Bought this '02 for $1200 because it was burning oil. Figured I'd take a gamble. Never smoked a hint, but oil did disappear. Rode it relentlessly all year and took a look that winter. Rings were slap wore out. Almost 3mm end gap and the oil spreader rings were being worn down by the cylinder wall 😂 Shows how tough their nikasil coatings are. New rings and new valves while I was in there. Original bottom end and piston still good. With gasket/ seal kits I think the engine refresh run me about $500.
I abuse it and it doesn't care. It's mental. Had it up to 90 in my back hayfield and didn't have room to shift in to sixth gear. Power wheelies coming out of corners in 4th and 5th gear without trying hard at all. Clutch pull was stuff and it has 6 springs in this clutch. I removed 3 springs to lighten the pull and the clutch discs are of unknown age. It didn't care. I hammer the throttle and ride the clutch constantly and there's no hint of slippage. Parts are WAY cheaper than Honda parts I was used to buying. My last Honda of the same age suffered from many discontinued parts. Everything I've needed for this bike has been sitting on the shelf at the local dealership so far.
I wasn't sure what to expect, but in my experience, I think the internet hates on KTM a little more than necessary. That said, I didn't choose my FZ09 over a Duke because of Japanese reliability, so I'm guilty of the same.
ps- I grew up on late '80's /early '90's KTMs and treated them how you'd expect a 12-15 year old boy with no tools to treat a dirt bike. Gas and go. Zero maintenance. Zero failures. They just always worked. Always. And I rode daily back then. I remember having to replace a chain once when it fell off and someone smarter than me showed me how I'd been abusing it.