With Yamaha’s current monopoly on the 250 four-stroke market, going back to the drawing board to build a second-generation 250F before the other manufacturers could build any competition only added insult to injury. Much to our liking, the 2003 YZ250F
Products TestedTHOR phase and ride 2 jackets, ZIP-TY Kx500 low-boy pipe/ims tank, SOUND FACTORY motomp3, RIDE FACTORY haulingas quick-fill, THOR force protector.RIDE FACTORY haulingas quick-fillA few months back, Ride Factory Mfg. sent us its Haulingas quick-fill device for some DR
Many years ago the outdoor national championships were split into three separate classes, the 125cc, 250cc and 500cc or open class as some liked to call it. The 125 class was contested by the young up and comers of the
Suzuki makes this thumper in an electric-start, kickstart or electric-start dual-sport version. Of the off-road competition sales, most are E-start editions. The kickstart version starts very easily and consistently, costs less, is lighter and runs better. All those attributes, plus
Gas Gas is better-known for world-class trials bikes than for off-road models, but it is an established presence in the United States, more so in the South and Southeast than in the West. These Spanish machines are thoroughly European, but
Dirt Rider’s first multiple-bike 24-Hour test was based around the 266-pound Honda XR400R. It was a great bike then; the only 400cc four-stroke of the time with good bottom- and mid-rpm power. Yamaha and KTM have been through three full
Many riders back East shun the 300, thinking it has too much motor for the woods. Out West, we always felt the engine was so smooth how could it be too much? Then we tested the ’01 E/XC line in
We are sick of e-mails asking when this bike is coming, when we are going to test it and if their dealer is lying about the delay in production. Finally, the bike is here, and it is a serious piece
Kawasaki KLX400 When the other brands here noticed a gap in their lineups, they fired up the R&D machine and developed a bike to fill the gap. Kawasaki and Suzuki recently entered into a sort of partnership to flesh out
This bike has been very eagerly and impatiently awaited. The previous WR250F’s Achilles’ heel was uncertain starting and a bulbous tank. IMS had the fix for the riding position, but nothing seemed to make the starting foolproof. An electric starter
Four-strokes are the future, and they are absorbing R&D budgets, headline space and slots on the starting line of every type of dirt bike competition. KTM is a perfect example of the trend. In 1999, you had to have a
This is traditionally KTM’s best-selling model in the United States for good reason: The bike is totally race-ready right off the showroom floor and has a 30-day warranty. For ’03, we even ran totally stock jetting. That may mean riders
At the ’02 24-Hour test we had Mike Lafferty’s KTM 450 E/XC–a big-bore kit installed in a KTM 400 RFS. KTM chose to make the 400 a 450 by going with a longer stroke and keeping the 400 bore, but
KTM didn’t just hatch a 250cc four-stroke from the 400/520 parts bin and call it good. Obviously, the folks there see some importance in this class, and even if that importance is weighted toward Europe or other markets besides the
Gas Gas FSE-450 You can’t accuse Gas Gas of rushing the four-stroke to market. We saw the first photos of prototypes soon after Yamaha introduced its YZ400 in 1998, but the FSE reached production as a 400 only in 2002.
