Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

1996 Middleweight Off-Road Comparison C E250 E R nduro Po s itive s : Excellent tractability Good botom-end t Incorporates a cent rstand e Outstanding brakes Race ready Negatives. Small gas tank 19-inch rear wheel No odometer Expensive prov ed to be a signific an t improvement. We liked the ATK's brakes. They had good feel at both ends and were strong enou gh, though there wa sn 't much pad left in th e back after a d ay in the rain and mud. Th e ATK' s su spe nsion w as acceptab le, th ough you can certainly tell it does not ha ve a link rear end. The initial impact just isn't as plush and overa ll isn't as progressive as the other linkag e systems, but the ATK rarely swaps or e xhibits any reall y bad habits. Steering is qu ick on the ATK - perhaps a little too quick. While good for making sudden directional changes, the trait gives the bike a somewhat nervous feeling , especially on narrow ridge-top trails. In the muddy conditions, we had problems with the ATK's chain packing with mud and ju mp ing teeth on the rear sprocket, even though the chain itself wasn't terribly loose and despite the fact tha t the sprocket appears to be of selfcleaning design. You 'll probably laugh at th e supertiny, le ft-s id e kickstart lever the fir st time you use it, but it does get the job do ne much easier than you would think. Grade : B- CRE 250 Enduro Like we said, the CRE 250 Enduro is simply an off-road-kitted Honda CR250, so, for obvious reasons, you know right off the bat that this motorcycle is going to perform. And it does . True, you could spend nearl y $1000 on any 250cc MXer and ge t it to perform on the trail , perh ap s a s w ell as the CRE, but CRE Imports ha s al ready done all the legwork for yo u . You get a package th at will work without ha ssles. According to Kevin Hines, the CRE 250 we rode w as set up exa ctly how a purchaser w ould take sh ipment of his own m odel, with- our suspen sion su pposedly set up for "Joe Aver age." An yone who has ever ridden a CR250 will ha ve a good understanding how the CRE performs. Yet even though very littl e ha s b e en ch anged in the engin e d epartment, th e CRE is much more tr ail-fri endly than a stock CR250 MXer, and Hines attributes a lot of this to th e Acerbis silencer. The CRE has a mell ow er hit than the stocker but retains the CR's authoritativ e pull from bottom to top, a n d the heavier 14-ounce flywheel g ives the CRE even .furth e r tractability. This bike does not have the tendency to wheelie badly when you open ' er up . In st ead the fr ont wheel hovers a few inches above the ground while th e rear knobbies d ig in. You always feel in control on the CRE. The CRE is a chugger, as well. When the t r a il be comes s li ck a n d goo ey , and / or steep, the bike just plod s along as conte nt as can be in first or seco n d gea r a t a leg-pa d d ling p ac e, a n d th e clutch is alw ays ready, willing and able wh en instant powe r is need ed . Even up rocky and loose incli nes in th e desert, th e CRE works hand-in-h and with th e rider. And when the trail ope ns up , the CRE is p lenty fast an d - again - ve ry tractable when you crack th e throttle. Pow er, or the lack of it, isn 't a problem w ith the CRE. Th e carb jetting w as nearly sp ot on, just.a tad rich off the bott om. The only complaint w e h e ard about the CRE came from one rid er who had pr oblems with st a llin g _ e m ot or in tight th sections . The Factory Connection-modified suspe nsion gave us no com plaints whatsoever and w as up to the task for both high- and low , spee d trails. The CRE w e rode came with the stock, mo re vulnerable 19-inch rear wh eel, but an 18-inch wheel is available as an option. Grad e: A H usqvarna 250 WXC . The Hu sk y d oesn 't do anything exceptionall y g ood or bad. It si m p ly gets the job don e. Th e som ewha t pipy m otor w on 't wow you in any particular area, but will perhaps impress yo u with decent bottom-end gru nt - th at is until you really put it under a load . Then the bike jus t see ms to run ou t of p ow er. Here, th e clutch comes to th e rescu e. Th e right combination of fancy clutch w ork and care fu l throttle contro l on th e Husk y will get you to th e top of a particul arly ugly hill one w ay or anothe r but jus t not as easily as some of the other bikes. On flatter ground, th e Husky feels right a t h om e in th e m id d le o f th e pow erb and but can be opened up with goo d results. Our bike ran a littl e lean on top, but lowerin g the need le' s clip a couple of n otches - to the number four setting - helped. Husqvarna 250 WXC Posltiv_. Excellen stab t ility Sturdy suspens ion Good overall handling d Verytractable (a goo bike inthemud) Easyaimlter access Negatives: Kickstart leverhan gsup on footpeg Heavy steering Noodometer or handgu (even on theWXEl ard High-effort clut h c Poor·feeling front brake Feels big The Husky turns well but takes just a little bit more effort to do so than the other bikes. Stability is one o f its strongest attributes; it can be ridden hard and with the pilot relatively assured that it won't go sh ooting off the trail without a mom ent's notice. Overall handling is good, and so is the suspension, especially up front. Right out of the crate, th e Husky' s suspe nsion was set up th e stiffe st of the e ig h t bikes, prompting some testers to ma kes subtle damping and preload adjustm ents right away. (Top) A new, 1996 Husqvama WXC cos ts the same as It did last year at $4999, but you will need a new pipe and s ilencer for It. For our test we went with an FMF combo. (Above) As the terrain gets worse and worse , the Husky just seems to get better and better. (Right) The EPA-legal Kawasa ki KDX200 has a lot going for It, mainly the price. At $4249, It's the cheapest of the bunch and performs well, too. Pro Circuit set us up with a pipe and silencer for the KDX, which gave the little 200 more zap. (Below) The su s pension Is a bit soft for the Califomia desert. Braking power wa s p lenty sufficient, though some testers felt the front brake d idn't ha ve the be st feel and that the rear brake was just "there." No one had anything good to say about the Husky's clutch, though it did hold up to ou r abuse . One rider complained that the thr ottle pull was too long, and ev eryone agreed that the kickstarter lever is a pain to use. It has the annoying tendenc y to catch on the footpeg at the bottom of the stroke and sta y there, requiring a good swi ft kick with the back of your boot to get the lever to snap back up. Overall, we liked the Husky, more so in the tigh t and slow-going situations

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