VOL. 52 ISSUE 9 MARCH 3, 2015 P49
peak horsepower and max
torque departments. It pro-
duced 40.07 horsepower and
19.30 lb.-ft. of torque, the
Yamaha, 35.02 horsepower
and 17.90 lb.-ft. of torque. Our
seat-of-the-pants dyno, how-
ever, has them feeling much
closer.
Overall, the KTM's smoother
from top-to-bottom motor,
makes it perhaps a bit more
suitable for tight and technical
trails than the Yamaha's more
snappy motor. The Yamaha,
however, is still perfectly
capable of tiptoeing over the
rocks and roots, but requires
a bit more throttle control.
The Yamaha, however, really
shines on the more open tri-
als, when you can really take
advantage of the bike's strong
midrange.
Both motors, however, are
remarkably good chuggers at
low rpm and aren't prone to
stalling. If you do, no biggie,
both bikes have strong electric
starters and will bring them
back to life almost instantly,
even in gear.
The KTM has no manual
kickstarter, which we're not
happy about. Sure, this might
save some weight, but you'll
be cursing KTM at the top of
your lungs when the battery
dies or something goes haywire
between the starter button and
the starter motor when you're
way out in the hills. Admittedly,
it never happened to us, but
the chances are there. We give
Yamaha kudos for leaving the
manual kickstarter in place as
a backup, even if it does add
weight. Speaking of weight, the
KTM is two pounds lighter than
the FX at 248 pounds (full fuel).
(Left) Using the YZ250F as a platform, the
new YZ250FX can't help but get off to a good
start to its off-road career. (Right) The FX
rolls off the showroom floor uncorked and
ready to go GNCC racing, as does the XC-F.
