RIDE REVIEW I 2021 SUZUKI RM-Z250
P106
us that any extra oomph is well
warranted, especially at a track
like Glen Helen.
On the track, the Suzuki
performs as expected. Unfortu-
nately, the forks are again overly
harsh out of the box, and taking
the bike to Glen Helen for our
first ride didn't do the bike any
favors. The stiff fork doesn't al-
low the front wheel to find grip,
and I often found myself pushing
the front end over the rut instead
of staying in the rut. I almost
immediately went out two clicks
on the compression and two in
on the rebound to soften the
initial motion and get the forks
to engage more smoothly. This
helped but chasing a "magic"
setting late in the day at the Glen
proved to be nearly impossible.
The shock, on the other
hand, is comfortable. For my
180 pounds, I found that it had
good hold-up and didn't kick any
more than I thought it should.
The shock also allowed the rear
wheel to put the power to the
ground in a consistent fashion.
The RM-Z still handles well
and is still a master of the
corners. Luckily, the bike feels
relatively light despite being the
heaviest bike in its class by, at a
minimum, a few pounds. But it is
kind of hard to swallow knowing
that the Suzuki, which is still the
only bike in its class that relies
on manual starting, should be
one of, if not, the lightest bike
in the class because it doesn't
carry around the extra weight of
a battery and a starter motor like
the rest of the field. And you still
must kick it! There was a time
when kick-starting was cool, but
not anymore.
Power is a touchy subject
on the RM-Z. A few years ago,
this bike may have been in the
running for a shootout podium,
but with other comparable
bikes now pumping out over
(Left) We wouldn't
call the RM-Z250
slow by any means,
but its aging motor
is falling behind
in the horsepower
department. (Right)
The still-agile RM-Z250
is the heaviest bike
in its class, but not
by much. However,
as the only 250F
without electric start,
it shouldn't be heavier
at all.
