2017/2018 KTM 350?

Ken702
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Ken702
Edited Date/Time 3/24/2021 4:33pm
Hello fellow mx'ers. I'm looking at two bikes at the moment. I have a chance to buy either a 2017 or 2018 ktm 350 sxf. The 17 is a good deal cheaper, by about $2000 for similar hours/condition, but I'm torn. I'm a 220lb. 30 year old vet rider that doesn't need a brand new bike to be "competitive". This is just for fun with my kids. Is there really a noticeable difference between the 2017 to 2018? Or is it all marketing? In other words, if I buy the 2017 will I be selling myself short for a much better bike?
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AH387
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AH387 3/24/2021 7:40am
3/24/2021 7:40am
I had the Husky but same idea. The '18 had a better battery and small changes to the forks. Both of which can be done to the 17 (or made even better than the stock 18.) Just get the bike that is in better condition. Those bikes are still very competitive right now. I know that you said that you don't need that but they are top tier bikes.
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Pirate421
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Pirate421 3/24/2021 7:50am
3/24/2021 7:50am
No besides very minor changes like mentioned above, the 17 and 18 are the same bike. If you did a blind test riding them both you would not be able to tell the difference. I second going with the better condition/lower hrs and better deal bike.
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Xracer
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Xracer 3/24/2021 7:59am
3/24/2021 7:59am
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money saved by going back to 16', you can do a KYB or Kreft conversion and have nicer suspension than the newest KTM stuff. Just my 2 cents. Engines aren't really different - my 16' engine is so amazing I pinch myself sometimes.
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AH387
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AH387 3/24/2021 8:10am
3/24/2021 8:10am
Xracer wrote:
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money...
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money saved by going back to 16', you can do a KYB or Kreft conversion and have nicer suspension than the newest KTM stuff. Just my 2 cents. Engines aren't really different - my 16' engine is so amazing I pinch myself sometimes.
This is not correct. The '16s are the same as the 17's, aside from the fork. So the '16 is the 1st year of that generation and the 17 and 18 are still basically the same bike (same frame) but got the AER fork. You are thinking of 2019, which is when they changed the frame.
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Xracer
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Xracer 3/24/2021 8:18am
3/24/2021 8:18am
Xracer wrote:
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money...
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money saved by going back to 16', you can do a KYB or Kreft conversion and have nicer suspension than the newest KTM stuff. Just my 2 cents. Engines aren't really different - my 16' engine is so amazing I pinch myself sometimes.
AH387 wrote:
This is not correct. The '16s are the same as the 17's, aside from the fork. So the '16 is the 1st year of that generation...
This is not correct. The '16s are the same as the 17's, aside from the fork. So the '16 is the 1st year of that generation and the 17 and 18 are still basically the same bike (same frame) but got the AER fork. You are thinking of 2019, which is when they changed the frame.
That's probably right. I just know that when I did the interview with Kreft about my forks and told them I had a 16', they said "good, that's the frame to have...the newer ones are too stiff for most people". That was in 19', so they must have been referring to the 19'.
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Ken702
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Ken702 3/24/2021 8:38am
3/24/2021 8:38am
So it seems that the changes made to the 2018 or so minimum that it would take a top-tier rider to even notice a difference.
AH387
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AH387 3/24/2021 8:41am
3/24/2021 8:41am
Ken702 wrote:
So it seems that the changes made to the 2018 or so minimum that it would take a top-tier rider to even notice a difference.
Not noticeable. Between a 17 or 18 just get the nicer bike/better deal, as that is more important.
Ken702
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Ken702 3/24/2021 8:47am
3/24/2021 8:47am
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards the 2017 because of the much better price. I don't put hardly any hours on a bike a year anyway so hours aren't a huge concern.
shortshift5
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shortshift5 3/24/2021 8:53am
3/24/2021 8:53am
Ken702 wrote:
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards...
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards the 2017 because of the much better price. I don't put hardly any hours on a bike a year anyway so hours aren't a huge concern.
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week. Fork will be a little better. Less friction and less likely to fail.
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Brent
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Brent 3/24/2021 9:25am
3/24/2021 9:25am


