2013 KTM Freeride 350 - The Urban Terrorist

t-ride Freeride 350

S o we’ve n ow r i d d e n K T M ’s n ew Fre e r i d e 35 0 to its design brief – equal klicks in the c i ty, c o u n t r y a n d o n h i g hwa y s. B u t w h e re’s i t m o s t at home and what m a ke s i t t i c k?

IAN HANCOCK

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t-ride Freeride 350

e recently tested the Freeride 350 at the Australian launch (December, 2012, issue), and were blown away by how nimble and fun KTM’s all-new, sub-100kg toy was. KTM had organised the launch through some of the tightest, gnarliest and steepest terrain going around in the Newnes State Forrest in the NSW Blue Mountains. These were the types of trails that this bike calls home and naturally, the Freeride impressed.

But the bike isn’t just built for steep singletrack. KTM markets the Freeride as a go-anywhere, doanything machine with long service intervals – a bike destined to be the next Suzuki DR-Z400 (which is still available for $8990). It also says the machine is suitable for anyone from a fumbling beginner through to a playful Pro. With that in mind, we knew that to get to the core of the Freeride and to test KTM’s claims, 84

we needed more than a quick squirt through the forest, so we took one home to put through the ringer.

With most enduro bikes getting more complex and hard-nosed over the past decade – with shorter service intervals, stiffer suspension and more power – it’s easy to think that some of the pure fun of riding has been lost along the way. The Freeride completely bucks that trend, and is all about blasting a ridge-top with your mates; with a stupid grin and not worrying about the valve clearances or injection mapping as you go.

Putting more hours on this than I would have done on a “pure” enduro machine in the same timeframe, is a good indication as to how fun and easy it is to get out on this bike. I’ve hardly spent any time in the shed with the Freeride, and haven’t been distracted with any modifications.

Aside from dialling in the suspension and setting the bars and levers to my preferences, I’ve only done a basic service. Instead, I’ve focused on riding it as much as possible.

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t-ride Freeride 350

brakes The hydraulic brake system is courtesy of downhill mountain bike brand, Formula, with Force discs at both ends. The system is not as powerful as most enduro bikes, but a decent handful still provides plenty of stopping power and, in the dirt, the brakes are generally good enough to overwhelm the trials-tyred front-end. An oversized disc is available in the Power Parts catalogue if you’re chasing more stopping power.

Fuel Tank The 5.5-litre fuel tank sits neatly underneath the seat (which hinges forward for access) and, like all modern KTMs, is a clear unit. We’ve been getting around 70-90km before refuelling, but the fuel warning light has a tendency to come on early – when you’ve still got a couple of litres left. Removing the tank for access to the engine is a simple process, but as the air filter boot runs through the tank, it can be difficult to re-seat it when putting the tank back on.

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Bike Philosophy As the Freeride is a bike that can be many things to many people, I’ve taken a different approach to testing and building it compared to our usual Transmoto T-Ride bikes. KTM’s ethos with the Freeride is that it is a bike that can be ridden closer to the urban environment than a typical enduro bike. With quieter pipes and light-footprint trials tyres, you make less of a stir, and a raft of riding spots have opened up for me close to home where I would be frowned upon on a hard-nosed enduro bike.

Your initial reaction may be to rush for aftermarket parts, thinking that the Freeride is under-powered and undersprung. But after a few long rides, I’ve decided that (at least for now) making any serious modifications would mean I’d miss the bike’s purpose. There is no doubt that a more fiery donk and suspension with greater bottoming resistance in a frame this light and nimble would make for wicked fun, but a big part of the joy of the bike is riding it closer to its limits than you would a typical enduro bike. If you rode in fear

of breaking the lightweight frame every time you hit the trail, that fun would be lost. Also, it’s clear that KTM has engineered every part with weight in mind, so there are not many grams to be shaved by fitting aftermarket bits. For those reasons, I’ve left the Freeride in standard trim.

Given that a key feature of the Freeride is that it is road-registrable, I’ve chosen to keep it in a form that the men in blue would largely approve of by retaining the indicators and a cheap aftermarket mirror, making me feel a lot more comfortable riding around town. My logic is supported by the fact that – unlike most enduro bikes where the ADR gear, especially the wiring, is an afterthought – the stock ADR kit on the Freeride is of a high quality and seriously well designed, meaning I’m happy to keep the additional wiring.

Unlike most enduro bikes, the longer service intervals and roadworthiness of the Freeride have allowed me to actually ride to my riding spots, as opposed to trailering the bike like I’m used to. Being ultra-fuel efficient and user-friendly, it’s also proven itself to be the perfect head-turning machine

t-ride Freeride 350

“Putting more hours on this bike than normal is a good indication of how easy and how much fun the KTM Freeride really is.” for fetching the milk, grabbing an espresso or checking the surf – something I’d never usually do on a dirt bike. So although the Freeride isn’t up to fronting the Hattah Desert Race start line, it’s proving to be more useful than I’d ever imagined.

