Beta498RR_42-46:Layout 1
4/13/12
10:02 AM
Page 2
BETA
498RR
OFF-ROAD TEST
The words “different” and
“better” can sometimes
mean the same thing
et’s be clear: If you own a Beta off-road bike,
you’re not normal. We’re not calling you a freak
or an outcast, we’re just saying you don’t like being
one of the masses. It also means you know your
stuff. It’s easy to have something weird if you don’t
care about how it works, but all of the bikes that
Beta produces are right at the top of their respective
categories—dirt bikes, dual-sport bikes, trials bikes.
All of them are specialized, rare, expensive and very,
very good.
The Beta 498RR is a perfect example. It’s a member of a club that’s already very small. There aren’t
many over-450cc off-road bikes, and among them,
the Beta stands apart. It looks different, it works different and it is different—all in a very good way.
L
42 www.dirtbikemagazine.com
Beta498RR_42-46:Layout 1
4/13/12
10:04 AM
Page 3
JUNE 2012 / DIRT BIKE 43
Beta498RR_42-46:Layout 1
4/13/12
10:05 AM
Page 4
OFF-ROAD TEST
BETA498RR
The motor is 100 percent Beta. It’s well designed, flawlessly
finished and, based on our experience, reliable.
A BETA BIKE
Let’s back up a little. Beta is a very old Italian company that historically specializes in trials bikes. A few years
ago it entered the off-road and dual-sport markets with
KTM-powered motorcycles. They were certainly good,
but Beta didn’t come into its own in the dirt bike world
until it developed its own motor three years ago. It was—
and still is—excellent. It’s a double-overhead-cam, liquidcooled, electric-start motor with four titanium valves.
Beta is one of very few holdouts when it comes to the
motor’s intake. At the other end of the throttle is a 39mm
Keihin carburetor rather than EFI. That’s probably one
reason why the bike works so well; Beta has spared itself
the trial and error of making injection work. The Beta still
meets EPA and CARB standards, although it clearly is
cutting it close to the mark. Any bike that satisfies the
U.S. government is usually very lean, whether it has a
carburetor or an injector. In this case, the compliance is
virtually invisible. The 498 makes the grade, but it isn’t
burdened with unworkable jetting that must be changed
at the consumer end. The Beta is sold ready to ride.
On the chassis side, the Beta has a good old-fashioned steel frame. It doesn’t have the trickness factor of
the current crop of Japanese aluminum-framed offerings,
but the properties of chromoly steel are pretty much
spot-on for off-road riding, where a slight amount of
frame flex adds to the comfort factor. This year the Beta
uses a fork that is made by Sachs, a company that supplied only the shock in the past. The 498 has a number
of Japanese parts, like the Nissin brakes and the
Kokusan ignition, and are mixed in with Euro stuff, like
the Brembo clutch master cylinder, a Supersprox aluminum sprocket and Michelin tires. It has a spark
arrestor in a beautifully made stainless exhaust system.
RACE ME
On the trail, the Beta is even-tempered and sweet. On the
track, it could use a higher snarl factor.
The side cover pops off without tools, allowing access to
the air-filter element. The seat comes off with the push of
a button.
44 www.dirtbikemagazine.com
Last month we tested the 520RS, which is the same
basic machine in dual-sport trim. Just for the heck of it,
we rode the bike from Southern California to Primm,
Nevada, where we raced the second WORCS event of
the year. The only real limitation we faced was suspension—you can’t have it both ways. Either you can have it
cushy and comfy, or you can deal with massive whoops
like the ones at Primm. The RS falls on the cushy side,
but it did what it could do in the face of conditions that
were beyond its design parameters.
This time around we had not only a real dirt bike,
relieved of all street duties, but one that’s upgraded with
premium suspension. We took it straight to the Six Hours
of Glen Helen, a notoriously rough race.
Up front, all the things that made the RS so good still
apply. The 498 has a sweetheart of a motor. It’s a generous bike that relieves you of much of your workload. It
has a long, long powerband so that you don’t have to
shift as much. It has great torque so you don’t have to
clutch it out of turns. It has nearly perfect carburetion so
you don’t have to worry about stalling out. It never
coughs and dies or misbehaves in any way. The
hydraulic clutch is easy to pull, the throttle response is
quick, and the gearbox is light with six evenly spaced
ratios. There’s no term that applies better than “sweet.”
Beta498RR_42-46:Layout 1
4/13/12
10:15 AM
Page 5
Clean lines, workable suspension and broad
power are fit in a very competetive off-road
handling package.
