Gasser 200 is it good enough?
 

Hi Guys, New here. I am considering upgrading my son from a TM125 to a gasser 200. (TM dont make a 200) Is this bike good enough for top level racing? The only other option is the KTM 200. Anybody have experience or tips?

Billy Burns....enough said:D Do a search...

All GasGas bikes are able to race at the top level. The 200 is a 125 with more bottom, pulls strong through the mid, no massive hit, solid performer as far as I'm concerned. Most of the 200 owners on this site all ride or race enduro's and have very little complaints.

I race cross country here in Northern California, I am lost in a sea of orange bikes, mainly 300's, 450's and 525's & 530's..you get my point. Those big open class bike are NO faster than my 200 on the courses that we race on. Our races are 1 1/2 hours long and when you get towards the end of the race you are still in control of the 200, I mean it take less engery to race the bike due to the smoothness of the motor, which in turn gives you the ability to push hard to the end, that is where IMO the guys on the bigger bike start to slow down...of course phyical fitness also becomes a factor..

The 200 is a solid bike, do you dare to be different?????

The man has owned a string of TM's!

Brian's an old friend of mine and many is the race and beer we've shared.

Thanks Rick. Problem is I really want my son to achieve his best. Im not afraid of anything different like Tim said. I think the gasser is a nice bike. Im just making sure. :)

200
 

A 200 Jetted In With The Write Gearing Is All You Need. I Have Ridden Them All. That Would Be My Choice!!! Very Nice Bike. Any Questions We Can Answer Them. If I Cant Then Billy Can

The EC200 is a great bike and is definitely competitive with the other 200 on the market. I eventually bumped up to a 250 though because where I race, the hills are huge and the 200 just doesn't have enough bottom end to haul me up the hills.

My son rids a GG 200 EC. He's about 5'10" and about 150 lbs. w/o gear.
We ride mostly tight, technical terrain. Lots of rocks and elevation change, some mud.

The 200 has been excellent! Very high quality components (Ohlins suspension, Nissin brakes, DirtStar rims). Easy to work on and maintain.
This bike will almost keep up with my '06 KTM 400 in a drag race (though I weigh about 40 lbs. more than he does), will turn underneath my KTM all day long - yet is VERY stable in a straight line and over obstacles and pulls strong down low if it needs to. His bike doesn't seem to rev as quickly as the KTM 2T, but for the terrain we ride on, that's a plus.

As a KTM rider for the past 21 years, I'm impressed enough with the performance of the Gas Gas that I'm trying to save enough money to add an EC 300 to our stable of bikes.

I have an 04 DE200 and this bike is impressive, I ride Eastern tight stuff mainly and recently ventured out to the local MX track and had more fun than should be allowed.
A friend had just purchased a 01 KTM200 and we switched bikes on the trails and mx track and at the end of the day he regretted spending money on the KTM.
The power spread and hit are 250 like compared to the KTM and hands down the suspension was far better in all conditions.
The bike with the right rider can compete on any level (Billy Burns).
I'm 5'7" and 155lbs no gear and my buds with their 250's 4T and 2t we were bar to bar racing and the 200 almost every time got the hole shot.
70' table tops no problem, step ups, doubles, rockers handled it all perfect.
I would recommend the Gasser over the KTM:D
Ron

Great feedback guys. I know what the ktm boys will say but I think most of them are lemmings. ooops! :)

So lets see if we can get a Gasser then...

"You know it's the right thing to do".

Eish!

A mod to remember if he wants quicker and extended revs, MC125 CDI box.
Best power mod for 200's.

@Socalscott Can you tell me more? What is different? What about low down?

I would imagine that the ignition curve is more advanced with a higher reving RPM.

I got into an argument on the trail with a YZ450 rider once because he was convinced I had a 300 with 200 stickers on it. He was actually pissed that my little EC 200 could keep pace, and in some cases kick his big thumpers arse. I had to be pulling shenanigans to do that. No way in his mind a 200 could have that kind of power. What you do lack in horsepower, you gain in handling.

