Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

200 1 250cc M o t o c r o s s B ikes H o n d a CR250R VS . K awasak. i KX250 VS . KTM 250SX vs . Suzuki RM250 VS . Y a m a h a YZ250N Kawasaki's KX250 i s perha ps t he most stab le a nd forgiving b ike of th e b u nch , and our t esters were surprised at how muc h they grew t o like the green machine. HOND A CR25 0R For yea rs. Honda was known for hav ing a great m otor and horrible forks . That all ;>. ended several years ago. and the 2001 CR' s fo rks are excellent. absorbing chop even und er braking - with aplomb. Th e CR sometimes has a harsh feel wh en lan ding fro m j um ps, part of which may by attri buta ble to its st if f aluminum fra me. Also, t ho ugh it ha rdly rates complaining about , th e back end la ck ed slig htly in pl ushness co m pared th e Yam aha. Fi nall y , t he CR seem s to requi re mo re fiddling to get it dialed in for a particular t rac k . KAWASAKI KX 250 The KX became very plush as more t ime was put on it, and it was the one bike th at ";:", req ui red almost no adj ust me nts from track to tra ck (o r even out of the crate). Its K ay aba suspe nders are extremely ada pta ble . We're th inking... KTM 2 50SX Th e fo rks are good. neutr al, well -rounded units (though fast riders will want to click :-, in extra damp ing) . and both ends absorb big jump landings amazingly well. The li nkage-less shock sometimes kicks off of bumps, whic h can be unsettling and • m ak es slo wi ng down diffi cult for tu rns th at are preceeded by braking bumps. Also, we fo und that the rear end wants to rise when the bike is airborne (even with extra rebou nd dam ping). so the rider must learn to leave j um ps with the front end a bit higher than on the other bikes. If you spend ti me on the KTM, th is adjustment in riding style becomes second nature. SaZaKI RM250 Just like last year, the back end is the RM's strong poi nt , offering plushness and ve r;> satility. We wou ldn't change a thi ng. , Th e forks are harsh when landing before j um p faces, and they give feed -back on ro ug h. fast straig hts . Th ey seem to be too soft ini tially, dropping down quickly into the st iff part of the trav el. YAMAHA YZ250N What ca n we say? The Yamaha's suspe nsion is j ust as impressive as its motor - so ';'.. good that it's hard to even ta lk about. Like the Kawasaki, it does everything well and nothing wrong , causing the rider to forget tha t it's there. . We're still loo kin g ... 18 N OVEMBER 1, 2 0 0 0 ' eye I e n e vv s HON DA CR250 R When choosing priorities between stability and steerability. the Honda rides the • fence between the non-flinching KX and the comer-happy Suzuki. Th is results in a good, neutral-handling bike that most riders will feel comfortable rid ing . • It's hard to pin -po int but, for some reas on . our no n-pro testers felt slightly less con.,. fident on the CR tha n on some of th e oth er bik es. The only thing we can come up with is that the alu minum frame may ha ve somet hing to do with this. KAWA SAKI KX2 50 Th e m ost stable bike in thi s group, it's no won der th at the KX is ofte n chosen fo r des ert racing . Th e bik e also jum ps p redicta bly . not do ing any th ing scary whi le air born e. • All this stability co me s at t he expense of a slig ht resist anc e to tu rning when you .,. com pa re th e Kawi e to the other bikes, bu t nothing m aj or. KTM 2 5 0 S X Stability is th e KTM' s fort e, and if you like a narrow motorcycle, the SX is for you . That old- wo rld. wid e. Eur o feel is a thing of th e distant past, as the razor-thin KTM is eager to be man -handled . • The Katoom's ta ll feel, hard seat and non -settling rear end give it a high center of .,. gr avity , wh ich tr anslates into a relu ctance to being cranke d ov er for turns. Li k e the Honda, it also has somewhat of a j arri ng feel. SaZa KI RM250 Its lig ht , slend er feel ma k es th e 'Zook the best- cornering bike of the bunch. and it' s not as tw it ch y on stra ights as some past Suzuki efforts. Most testers pointed to the RM as th eir fav orite bike for testing, a welcome change co m pared to past efforts . When it cam e t ime to atte m pt a double for th e first t ime, we wanted to be on the Suzu ki. • C an 't th in k o f a ny t hi ng. Suzuk i has rea lly h it th e nail o n th e head with thi s .,. cha ssis . YA MAHA YZ 25 0 N A s wi th its m otor , th e Yamaha is co m plete ly neu tra l in terms of handling - th e per fect co m binatio n of straight-line stab ility and co rn ering prowess. There are no sur pri ses with th e YZ - and no co m plaints from the Cycle News testers as to its han dling characte ristics. • Okay . we're splitt ing hairs her e. but although it turns quite well, the Yam ie ca n't , . slice q uite insid e the Suzuki or change lin es as well m id- comer. -.1

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