If there’s any flaw in the motor’s
credentials, it’s the fact that it’s no
motocrosser. The Beta is so busy
being Mr. Nice Guy, it forgets to get
down and boogie. It has no real punch, just even-tempered pulling power. For the trail sections of the Glen
Helen cross-country course, there’s no real issue with
that, but any off-road race bike in today’s landscape of
mixed venues has to be part motocross bike too. On the
moto sections of the track, the Beta never really explodes
out of the turns.
stiffen up the rear end while the race was in progress. For
out-of-the-crate settings, the Beta scores quite well.
As for the bike’s overall attention to detail, we’re big
fans. We like the pop-off airbox side cover, levers, bars
and rims. The Nissin brakes are strong, although not
quite as powerful as the Brembos that come on other
Euro bikes. We’re just as impressed as ever with the rid-
THE GOOD STUFF
For 2012, Beta made some changes to its steel frame
to make it slightly more rigid. The bike handles great, just
like the RS. In our last episode, we couldn’t really push
the bike very hard before the dual-sport suspension
would object. The RR’s stiffer suspension settings allowed
us to ride at a full race pace, and we discovered something very interesting: nothing. The bike handles just as
good when it’s nearing a ten-tenths pace. No handling
glitches popped up, and there were no surprises. It’s still
not the lightest bike in the world, but well within an
acceptable range for an electric-start off-road bike. Like
the previous Betas that we have tested, the 498 has a
fondness for speed. It goes straight and never gets
spooky.
As far as the suspension goes, we were pleased, but
with some reservations. The Sachs fork can be harsh in
some types of terrain. It doesn’t like sharp edges or small,
burdensome choppiness. In whoops and on jump landings, it’s very good. In the rear, it was almost the opposite; in whoops, it seems to move too much and too
quickly. We had very little setup time, but managed to
We raced the 498RR in the HYR Six Hours of Glen Helen,
which was muddy, tough and rough. It was classic Beta
material.
JUNE 2012 / DIRT BIKE 45
Beta498RR_42-46:Layout 1
4/13/12
12:01 PM
Page 6
OFF-ROAD TEST
BETA498RR
ing position and overall comfort.
The RR has the same small glitches that we noticed on the RS
last month. The electric starter
struggles to light up the
engine to the point that it’s
sometimes better to kick. The
push-button system for
removing the seat is great, but
it can be difficult to reinstall. The
tank is smallish, although that’s
becoming disturbingly normal. Beta
sells a tank that carries 3.7 gallons, which we tried last month.
It’s great, but something in the middle would be nice. You can
get that tank as well as about a million other options when you
buy the bike under the Build-Your-Own Beta program. Th BYOB
program allows you to spec out the bike through the website
before it’s built. Beta airfreights each bike from Italy.
Thankfully, there’s not much the bike needs. When you start off
with a $9000 machine, you shouldn’t have to spend much more.
The upgrades that you get with the Factory Edition are definitely
worthwhile—and of all the BYOB options, handguards are probably
the best add-on option. But even if you add nothing, you don’t have
to worry about having an “ordinary” Beta.
There’s no such thing. ❏
Oddly enough, the Beta comes with
Nissin brakes instead of Brembos.
GOOD TASTES
•
•
•
•
•
Endless powerband
Flawless carburetion
Six-speed gearbox
Stable handling
Easy pull clutch
HICCUPS & BURPS
• Slow electric starter
• Smallish tank
• Seat difficult to replace
BETA 498RR
Engine type ......Four-valve DOHC 4-stroke
Displacement ....................................497cc
Bore & stroke ..............100.0mm x 63.4mm
Fuel delivery ..................39mm Keihin FCR
Fuel tank capacity ..................2.1 gal. (7.9l)
Lighting coil ..........................................Yes
Spark arrestor........................................Yes
EPA legal ..............................................Yes
Running weight, no fuel ..................253 lb.
Wheelbase ........................58.1" (1476mm)
Ground clearance ................12.6" (320mm)
Seat height ..........................36.6" (930mm)
Tire size & type:
Front ........80/100-21 Pirelli Scorpion MX
Rear ........110/100-18 Pirelli Scorpion MX
Suspension:
Front ..........Sachs inverted cartridge, adj.
reb./comp., 11.4" (290mm) travel
Rear ......Sachs aluminum piggyback, adj.
prld, hi & lo comp., reb.,
11.4" (290mm) travel
Country of origin ..................................Italy
Suggested retail price ......................$9199
Manufacturer ........www.americanbeta.com
Sachs makes the fork as well as the shock for the RR.
46 www.dirtbikemagazine.com