09 KTM 530 EXC-R as an adventure bike??

Hi Everyone great site and very interesting forum to read! Im from Australia and have been reading with interest about the longevity of these KTM engines, pretty amazing. As the new 530 engine is still relatively new can anyone report the maximum km's or miles they have gottten out of their engine without a rebiuld? I Have purchased the 530 for mainly local trailriding but Im interested in doing some road trips through parts of Australia with some bitumen some dirt. (max of 2-3000km) per trip. Can this bike do it? I know it's a pretty tall ask but setup properly I think it could. The main issues Im concerned about would be engine reliability/oil change intervals and valve clearance checks. What could I extend these out to? I dont want to take all the life off my engine with just 1 or 2 trips! Is this new engine completely different to old RFS engine which seems to have amazing reliabilty and longevity (up tp 40,000miles?) For the setup I'd be thinking of a full motard kit with a cush drive hub, road/trail tyres and a more comfortable seat and a larger acerbis tank. Possibly oil cooler too to extend oil change intervals? Any info about other peoples bikes/setups would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Dunno about 530 engine longevity, but another question you might need to ask is how well they run on low octane gas as the good stuff can be pretty rare once you hit the outback.

Cheers
Clint

I'm far from an XC4 expert but I would definitely do something about the oil capacity, 0.6 liters for the engine ain't a lot. Unless you don't mind changing your oil at the end of every day or 2. HT Racing oil cooler should do the trick.

Valve adjustments which were a concern on the RFS have been drastically reduced with the new head design. Very little movement from what I hear.

Thanks for the replies..The oil cooler sounds like a must for long distance stuff..Will they fit with a larger tank? So from what I have found the engine can do at least 10,000km without a topend rebuild. Can anyone else advise if they have done better than this with the 530 XC4 engine? Cheers.

I've got 4500miles on my 530 and 140hrs. I recently did the RallyMoto Tennessee race, which is on paved roads, running the bike wide open all day for two days. Didn't burn a drop of oil.

I adjusted my valve at 10hrs and they haven't moved sense.

Kurt

Any other 530 owners out there with higher mileage?

You can read neduro's post, but it is reported the new XC4 motors do not actually need valve adjustments very often. I believe he said his were in spec after 100+ hours? I had my 450 XCW valves checked at 50 hours and they were fine.

With regard to low octane gas, isn't the "mild" setting on the map switch there, in part, for that reason?

Yeah thanks I have read Neduro's posts with interest sounds like his has been bulletproof..will look into the map setting for the power dont know anything about it yet..havent even tried it the bike has done nothing but impress me so far power wise! Im just interested to find out the most miles that anyone has got out of this engine thats all..

In theory, the reduction of oil capacity for the 530 vs. the older 525 engine might not be an issue. One of the changes was separating the engine oil from the transmission. An argument could be made that keeping ground up transmission bits out of the engine oil actually could prolong engine life. An oil cooler might still be a good idea, but it was probably a good idea on the 525 also.

Then there's the argument about whether putting a fan on the radiator is necessary.

I think there is some consensus that a cush hub does more to prolong wheel life than engine life.

Im looking at a Safari fuel tank (15.5 L) as they seem like a pretty good fit.. anyone used one of these? Im a bit hesitant to go for a 24L as they seem too big. Anyone riding with the big tank (6gallon plus)? How does the bike feel? Is it too wide?

I've got the big 6gal KTM tank and it fits and look good. It makes the bike look much bigger but it still feels good. Just a little wider at the knees.

From what I know the safari tank won't work with the HT oil cooler but the KTM tank will.

Kurt

My dad and I took a TAT trip last year and he rode a 530 exc-r. We changed the oil at about 1,200 miles, oil and filter at 2,500 miles, and oil again at 4,700 miles. The valves didn't need adjusting during the whole trip. Only problem we had was with a countershaft oil leak (we think due to the rear hub not being a cush drive). Other than that, the bike performed flawlessly. We also added a higher output stator, FMF Q4 slip on, sheepskin buttpad, bar risers, rock stompa foot pegs, EE heat shield, skid plate, and a homemade rack system to support some ortleib saddle bags.

