлік құралдары
The all-new 2021 KTM 450 SMR looks to break the barriers of entry required to enter the supermoto scene. This is a turn-key racebike. And it’s absolutely rad.
Somewhere between hacking the rear end sideways, shredding crossed-up wheelies at corner exit, and chasing motojournalist colleagues nose to tail around Apex Racing Center’s tight and technical kart track, it hit me that supermoto might just be the most fun I’ve had on two wheels. There is something extremely satisfying about ripping laps aboard a supermoto-specific machine like the all-new 2021 KTM 450 SMR, to say nothing of its accessibility and relative cost-effectiveness. Supermoto is just so damn enticing.
But supermoto has almost always been a niche riding category with several, sometimes complicated, barriers to entry. Take the bike build, for example: In the past, assembling a proper supermoto bike meant purchasing a 450 motocrosser and then spending thousands of dollars and countless hours converting it to a proper weapon, with all of the usual trials and tribulations of development along the way.
The return of the KTM 450 SMR following a seven-year hiatus looks to change that by offering a turn-key solution to supermoto. For $11,299 you get the potent and proven 2021 450 SX-F motocross platform, ready to rock the local kart track with top-shelf supermoto components straight from the showroom floor.
The 450 SMR shares the same 449cc single-overhead-cam powerplant with the 450 SX-F, which gets a brand-new connecting rod with a copper beryllium bushing for a more free-revving character, perfect for supermoto application. The 2021 SX-F recently recorded an impressive 54.8 hp at 9,500 rpm and 34.6 pound-feet of torque at 7,400 rpm, and we can expect the same for the SMR. Serious stuff. Internally, KTM mated the Pankl-sourced five-speed gearbox with a supermoto-specific Suter slipper clutch for maximum corner-entry speed and consistent rear-wheel slides.
Like the motocross-only model, the 450 SMR uses a chrome-moly steel frame with the same geometry, except for a specifically designed CNC-machined triple clamp reducing the offset to 16mm (from 22mm). The WP Xact fork and shock with AER air technology have also been tuned for supermoto competition, receiving changes in internal damping settings and a reduction of travel to strike a balance of asphalt and dirt capability.
KTM fitted a set of Bridgestone Battlax racing slicks to Alpina tubeless spoked wheels (16.5-inch front, 17-inch rear) to the SMR. A massive four-piston superbike-spec Brembo M50 caliper clamping to a 310mm wave rotor up front brings the 450 SMR to a screeching halt, with a radial Brembo front master cylinder equipped to help administer brake pressure. A single 220mm wave rotor and single-piston caliper handle rear braking duties.
The 450 SMR offers addictive entertainment at any pace, but it’s a true track slayer if hammered. KTM struck riches in optimizing the chassis for supermoto handling, finding an incredible balance between agility and confidence-inspiring feel and composure. The SMR smashes apexes with pinpoint precision and carves side-to-side transitions with such minimal effort it’s almost mind control. The grip, consistency, and feel of the Bridgestone slicks is mind boggling, with no hesitation when pushed harder every lap. It felt just like the MotoAmerica and World Superbike-level racebikes I’ve ridden in the past, but with far less risk. Kudos, KTM.
Suspension action and performance of the WP Xact components are on par with the SMR’s agility, with a balance of support for all-out ripping and bump compliance. Adjusting the air pressure on the left-side fork is quick and easy, and allows for a rider-specific spring rate for ultimate confidence. Compression and rebound damping settings are accessed via the right-side fork, though box-stock settings proved capable enough in handling chatter bump compliance while having enough big-hit absorption to hit the dirt section.
The consistency and predictability of the 450 SMR are what make it so good, contributing to the amazing experience. The raddest aspect of supermoto? Throwing the rear end sideways at corner entry, hands down. Snap the throttle shut, grab a few clutchless downshifts, apply the brakes, and allow the slipper clutch to work its magic by mitigating rear wheel chatter as the rear tire paints black lines into the turn every dang time. Feel and power of the Brembo braking components is second to none; the 450 stops on a dime.
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Пікірлер: 59
More Supermotos for the world!!!
@NLeontje
3 жыл бұрын
Everyone deserves a supermoto 😍
@daytradesoftware
3 жыл бұрын
As a Aprilia dorso owner
Street legal version would be nuts!
I like the design tbh and i wish the smcr 690 had these design
OK everyone now go watch the Nicky Hayden/Max Biaggi "Slide" video from about 15 years ago.
Hack attack! Back ‘er in there, wheelie coming off. What’s apparent is the level of suspension tuning and development that went into the bike. Obviously a thrill to ride too.
realy nice track !!
TM Racing also makes a turn key 450 Supermoto and it won the Supermoto world championship this year
@willy7090
3 жыл бұрын
And they sell also a plated version
@HeyAddieImTojo
3 жыл бұрын
My guess would be it is also cheaper. You know the price of the TM?
