VOL. 52 ISSUE 5 FEBRUARY 3, 2015 P55
COUNTDOWN
F
or a number of years, the
Kawasaki KX250F domi-
nated the 250 class, until
the all-new Yamaha YZ250F
came along last year. The KX,
however, is still an awesome
motorcycle; in fact, one of our
testers rated the green bike
number one on his list, but he
was the lone standout. We can,
however, understand his rea-
soning. The Kawasaki is one of
those bikes that does every-
thing well, which isn't anything
new when it comes to the KX
lately. Its best attribute, how-
ever, is its dual-injected motor.
There is no lack of horsepower
here. It hits hard off the bottom
but it really sings from mid on
up. Like the KTM, this is a "pro"
motor and might not be the
best for everyone (i.e. riders
with less experience), and the
KX's plug-in couplers are with-
out question useful. There are
times when the softer coupler
certainly has its advantages,
since there is plenty of power
to work with here. Most of our
testers preferred the stock
coupler for most tracks.
Suspension is good but not
the best, most of our testers
preferring the Yamaha, Honda
and Suzuki's suspension pack-
age right out of the crate over
the KX's. The KX, however, is
fairly stable at speed, but the
trade off here is cornering—it's
nothing to get excited about. It
doesn't corner badly, but the
Suzuki, Yamaha and Honda will
get you in and out of the turns
with less effort.
The KX's egros are outstand-
ing, and we love all of its adjust-
ability. The handlebars can be
moved all over the place with its
new four-position mounts and
the footpegs can be lowered
now. We also like the Launch
Control feature and, again, the
simple-to-use plug-in couplers.
SUMMARY
Overall, the Kawasaki is still
lean and mean, that will fit the
bill for most fast riders, howev-
er, inexperienced riders might
be intimidated by its aggressive
and hard-hitting motor.
2
ND
PLACE
KAWASAKI KX250F