The Engine The Freeride runs a seriously de-tuned version of the 350EXC-F/SX-F donk, but with smaller stainless steel valves, different mapping, a reduced revlimiter and lighter die-cast casings. All this means it puts out 23 horsepower – about half that of the SX-F. Although the loss in power is easily noticed when stepping down to the Freeride from a 450 four-stroke, the short 11/48

gearing gives you enough poke to loft the front wheel in most gears or flog traffic off the line. The change of power characteristics have allowed KTM to squeeze some impressive torque from this donk, which is ideal for steep climbs, and effectively allows you to run the bike a gear higher.

Unfortunately, the low final drive ratio means that you’re limited to a top cruising speed of about 90km/h, and even then the bike is revving hard and vibrating uncomfortably – I often find myself reaching for an imaginary seventh gear. This is probably the biggest disadvantage of the Freeride in comparison to the likes of the Suzuki DR-Z400 and Yamaha WR250R, which are happy to sit on 100km/h for hours.

As first gear is particularly short

Radiator Unlike most bikes that run two radiators either side of the frame, the Freeride has a single radiator to keep the bike narrow at the front. Despite flogging the bike in the heat around tight areas for the photo shoot, we had no problems with overheating. A large thermo-fan keeps things cool, but blasts a stream of uncomfortably hot air on your left leg that can become frustrating, particularly on a scorching day.

Hydraulic Clutch Formula also takes care of the hydraulic clutch. The unit is smaller than what you’d find on most enduro bikes, but it works a treat. We’ve found the clutch to have a consistent pull every time, and the lever action’s very easy – whether the engine is hot or cold. It can also be operated with one finger. We managed to get some air in the line in a crash, but a quick bleed put us back in action.

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t-ride Freeride 350

“The Freeride handles highways rather than loves them. But at 100km/h, the vibration is a constant passenger.”

(I’ve only found myself using it in tight rock gardens), I’m planning to try a 12- or even 13-tooth front sprocket, even though I’m concerned about the loss of ‘snap’ to the rear wheel in third and fourth gears.

Tyres The bike comes standard with Dunlop D803 trials tyres. Although not as grippy as MX tyres in loam or sand, they hook up remarkably well in most circumstances and provide unbelievable grip on steep hillclimbs.

Our biggest concern is that, as you run the tyres at a lower pressure off-road – combined with their inherent soft construction – there’s a greater chance of damaging the Giant-made rims on a square edge or flat landing.

After 10 hours’ use, the tyres have worn solidly, and the soft compound means they still hook up well after their sharp edges have rounded.

Handlebars The stock tapered bars are adjustable with four different settings on the triple clamps. Being 6’2”, I’ve got them at the most forward setting, leaving me a reasonable amount of space to move around the cockpit. As the footpegs are placed quite far back (and that I generally spend more time standing on the Freeride than I would on other bikes), I’m going to swap the bars for a taller bend to feel more in control while standing on the pegs.

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The Chassis

Air Filter The easy-to-use theme is carried over into many aspects of the Freeride’s maintenance tasks, with the air filter being a cartridge set-up that pulls out of the bike in seconds. We’ve ditched the pre-filter – that sits around the cartridge – for that bit of extra grunt. The cartridge opens up with a twist and reveals the main filter. We’ve got a couple of pre-cleaned and pre-oiled cartridges ready to go, meaning we rarely have to get our hands dirty for long.

Not only has KTM made the Freeride easy to ride; they have also made it easy to work on. Like all modern enduro bikes from the Austrian firm, the Freeride comes with a quality factory tool kit that can disassemble the entire chassis, and everything is neat, modular and easy to access. The frame is a composite alloy/chromoly/plastic unit that bolts together, meaning it can be easily disassembled for greater access. Although we haven’t had any problems with the design so far and the bolts holding the segments together have remained tight, we’ll be keeping an eye out for fatigue around the joints.

We’ve been surprised how well

the little 43mm WP fork and specially designed PDS shock perform in a range of circumstances. Although the frame and suspension don’t feel as composed as a full-sized enduro bike over bigger whoops or rough ground, the Freeride is in its absolute element for singletrack and winding firetrails.

I’m still running the standard springs at both ends, but to keep the bike sitting higher in the stroke and for greater bottoming resistance, I’m planning on changing to 4.8N/mm springs in the front to better suit my 85kg frame. I’ve settled on 14 clicks for both rebound and compression damping on the front-end. At the rear, I’m running six clicks for low-speed compression damping, one turn for the high-speed, and 11 clicks for rebound damping. As the bike is such an all-rounder, I’m aware of the need to change the units for my weight but not to affect the overall balance.

Watch for the next instalment of this T-Ride in a few issues’ time.

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For riding footage and an insight into maintaining the Freeride 350, see www.transmoto.com.au