Big difference to your 98 cr,the 99 had a fast engine but it has little bottom end power(less than 00/01/02)it suspension wasnt the best but then i didnt like the 98 crs either.It wont turn as well as the cr but vibrates alot less.The forks on the 99 were heavy and i didnt like them(but many do)The hydro clutch is great.The brakes IMO arnt as good as CRs.Good quality parts on the KTMs.Its hard to say if its a better bike as it really is so different, IMO you need to blag a ride on one as you may love/hate it.