17 on the left , 21 on the right.
You can’t go wrong with any year after 2016, they are both great motorcycles with minimal differences.
Ken702
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Ken702 3/24/2021 9:41am
3/24/2021 9:41am
Ken702 wrote:
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards...
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards the 2017 because of the much better price. I don't put hardly any hours on a bike a year anyway so hours aren't a huge concern.
shortshift5 wrote:
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week...
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week. Fork will be a little better. Less friction and less likely to fail.
I would pay the extra money but as little as I ride I can't make myself spend the extra money for a bike I'll ride maybe 5 times a year. For some reason I just can't justify it.
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Ken702
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Ken702 3/24/2021 9:42am
3/24/2021 9:42am
Ken702 wrote:
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards...
The 2017 has 53 hours and is in great shape listed for $5000. The 2018 has 10 hours in great shape for $6400. I'm leaning towards the 2017 because of the much better price. I don't put hardly any hours on a bike a year anyway so hours aren't a huge concern.
shortshift5 wrote:
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week...
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week. Fork will be a little better. Less friction and less likely to fail.
Ken702 wrote:
I would pay the extra money but as little as I ride I can't make myself spend the extra money for a bike I'll ride maybe...
I would pay the extra money but as little as I ride I can't make myself spend the extra money for a bike I'll ride maybe 5 times a year. For some reason I just can't justify it.
I also have the price dropped just a bit on the 2017 to $4900.
Langhammx 3/24/2021 9:50am
3/24/2021 9:50am
shortshift5 wrote:
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week...
I would pay the extra for the low hour ‘18. Both are really good deals. I sold my ‘17 with 31 hours for 6400 this week. Fork will be a little better. Less friction and less likely to fail.
Ken702 wrote:
I would pay the extra money but as little as I ride I can't make myself spend the extra money for a bike I'll ride maybe...
I would pay the extra money but as little as I ride I can't make myself spend the extra money for a bike I'll ride maybe 5 times a year. For some reason I just can't justify it.
Ken702 wrote:
I also have the price dropped just a bit on the 2017 to $4900.
Go buy it. These bikes can go 300-500 hours with nothing but general maintenance.
3
Rickyisms 3/24/2021 11:53am
3/24/2021 11:53am
Xracer wrote:
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money...
Frame got stiffer in 17'. Some say 16' was the best frame for most of us, except that the 16 fork is garbage. But...for the money saved by going back to 16', you can do a KYB or Kreft conversion and have nicer suspension than the newest KTM stuff. Just my 2 cents. Engines aren't really different - my 16' engine is so amazing I pinch myself sometimes.
AH387 wrote:
This is not correct. The '16s are the same as the 17's, aside from the fork. So the '16 is the 1st year of that generation...
This is not correct. The '16s are the same as the 17's, aside from the fork. So the '16 is the 1st year of that generation and the 17 and 18 are still basically the same bike (same frame) but got the AER fork. You are thinking of 2019, which is when they changed the frame.
Didn't they gusset the frame on the 17 and 18s near the headtube due to the problems with the 16 frames cracking? The difference may be minimal, but I'm pretty sure they added extra material near the steering neck.
ThePizzaCobra
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ThePizzaCobra 3/24/2021 1:14pm
3/24/2021 1:14pm
The 2018 has the coveted orange frame because it was the last year for that gen. Other than that, they're pretty much the same bike. Save yourself the $2k on the 2017 and put it toward some parts Smile
MX915
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MX915 3/24/2021 1:17pm
3/24/2021 1:17pm
Rickyisms wrote:
Didn't they gusset the frame on the 17 and 18s near the headtube due to the problems with the 16 frames cracking? The difference may be...
Didn't they gusset the frame on the 17 and 18s near the headtube due to the problems with the 16 frames cracking? The difference may be minimal, but I'm pretty sure they added extra material near the steering neck.
Later model 18s they did. If you look at the bottom of the head tube, the difference is pretty obvious.

16-early 18:



Late 18 to 21:



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Ken702
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Ken702 3/24/2021 2:13pm
3/24/2021 2:13pm
You all are awesome! This is what's great about the moto community. I'm gonna pick up the 2017 tomorrow.
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motorick5052
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motorick5052 3/24/2021 2:22pm
3/24/2021 2:22pm
I’ll add this too! I sold my 1 year old KX450 at Christmas and bought a super clean 32 hour 2017 KTM 350 from a vet buddy and I could NOT be happier with it!
This might be the best “do it all” bike I have ever owned!?
I ride 80-90% moto and an occasional XC trail ride with a good buddy/coworker (he is terrified of moto!) and this bike excels in both types of riding!
I’m really happy the AER fork and its ease of adjustment for different disciplines of riding!
I don’t think you could possibly go wrong with either year as the 17-18 are very very similar machines!
I’d grab the one thats the best deal for you and go ride enjoy the new rig!
I love my 2017 and really REALLY happy I went ahead and made the jump to the 350!
Great little fun time bike! Good luck!👍

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Jack_Mehoff
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Jack_Mehoff 3/24/2021 4:01pm
3/24/2021 4:01pm
I had to 17 when it came out, was such a great bike! No material differences between the two except the orange frame. Had a Spring kit on it which was great but not necessary and an FMF pipe. I had the SX style mega bomb which helps a lot with the low Power.
c0ncEpT
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c0ncEpT 3/24/2021 4:33pm
3/24/2021 4:33pm
I may be partial but 2018 is the best looking non FE KTM to date.
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Brent
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Brent 3/24/2021 4:57pm
3/24/2021 4:57pm
Ken702 wrote:
You all are awesome! This is what's great about the moto community. I'm gonna pick up the 2017 tomorrow.
you won't regret it, that bike is so much fun.

Remember, all the horsepower is up high in the RPM's

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