I went to the ktm demo day and i rode the 300 xc-w (e) and the ktm 530 xc-w®.Now i honeslty felt the power difference of the two bikes and i dont think that the 530 has a chance against the ktm 300. The 530 wasnt as responsive as the 300 in terms of out of the whole throttle response.Also the 300 had to much power that it was controlling me on the trail like a rag doll it was just crazy power for the manufacture to create such a bike like this years model.As soon as you touched the throttle on the 300 you are already up off the ground like nothing happened didnt matter what gears i was in it brought me up period.The 530 sort of made more of its power at a higher rpm but still not as much as the 300 does throughout the rpm range doesnt matter what gear i was in the 300 would keep going up off the ground pulling me like i was a dog bieng attacked by a lion.The 530 goes up no problem but you have to sort of use the clutch a bit and rev than let go to bring you up like its if the 530 lacks power than the 300 does.Also the 300 i found had a wider gear ration and it took me forever to get to 2nd gear but it pulled fast and hard.Thats when it started to get blurry and i had to stop.The 530 on the other hand handled around the tight trails easier but was heavy to meanuver around such that the ktm was feather light but in that case thats were the problem struck to much power and torque to control aorund turns like that with the 300 its if you need david knight to make a perfect turn with that bike.Now that you heard my experience with the two all i know that is the 300 is no joke and the 530 is a cinderella to the 300 at all times doesnt matter were youe race the both of them the 300 is to much bike.So all im asking is what do you think is faster in the trail,topspeed,and what is the hp, and torque, and wieght difference betwen the two thanks guys

I have a buddy who owns both and goes back and forth about which one he likes better.  It seems like whichever one he is riding that day is the one he likes less.  It's actually kind of funny.  Anyways, the 530 will be faster in a straight line, it just feels slower since the power delivery is smoother, less aggressive than the 300.  In woods, especially single track like you'll see in an enduro, most people will be faster on the 300 since it is about 20-30 pounds lighter and it carries it's weight lower, accentuating it's "light feeling" when compared to the 530.  One of these days, I'll have to ride his 530 and compare it head-to-head with my '05 300 EXC and see for myself.  We have a nice little 8 mile enduro practice loop on a buddy's farm that will be perfect for the comparison, it's just a matter of us getting out there.

I bought an '08 300 EXC and I find the power to be very manageable.  It is hard to say which one I am faster on the 300 or my '06 YZ450 but I know in the tight stuff the 300 is more nimble and it does not wear me out as fast.  

I will say it makes sense to me to not use the electric start as a replacement for the kick starter.  To me it is a performance feature and I am only going to use it when I need to, like in a race when I stall out.

see cbus66r i found it that the 300 had more topspeed in the straight away because of the long gear ratios but the 530 had closer gear ratios making it have more accelleration but lower topspeed than the 300 i would have to say that the 300 xc-w (e) as a prefernce is faster in the long run

cbus66r its like the 250 xc-w (e) in this case that beats the new 450 xc-w ® like nothing and its true cause i test drove the 250 as well and thats a serious race bike this year out of the box

I bet if you were able to take each down the 1/4 mile, the 530 would have the quicker time and higher trap speed, it just feels slower.  The one thing that could be coming into play is that the 530 that you rode is the EXC model and not the XC-W.  The EXC will have some extra emissions stuff, more restrictive quiet exhaust, lean jetting, and funky gearing on the sprockets for street use.  If you modify it to XC-W specs, I'm sure you wouldn't you wouldn't feel the same way.  My buddy has the XC-W model and there is no doubt about which is faster, and it's not the 300.

