Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127844
PUBLIC AUCTION SALE
to Settle the Estate of the Renowned American Motorcycle Racer
Connection provided one of their trick
billet-aluminum clutch perch and lever
setups (which use a plastic bushing
which allows the perch to rotate in case
of a crash), frame guards, and motocross
skid plate to finish off the modifications
and give the bike a definite look of seriousness.
Our stock comparison model KX125
was not just a beat-up test model that
would get smoked by a KX80, as it
looked and felt fairly new and had just
received a Wiseco Pro-Lite Piston to
freshen things up. Yet on the track, the
FMF KX125 outperformed the stock unit
in almost every category. The only place
we felt the stock unit was better was off
the very bottom. The stock KX still
pulled slightly better off the bottom, but
from there the FMF bike simply left the
stock bike in the dust. An improved
midrange hit that carried into the upper
revs was realized, ~d the FMF bike definitely had better throttle response. The
best thing about the mods was that they
allowed the bike to rev out more and
keep making power in each gear, so you
didn't have to short-shift the bike to
keep pace like you had to on the stock
bike.
The FMF-modified suspension
worked better than the stock suspension
for all of our testers, even the heavy
ones. Our stocker was slightly more
plush initially (the stock units were
probably too soft), but from there on out,
again, the similarities ended. On the
FMF KX125, you could charge hard
going into and coming out of rough and
choppy corners, due to the bike's
improved ability to suck up square-edge
bumps and maintain a controlled feeling. What really set the FMF bike apart
was its excellent resistance to harsh bottoming, as well as its more controlled
feeling at high speed in the rough. Yeah,
the bike would bottom, but you could
oyerjump obstacles or slam into the face
of a jump or whoop without loosening
your teeth. We were definitely
impressed with the suspension mods.
So what's the bottom line? The 1997
Kawasaki KXI25 had an anemic motor
in stock trim, and FMF's motor and suspension mods have given the bike the
ability to tum faster lap times with anybody but perhaps the most beginnerlevel motocrosser aboard. We say this
because the bike doesn't have a lot of
bottom-end (and neither did the stocker), and that's what most beginners
need. The midrange, to~d, and throttle response have all been improved, and
we think most riders will benefit from
this, especially intermediates and pros.
Overall, we think that FMF has done
its homework on the KX125, and just in
time for summer vacation.
CN
·MoDmCATIONS AND A c a _
FMf <;}'Iinder and head modificatiOlls •.•••..$2S0.00
FMF carburetor and intake mods ......•....$65.00
FMF Gold Series' Fatty' pipe K-38 •.•.•. .$169.99
FMF P(mer.core silencer 7-27
S79.99
FMF fori< re-vaive (plus oil and parts) •.•.•..S150.00
FMFshock re-valve (plus oil and parts) "" .$150.00
FMF Cobalt sprocket 51-tooth •.........•.$59.95
FMF Ellipse graphics
$49.95 .
FMF E1~pse seat cover
$69.95
Wori