2 0 1 7 4 5 0 M O T O C R O S S S H O O T O U T
P152
SHOOTOUT
as the KTM/Husky or the
Yamaha, but offers plenty
for most riders. Most riders
don't want to rev a 450 to
find the best power. It isn't
the most thrilling power
character, but it is very
good and providing forward
momentum and excellent
rear-wheel hookup.
Nothing has changed
with the KX450F exhaust
note, it is still crazy loud, yet
they aren't alone--Yamaha
and Honda now join the
ranks of crazy loud exhaust.
For engine tuning beyond
swapping out the adjustable
couplers (which come with
the bike), Kawasaki offers
a handheld engine tuner
(sold separately), so you can
easily fine-tune the engine's
ECU. It also has; of course,
launch control (as do the
KTM, Husky, Yamaha and
Suzuki).
The Showa SFF TAC air
fork works better with the
2017 internal changes and
was an improvement in
2016 thanks to the chas-
sis changes. The triple
air chamber air fork still
requires a lot of attention
when it comes to setup.
The internal settings are
different than the SFF TAC
fork on the RM-Z450 and
work much better than the
Suzuki's. Still, the KX's
forks trails the others in
performance out of the box.
For 2017, the suspension
and triple-clamps revisions
have helped enhance front-
wheel traction and balance
of the KX450F, improv-
ing cornering a little over
the 2016 model. Overall
the KX450F is balanced
and stable, working well
on a variety of tracks. The
KX450F still doesn't carve
a corner like the Suzuki,
KTM/Husky or Honda, but
it is consistent and predict-
able.
The Kawasaki is the most
adjustable motorcycle of
the group. It is the only bike
with adjustable footpegs
and also has multi-way
adjustable handlebars.
Landing in fifth place
sounds way worse than it is
for the KX450F. In reality it
isn't far from the now fourth-
place finisher, the YZ450F,
which isn't that far off the
third place finisher, the
Honda CRF450R (which
isn't that far off the second-
place finisher, which…).
The reality is that all the
bikes work very well and
each bike varies in ways
that suit riders in different
ways.
Without question, the
Kawasaki is a great bike.
The bummer for Kawasaki
boils down to suspension
performance, which is eas-
ily better than the Suzuki
RM-Z450, but was beat out
by everyone else.
Mediocre forks
held the KX back
a bit. Otherwise,
the KX would be
in the running for
top dog.
