2016 KAWASAKI KX450F
FIRST RIDE
P66
S
ince joining the 450cc
four-stroke motocross
wars in 2006, the
KX450F has always been one
of the most powerful but, un-
fortunately, one of the heavier
and bulkier bikes of the big-
bore group. Over the years,
Kawasaki has addressed
these issues but never re-
ally went far enough, instead
focusing more on suspen-
sion, power delivery, handling
and adjustability, which, as
it turned out, have proved to
work out just fine for them.
Ever since getting a fairly sig-
nificant overhaul in 2012, the
KX450F has been regarded
as one of the best of the best.
In fact, the KX was a back-
to-back-to-back winner in
our yearly 450cc motocross
shootouts from 2012-2014.
Yet, despite its success, we
still grumbled a bit about the
KX's overall physical size and
weight—in both cases a little
too much. The lighter and
more agile Yamaha YZ450F
dethroned the KX in 2015.
For 2016, the KX450F
got another fairly signifi-
cant overhaul, but this time,
Kawasaki also put the KX on
a serious weight reduction
plan. As a result, the KX is
now 7.5 pounds lighter than
before and is much slimmer
and trimmer than any of the
previous KX450Fs. Kawa-
saki carved 4.4 pounds of fat
off the engine and another
three pounds off the chas-
sis. Seemingly overnight, the
KX450F went from being one
of the heaviest bikes in its
class to one of the lightest.
BY JASON ABBOTT
PHOTOGRAPHY BY DREW RUIZ
LIGHTER
AND LEANER
WE TAKE KAWASAKI'S ALL-NEW KX450F FOR A RIDE
