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/128629
Getting th e KX slowed d own for the turns h as gotten ea sie r , tha n ks to its be efed -up f ro nt brake . T he c ali pe r h as 19 ·pe rc ent l a r ger p istons t h at do a much better job of g ri p pi ng the di sc , thoug h you'll have to get t he disc and pad s b ro k en in before you can rea lly ap preciate the improvement. Su spen s io n - w ise , t he K X doesn't feel as cu shy o r mush y as it used to. In stead , it has a m uch m ore solid and st u rd y feel , both front an d rear. The forks req uired some " cl ic k " cha nges to clean u p a harsh feeling in th e ini ' tial pa rt of th e travel, bu t the b ack en d seemed spot-o n r igh t o ut of the crate . When you 're p erch ed o n to p of t he b ik e , th e KX st ill feels a little o n th e w id e si de a n d a li ttle cramped . But yo u ca n sti ll f l ip t he h andl eb ar cl amps arou nd to give you rse lf a fe w . extra mi ll imeter s of space (we di d), w hich y o u w ill notic e and ap p recia te . A t a ller seat is av ailable , wh i ch we make appea r t o b e t h e right o nes . And o ne more th in g : K awa sa ki is al so t rie d , bu t w e en de d up preferrin g the stocker - eve n fo r o u r ta ll riders . on th e verge o f re leasing its n e w 20 0 I - sea so n contingency p rog r a m , w h ic h we've heard w ill b e sig nifica nt- I Now th at t he rea r en d d o esn ' t squat : as much anymore , th e t aller seat j ust is n't a n ec essity l ike it w as last year, I and with it in pl ac e , the bik e's ce nte r ly m o re luc rtiv e than las t y ea r's pro g ram. So yo u might want t o c heck in to th at. eN of gravity feels to o high. (A bove ) A stiffer s inglerate spring i m p rov e s t he KX.'s rear suspe nsion. (Ri g ht ) The Kawl still f e e ls a little cramped f or taller riders. Li ke the new Honda CR250 R, a 20 inch fro n t wh e el is ava ila b le fo r t h e KX250 a s a n after-purchase option . We sp un a fe w laps with th e 20-incher in sta lled o n the K X but d id n't really g et enough t ime o n it to fo rm a n o pi n - I i I io n . N ear ly all of o u r test ing time o n the KX so far has been w ith t h e 21 inc h f ro nt wheel in p lace. Ov er a ll , w e fo u nd th e '01 K X 250 Ito b e a n e a~ y b ik e t o r id e , w it h no fa u l ts . It ' s g ot so me o f it s " h it " ba ck , t h e suspens ion is better !g la ri ng b al an c ed , an d it d o e s all o f t h e little things w ell (t hou g h it cou ld t u rn bet t e r ) . N o, Ka w a s a k i d id n o t r eall y (Left) Like the ' 0 1 Hondas, a 20-inch front wheel is available as an after-purchase option. m ak e a lot of b ig c ha n ges to the '0 I K X 2 50 , but at least t he o nes th ey d id &3[jJ@@5(JD@{fJ(J!J@DD0 ~@@ fJ !Z.@w@&J@[Z5 c:sJ:{~@@ ENGINE TIPE: BORE & STRO KE: COMPRESSIO N RATIO: INDUCTION: CARBURETJON: IGNITIO N: TRAN SMISSION : FINAL DRIVE: SUSPENS ION FRO NT: REAR: WHEEL TRAVEL FRONT: REAR: TIRES FRONT: REAR: WHEELBASE: RAKEITRAll: SEAT HEIGHT: GROUND CLEARANCE: DRY WEIGHT (claimed): FUEL CAPACITI: MSRP: 249 cc. liqu id-cooled . single w/ 3- way KIPS 66Amm x 72mm 10.8:1 /9 .0:1 A-petal, carbon-fiber reeds Keihn PWK38 " shorty" PowerJet Digital CD! w/K-TRIC Close-ratio five -speed 13T/48T _ Kayaba. 46mm inverted cart ridge for w/18- way compression and rebound damp ing Kayaba, bottom-Link UNI·TRAK w/a dj. Preload, high- and low -speed com pression and l Bvway rebound dampi ng 12.0 in. 13.0 in. _ _ _ 80/100-2 1 5 1M Bridgestone 100/90· 19 57M Bridge stone .58 .3 in. 26-degrees/4.3 in. .3704 in. 15 in. 2 14 Ibs. 2.25 gal. $5 799 (Above) Kawasaki i s planning on stepping up its contingency program for 2001. cue I ... n ... _ S • S EPTEM B ER 6 , 2000 39