6
th
Place
What a difference just a few years makes. Not long
ago the KX450F was fighting to be king and now
it's fighting just to stay out of the cellar. For the first
time in many, many years (if ever!), the KX450F
is pulling up the rear in one of our shootouts.
Again, not because it's a bad bike, but because the
competition has stepped it up so much lately. Since
the KX450F's last significant update in 2016, all of
the other bikes have experienced major overhauls,
including the Honda, KTM and Husqvarna in 2017,
and the Yamaha and Suzuki in 2018.
Don't fret! The KX450F is still an awesome
motorcycle, despite seeing little changes since 2016.
Believe us when we say that this bike is still com-
petitive—it very much is. It still has a potent engine
that has a broad powerband and can pull each gear
starting from just about any rpm. It's a revver, too.
Metcalfe felt that the KX450F's engine is "strong
but lacks low-end punch compared to some of the
other bikes. Up top, though, there are a lot of ponies
and it just keeps pulling."
In general, our testers liked the KX's power—it's
the suspension they have issues with (mainly the
fork). The KX's Showa SFF-Air TAC (Separate
Function Fork, Triple Air Chamber) is noticeably
inferior when you compare it back-to-back with the
Honda's and Suzuki's new Showa spring fork, the
Yamaha's tried and true KYB SSS spring fork, and
the KTM and Husqvarna's WP AER air forks. "I just
couldn't find the sensitivity that I was looking for
out of the KX's fork," said one tester. Metcalfe said
that he wasn't "thrilled" with the KX's fork, either,
and another tester flat out said they felt "horrible"
no matter how much he adjusted them. He said
that he eventually just gave up trying. Some of the
other testers weren't as critical of the KX's fork but
really didn't have a lot of good things to say about
them either.
KAWASAKI
KX450F
VOL. 54 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 24, 2017 P83