well thats what i drove. i drove the xc-w ® and in canada you could street legal those bikes if they pass the emmsission standards

na man im still sticking with my answer i dont think it will handle the power of the 300 in terms of topend na theres no way man no such way

ok lets get real here they say the 300 is the ultimate 2 stroke ever built than any other 300 or anything bigger when the 300 started making a name for itself in 2006.Now what makes you think with the new technology of the 300 will the new 530 stack up against it if the ktm 250 xc-w(e) takes over the 450 xc-w® easy.I think the 300 will pull away quicker than that 530 easy without trying ive tested them both out and the 530 to me does nopt look promising at all compared to the 530.i looked at that digital gauge and i got uo there at a higher speed to with the 300 compared to that 530.the 530 was a blast but that 300 got to 100 km/h like nothing and i had to stop cause there was a tight turn in the trail but when i had the 530 i only got to about 80 km/h and than i had to make a quick turn.if i had gone down a long staright away chances are that the 300 would of accellerated faster to its topseed compared to the 530.i felt the 300 pull way harder and faster.the 530 didnt as much as the 300 did.i think the 300 has all its power spread in every range the 530 only gives you all its power at the launch and then starts to die out (tame).the 300 just keeps pulling stronger and stronger not even decreases the acceleration of the bike but increasing.i was told at the demo day that the 300 would top out anywere from 160 km/h - 180 km/h but i did not ask about the 530 but i think its from 150 - 160 km/h

i also felt more of the powerband hit quicker and 3 times harder than the 530 did compared to the 300.anyday out of the enduro lineup i would easily take that 300 over any other enduro model from ktm.anyday thats why they replaced it with the 380 cause the 300 had more balls sorry to admit to it for those who like the 380 but guys the 300 was the one that took it all for hard core racers like david knight the shumacar of racing enduros.

I use the e-start all the time on mine, that's one of 100 reasons I bought it..  Also, the bike has 2 maps, USE THEM!!!  I am on a waiting list up here to get the switch, but with the slick conditions as of late I am running the softer one, WOW what smooth power delivery!!  Anyhow, I am a 2T 300 guy all the way...   Most people I know, make that EVERYONE, who get on a 300 say the same thing!

ya bro nice to no im am also a happy that they gave the 300 electric start but also the power dilevery is monsterous in any situation, doesnt matter what gear your in that 300 will pull hard like no tommorow at the speed you want it to go at.I think it tops out from 160 km/h to 180 km/h easy

move this thread to the KTM section please:rant:

or how about burn this threadthreadthead so it can be gonegonegone foreverandeverandever

titanium_arm_guy said:

ktmktmktm300300300 said:

Those top speed estimates for the 300 are just too funny.140 if you're lucky.And yes the 530 with it's 6speed would blow it's doors off.

yhe 300 will do well over 140 anf if you dont believe me also about the power figures of the two i got a website that shows u the specs unlike the factory stupid sties that only tells you the weight,cc etc.This site tell you from 2002 - 2008 statistics of those bikes and it shows the horsepower of the two i will send you the link they have the exact same power and the 300 is lighter.The
had 54 cv and the 530 had the same for 2008 .So there you have if you donbt believe me got www.enduromagazine.com

ktmktmktm300300300 said:

My 530exc-r top out at 168Km/h with 15-50. It came from factory with 15-45 but i never rode it with that crankset. Both bikes with optimized gears for its engine, the 530 will smoke pretty bad the 300. Bigger stroke and higher torque is better for higher speeds. The only chance for the 300 was on a drag race, but even there it cannot match the 530. Sorry but if you think that your 300 is faster on straight line than a 530, then you are a looser. And on the trials it all depends of the pilot and style of riding. Enjoy what you have instead of wasting time thinking what the others have, and if its better or not.

In My opinion
It’s like comparing apples with oranges!
Petrol vs Diesel????
The two have a completely different power delivery.
Most guys that ride 4-strokes for the first time don’t like them as they are used to working the motor hard to get performance, Rule of thumb, always one gear higher on a 4-stroke and don’t be standing up over the bars when you tap off!!! Eish!
Hp and torque?
It depends on how and where you use it!
Tight stuff, short bursts of power and hard on the brakes. “300” unless you are super fit/strong
Boulders, wet rocks, long climbs and open stuff  “530” far less work!
As far as top end is concerned!
Even the older 450's will give it a run for it's money.
This doen't make the 300 bad! it's just designed/developed for a differant thing.

the 300 xcw (05) tops out a around 92 (150km) mph that was on my dads bike and im about to test my own 530, ktm claims 110 mph.(180km) my old 525 would have owned the 300 in all gears