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/128380
The chassis, like the motor, is all new. The central tube chromemoly steel frame is painted black and designed specifically for the 250 5X-F. The swingarm is also redesigned from other KTM models. It is roughly one pound lighter and, since the shock is mounted on one side, is stiffer to help alleviate flex. Overall, the improved swingarm helps the WP linkageless rear suspension work better and be more controllable overall. Up front is a WP 48mm fork with 12 inches of travel, while the rear WP shock has 13.4 inches of travel. Both the front and rear suspensions are designed to work with the linkageless deSign of the KTM. MOTORHEAD Our first impression of the new motor is that it's awesome. It has good power all throughout the powerband. In fact, our testers raved about how strong the bike pulls through the gears. We do, however, have a few complaints about it. There is a lot of engine braking for such a small four-stroke, and while it does shift flawlessly, the orange machine requires that you tap dance on the shifter to keep it in the meat of the power. Down the straights, our testers found themselves in sixth gear before they knew it - kind of annoying if you are on a fast section. Nonetheless, though, it's something tolerable and nothing slightly different gearing couldn't remedy. As for the power, like we said, it's awesome, though at times we could have used a touch more. The good thing, though, is that the KTM comes eqUipped with a hydraulic clutch, and with a tap of that beauty, it's instant power. Once in the meat of the power, the KTM The light and nimble feel help. when airing the KTM out. It also help. when cOl'ftering. The KTM doe. bath extnNnely well. revs out so high that it sounds like it will blow up. Of course, ours didn't. This motor just really likes to sing. For the most part, the problems mentioned are not huge ones, mainly us just nitpicking an otherwise excellent engine. We can get used to to the power and shifting easily; like any motorcycle, there is always something that needs to be adapted to. CAN YOU H Dl HI Overall, we are pleasandy surprised with how the suspension works. We say surprised because in the past we haven't been the biggest fans of the suspension actio" on KTM motorcycles. This new 250 5X-F is different, though. The fork is extremely progressive, never harsh, and it takes big hits better than some of its Japanese counterparts. As for the rear shock, we run it with I 10mm of sag, and it feels exceptionally plush without the "dead" feeling that we have experienced on past KTMs. The only change we made was to tum the clickers on the fork a couple clicks. At first, the bike wanted to dive too far into the stroke when braking for turns, making it feel nervous. A few clicks stiffer fixed everything. The bike didn't dive as much and calmed down considerably through rough straights. We even took our test bike out to the extremely rough Cahuilla Creek Motocross track and loved the way it handled. The bike stays amazingly straight down rough sections of any course. And the odd thing is that we have yet to experience the KTM "pogo stick" effect, where the rear end CYCLE NEWS • JUNE 1,2005 39