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/1298200
comed with the new model year. This thing is fast! Top-end power of the '21 KX is strong and, without question, comparable to the other top competi- tors in the 250 class. The extra revs of the '21 are noticeable and well received by us because you can hold whatever gear you're in longer coming out of the turns, so you aren't in as much of a rush to click up to the next gear. And, at the other end of the straight, you can stretch out the gear a little longer, sometimes eliminating an extra shift. One thing that hasn't changed is the sound–the KX is loud and raucous. For some, this isn't an issue, but for us, well, we'd just as soon not have a headache after every moto. Our crew put in a total of two hours of ride time on the KX during our first day and tested all three of the included plug-in couplers. While we wish Kawasaki had a bar-mounted map switch, the cou- plers are at least easy to change. Yes, we know it seems like yesterday we were happy with kickstart- ers and carburetors, but now we are "complaining" about the lack of on-the-fly map switches. Times have changed, indeed, and all the latest technol- ogy these days has spoiled us. If you're not happy with the pre-programmed couplers, no problem, they can be customized to your liking via the KX FI Calibration Kit, Kawasaki's hand-held EFI tuner, but it's sold separately for a hefty $699.95. That price is tough to swallow when Yamaha offers a free smartphone app that pretty much accom- plishes the same thing as Kawi's calibration tool but with its YZs. But the EFI tuner should eliminate the need to purchase an aftermarket exhaust sys- tem, although we know, you're going to buy one anyway. In that case, the tuner will help dial in your new exhaust even better. The KX comes from the factory with a standard map (green coupler) installed. With the green coupler, you get good power and good revs. But the aggressive (white) coupler is where the fun is hiding out. The difference is significant. It certainly livens things up, and you'll notice the improved over-rev that it enhances. It gave us that little extra edge and allowed the bike to stay in one gear for just that much longer. The Perris track broke down 2021 KAWASAKI KX250 R I D E R E V I E W P132