I actually own a 2001 ktm 640-e, and my brother owns the 2003 640 sm. The high flow head, hydraulic clutch, upgraded cam bearing and just bunch of other slight updates make the 2003 and newer bikes a better deal. I do like my enduro version and it is a great off road bike but I have not made it anywhere close to 5000k before my oil went dark and i do use full synthetic maxima 10w40 or 20w50 depending on the season. The price difference between the two models that I have seen on kijijji does not warrant getting the 2002 or older models, but that being said I do not want to hold anything against them, I put 6k km on mine last year and it is a blast.