<img src="https://www.advrider.com/advrider-photobucket-images/images/e/eghatchintheham_530SaddlebagsRack002.jpg">

<img src="https://www.advrider.com/advrider-photobucket-images/images/e/eghatchintheham_530SaddlebagsRack004.jpg">

<img src="https://www.advrider.com/advrider-photobucket-images/images/e/eghatchintheham_530SaddlebagsRack003.jpg">

<img src="https://www.advrider.com/advrider-photobucket-images/images/e/eghatchintheham_530SaddlebagsRack001.jpg">

Since our return, he's also added an HT racing oil cooler and a cush hub wheel from a 640. The bike is definitely alot smoother with the cush hub.

Gday Brent thanks for the info on the 530 sounds promising. That looks like an awesome trip you did.. Im very impressed by the photos and commentary..so you only did 3 or so oil changes in 4700 miles and the engine is still going strong now?? Pretty amazing I was hoping someone had pushed it that far and it could take it!!

Regan.

Twofur (Kurt)

Thanks for the info on the KTM Tank

Cheers
Regan

Time to blow the cobwebs off that 530 Raygun. Nuff talking, more riding

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=201026
This thread might help a bit. Covers most of the KTM RFS bikes really, engines might be a bit different but the most mods will carry over.

I have an 08 EXC 530R that I have been converting to an all out Rally Adventure Bike. I have a little over 9000 km's on it now and have only changed a counter shaft seal. I did upgrade the seal too a high temperature rated seal. The seal itself might have been OK. The sleeve that passes through the seal was grooved a bit (probably from dirt getting in). I believe this was what was caused the leak but after seeing the low grade seal, I changed it out while I was in there. (Only use KTM countershaft sprockets. Some people have found the aftermarket sprockets to be a tad thinner effecting proper pressure against the sleeve O-ring causing oil to leak past the seal.) I have done some tours where several hundred km's of tarmac was necessary but I mostly run gravel and fire roads. I have played with oil change intervals and found engine/tranny 2:1 at 1000-1200km the safe median. This way on a long trip I only need to carry ~600ml for the engine and I am good for a 2000 km loop. I don't find the tranny oil breaking down even at 2000 km's. I don't push the bike as a racer. I am an Adventure Rider.

As for the cush hub... I have toyed with the idea but I don't find it will make that much of a difference. As a race bike a rider would be on and off the throttle and breaks causing as much wear as riding aggressive on tarmac. The KTM is a tough bike and has proven to be bullet proof for my needs.

Regular octane fuel... living in northern Ontario Canada, I can only say premium is on a wish list when touring with me. My adventures take one through no-man's-land and beyond. We have a saying "bad gas is better that NO gas". The KTM keeps running strong.

I have a custom seat being built and plan on the oil cooler upgrade. I have a 22L KTM tank and cooling fan installed as well as a steering stabalizer. I have a Britannia Lynx fairing on order and should be on my bike by the end of next week.

I changed out the tires several times and found the 75/25 type tire rear and DOT nobby front to be the best all around for Adventure Riding. My bike is unplugged, jetted (JD), and de-smogged. I found the rear nobby tires were burning off too fast with all the HP the KTM puts out plus the corner sliding is safer with a 75/25 at the back. The nobby keeps the front pointed to where you want to go and the 75/25 slides in control with a twist of the throttle.

I did however need to mod the sub-frame to handle panniers and topcase. I leave for a week at the end of this month and will put the sub to the test!!!

Just make sure that your mapping and spark advance is tame for the cheaper gas. I'm not sure what the compression ratio is, but there is another thread about a guy who broke off a piston land on his LC4 motor due to pre-detonation! Not what you'd want to happen far away! :)

I now have over 12000 kms on my bike and it is still running strong! A little valve tapping now so an adjustment is needed but will happen during winter maintenance. I have since mounted my Lynx fairing and custom built seat (seat write up on my website: http://gpsadventuretouring.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=helpfiles&action=display&thread=30 ). I also installed saddle tanks to increase my range to 680kms between fuel station stops!!!! I have priced out a cush rear wheel, a Joe Racer oil cooler, and my Roc Stompa Long Stomp foot pegs are in the mail this week. I love my bike and with the new seat I have ridden 5 hours without a rest stop! Over the winter I will be fabbing up a steel sub-frame better suited for gear. Finndian and I will be planning The 2010 Dirtcheap Tour which can be followed here; http://gpsadventuretouring.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=nae&action=display&thread=64

Are you still on the original piston and rings?