The natural comparison is to the XR400R, since the peak power numbers are the same. When the terrain is soft, such as with sand or mud, the 49-state edition shows a small but obvious edge in oomph. Here the more-mild cam is obvious as the California bike peaks a bit sooner and doesn't make as much power in the upper revs yet somehow feels a little peppier at the same time.
Make no mistake, though: Few, if any, off-road-legal bikes run anywhere close to the levels of the CRF250X. The bike is absolutely ridable, and even raceable in the right conditions as it comes off the showroom floor. We tested this bike at virtually the same time two of our editors went to Indiana for the Ironman GNCC to race-test Scott Summers' modified CRF450R, and both riders felt they would actually have been better off on a stock CRF250X in those muddy and rutted conditions.
As well as the bikes performed in stock trim, an SRA Grand Prix was coming to town, and we wanted to see how difficult it would be to change the California model to closed-course specs, and if it would be feasible to change it back for off-road use.
We installed a 42 pilot jet, a 132 main and a needle from the CRF450R parts book called an NCVQ with the clip in the third position from the top. This extra fuel improves the health of the CRF and rids most leanness from the jetting. After doing the changeover once, you should be able to change it back in about 20 minutes, but plan a good chunk of time for your first go. With the fuel tank off, loosen the carb and rotate it to swap the jets. You'll need to change the needle through the top of the carb with Allen wrenches and a special tool included with the bike to grab the needle. Long Allen T-handles are a bonus. Getting at the main and pilot jets is more difficult because the electric-starter motor fills most of the space under the float bowl. A small jet tool or a 6mm swivel socket will reach the main, but you'll need a perfectly sized flat-blade screwdriver. We ground the blade down until it was 4mm wide from the tip to 20mm back from the tip. Remove the countershaft sprocket guard, and with the carb turned as far as it will go, you can slip in the screwdriver near the clutch actuating arm and remove the pilot jet. Otherwise, you'll need to remove the carburetor, and we had to remove the subframe-a pain with all the wires and hoses-and the rear shock to get the carb off. If you choose this route, leave off the shock until you have the airboot back on the carburetor. There also is a metal bung in the airboot with a hose attached, and it is easy to forget to install the hose, since it is difficult to see, but leaving it off will let dirt into the motor.
We also removed the air pump with an IMS block-off kit. The air pump doesn't hurt or affect the power. The IMS kit provides good directions, and removing the pump and temporarily blocking the holes took less than 30 minutes.
In the colder air we encountered, the fuel screw needed to be more than 2.5 turns out to eliminate an off-idle hesitation, so we richened up even further with a 45 pilot and set the fuel screw at 1.75 turns. With our modified screwdriver and a sure knowledge of the pilot location, we made the switch in less than 10 minutes in the field.
The Rest
Few will find much to criticize about the chassis. It is loosely based on the CRF250R motocrosser, and that is a fine starting place. The CRF250R has fabulous handling and suspension, and the X keeps the handling and vastly improves the suspension plushness for off-road. We had riders ranging from 120 to 210 pounds, and we barely changed suspension settings other than shock preload. In fact, for rocky terrain we changed nothing. For the desert, we went a bit stiffer for the heavy guys. There isn't a lot of adjustment in the front, since the fork's compression comes set at 6 clicks out, though the rear is 10 clicks out and has a high-speed compression adjuster.