The 200 is like riding a mountain bike through the tough stuff, not like a big thumper which feels more like pushing a chain down the trail.

On long, flat, farm road racing, the 200 keeps pace with a KTM 250.

I'm having mine buried with me when I die.;)

Had a similar disscisuion with a WR450F rider. He said i have a 300 with 250 stickers on it. I pulled him on the striaghts yesterday. It was funny.

The GasGas motor isn't extremely potent, but it makes good power and benefits from a well spaced tranny. The 250 will pull pretty much any 450 ENDURO BIKE (can't keep pace with a 450 mxer in the open stuff).

Yeah i can see where a 450F would have destroyed me. But i lost him in the tight stuff so its all good.

Small bikes are great, but when my son is big enough to ride a full sized bike, I'm considering putting him on my 300. Mostly because it's just a dream to ride, and ride fast so easily. He's on a DRZ 110 right now, and only weighs 59 pounds, so I'm probably looking a little too far in the future, but I really don't understand the notion to put young skilled riders on bikes that demand so much attention from the pilot. Granted, a 200 almost rides itself compared to a 125, but you can ride a 300 in a tall gear, at low rpm and really haul the mail. I've had all three sizes, and loved all of them.
As far as the 200 is concerned, what makes it better than the KTM is nothing more than the perfect Gas Gas chassis. The KTM is a great bike with a great motor, and SCARY geometry. Ever since KTM went to the new 125 in '98, that small chassis has been an abortion. The big KTM's just don't have that problem, and work great for me, but the little ones just don't work for me at anything above a casual pace.

The reason why most young riders go to a 125 for awhile is to learn clutch control. 125s teach technique like no other bike can.

I rode 125's for years. I spent several years campaigning 125s for ISDE. KTM's and Huskies. I reject the notion that it is to teach young riders clutch control. I had that down by the time I moved off of my XR to a KX 80. It could be that we just put the young ones on smaller bikes because we think it's the logical stepping stone.

wouldn't a 300 also teach a rider to be lazy?? Or maybe some bad habits?? When I got back into it I started with an xr 400 then a drz 400, a brief interlude with a ktm 200 and then my current 300. The 400's and 300 don't require much in the way of clutching ... as a result .. i know nothing about clutch technique. Lots of old guys like me run 300's for the lazy man factor so you can chug along at the end of a long day. The grunty motor will cover for your mistakes. Bet i'd know more about working a clutch and keeping a bike on the pipe if I started with a 125.

That you would if you started out on a 125. I love ridding them just because it makes you work for the power especialy at 255lb. I have been thinking about buying one lately but i am still not sure what i want to do.

Riding a 125 fast in the woods requires 3 things.

#1 Clutch control
#2 Momentum
#3 A wrist that doesn't allow you to let off the throttle

Without my time on my '87 CR125, I would not be the rider I am today. I went through several clutches while I owned that bike and it took me to the expert class in the TCCRA.

My 17 yr old nephew rides an '01 GG XC125. FMF pipe, 10 oz weight, revalved suspension, thats it. At last weeks Ridge Run enduro, on a lot of WEC terrain, he would have dominated the entire C class by over 20 points if it weren't for two bad burns (no timekeeping), still took second C200. This was a really tough run with long steep hills and some deep mud. It was outstanding to watch. Three races, two wins and a second. The bikes are capable.

I am a 125 guy, really. I love 'em. They're cheap, and they are a riot to ride, but I still think, that if you are growing and moving up in bike sizes, I'd ilke to give my son a chance to keep up without working the snot out of his clutch. I remember my dad used to teach me to use the motor, and not to rely on the clutch. He would get upset with me burning up clutches on my CR, (so he bought me a KTM which never burned a clutch, that was 1984), he would say, "son, that clutch is not a turbo button, if you have to rev your engine like that with the clutch 1/2 way in, you've lost momentum." Of course, I used it like a turbo button anyway. Maybe I never burned up a clutch on that KTM because the brakes didn't work! In those days, they were still sorting out brakes, and the KTM's were grim. Did I get off topic, sorry.