@willy7090
3 жыл бұрын
@@HeyAddieImTojo you can find all the us price here www.tmracing-usa.com/?page_id=46 Sadly both the plated and the racing version aren't cheap but there's is a reason if they win every year the supermoto championship. SMX and smr are very different. The first one Is an extreme racing bike perfect for track the second is in my opinion the best plated supermotard. Finally I suggest you to not buy a 2 stroke unless you find one with carburetor. The new injection blow up the 2 stroke engine very easily.
@kennedyracing7527
3 жыл бұрын
Hi A 2021 TM 450 Supermoto motor lists for 12,250 with a 5 speed or for an additional 200 dollars you can get a 6 speed for great top end. That includes a full race exhaust which with the Ktm is going to cost 1500 with mapping
@kennedyracing7527
3 жыл бұрын
I’m a TM Dealership in Miami. I have a Demo for sale at a reduced price and a 2021 for sale. DM on Instagram at bikesthatblowyourmind
Nice! Im from Russia my supermoto chinas!
Super moto idaman.
I love it but we all need a 2 stroke variant...😌
@Myphor2003
2 жыл бұрын
Maybe it’s possible to put a 2 stroke on it?
@puckslider6443
2 жыл бұрын
fuck jeah
@CorePathway
Жыл бұрын
Why go slower?
Better than the fs450?
I ride endruo and just don't understand why yous don't just use like street/sports bikes? What makes super moto bikes so different?
isn't FS450 slightly cheaper? And it that also has a carbon sub frame vs aluminum for this, IIRC
@federico297
3 жыл бұрын
Plastic subframe reinforced with carbon, non a carbon frame. And it's actually a little bit heavier than the smr alu subframe
@maxbrap
2 жыл бұрын
FS also includes the clutch master cylinder that fails at the worst possible times
Supermoto? Was there lava in the dirt section that day?
Alpino?
What kind of hours can you get on this motor
@ktm450smr2
3 жыл бұрын
They say to refresh oil every 2 hours but every 6 works just fine. Every 60 a new piston and every 120 new big end and piston valves etc
What's that baby cost?? SBU got 55 rear wheel HP. Ah, around $11,299.00.
Knee down sports bike style looks so goofy on a supermoto 🙈
@puckslider6443
2 жыл бұрын
my thoughts bro
I love KTMs, but claiming 60hp at the wheel is a little misleading. On the dyno, with a street tire, it only makes 54. The CRF450R has half a horsepower more.
@viasevenvai
3 жыл бұрын
all dynos and conditions are different. all motors from factories are different. what do you expect from a dyno number? it to match all other measurements?
@StrykerV8
3 жыл бұрын
@@viasevenvai not once did I even suggest that. Are you suggesting I can add 10-12% to my dyno numbers because "all dynos are different"?
@StrykerV8
3 жыл бұрын
Same day, same dyno, same conditions, same operator the CRF450R made more power. Can I claim 61 at the tire?
@codenamenoob4973
3 жыл бұрын
@@StrykerV8 seeing that big of difference on a Dyno is normal they're all different and only a tuning tool, claimed horsepower figures are mostly from the crank and KTM have been claiming 63hp for a little while now I wouldn't be surprised if they're being generous with those figures but they've always made the best motors out there for the way I ride
@tonystrippoli4486
3 жыл бұрын
Ok so to end this ridiculous debate, go to Superbike Unlimited's channel. They just dyno'd one of these. 55.3hp.
Alpina*** Jesus Christ GD Road Racers.
@racebiketuner
3 жыл бұрын
Anybody care to reply with their favorite gaffe(s)? Mine are motorcross and knobbly tires.
@oldschoolmotorsickle
3 жыл бұрын
Don’t forget suspension Dampening
4:15 TM can milk you and this bike
I wish someone besides Suzuki made a street going supermoto.
@dalecolegrove6652
3 жыл бұрын
KTM 690 SMC R
@eleiaandsteven
3 жыл бұрын
@@dalecolegrove6652 is that sold in the states?
@eleiaandsteven
3 жыл бұрын
@@dalecolegrove6652 sure enough. First thing on their web page. 😂
@dalecolegrove6652
3 жыл бұрын
@@eleiaandsteven I have a 2016. Tons of fun.
@dieselboy914
3 жыл бұрын
Kawasaki introduced a new one for 2021 KLX 300 SM
Knee down!!! That's not how you race a supermoto bike
@rab..
3 жыл бұрын
You race a supermoto whichever way gets you round the track fastest . Granted I wouldn't suggest that anybody should ride solely foot out or knee down but a mix of both works well for alot of riders . I'm sure we would have seen a mix of both if they had actually ventured into the dirt section.
@560smr4
3 жыл бұрын
@@rab.. I can't comment on the USA but all previous supermoto winners in Europe don't stick their knees out. But I get your point.. Each to their own