Differnet Strokes
Differnet Strokes
It's Thumpers versus the best of the 'Strokers for motocross supremacy
JIMMY LEWIS
THE MOTOCROSS MARKET HAS BEEN about as consistent as gasoline prices lately. At least in the MX world, though, things are on the up and up for the better. Never have there been so many bonafide berm-busters to choose from.
First, we’ll admit to being full-on four-stroke fans-pounding thumps, seamless torque and tons of ridable power win us over every time. So it’s no surprise that Cycle World's 3x3 moto-comparo went heavy on the side of ’crossers with cams. Hey, remember just a few years back when there wasn’t such a thing as a production motocross Thumper?
Back to defend its title is the Yamaha YZ400F, CW's pick as Best Motocrosser for the past two years running. Er, make that the YZ426F. Yamaha did, adding 27cc and a slew of detail changes. We dropped KTM’s all-new 520 SX quadrastroke straight into the mix, too, stacked up against the best of the premix brigade, Honda’s CR250R. It beat out a tough field of two-strokes just days before heading into this 3x3, narrowly defeating the potent Suzuki RM250.
So, how do we go about picking the best motocross bike? First, it takes a wide range of riders. Pros to Beginners, zitfaced kids to seasoned senior classers, our test crew spanned the age and skill globe. Most testers had purchased a new bike in the last year and all of them race at least once a month-real-world guys, in other words.
It takes tracks, too. We rode this trio on a SoCal sampler, from the hardpack of Gorman’s Hungry Valley to the deep loam of a freshly prepped Glen Helen. Supercross-styled Starwest and a jump-heavy Sunrise Cycle Park tested the air manners of the machines, with Lake Elsinore and Perris Raceway taking it from fast and-wide to tight-and-technical. Initially, we got comfortable on each bike and settled on suspension settings, jetting calibrations and gearing choices. These are highly tunable racing machines and we strived to get the most out of each bike. As tightly packed as these bikes are, muffed settings can easily throw a bike from first place to last.
Yamaha broke all the established rules with the awesome YZ400. But two years later, the Yammie needed some atten tion-that's how quickly MXers are evolving. So, why not bore it out a bit, say 3mm, to end up with a bigger, bad der 426? Adding an improved 39mm FCR pumper carb, and revised crank, rod and piston (with lighter pin), gives the Yama-Thumper a new lease on life.
Power now comes on harder and revs out quicker than the old 400. Ridden back-to-back, the 426 makes the 400 seem tame, unrespon sive and, yes, slow, hard as that is to believe. Besides the motor changes, there's a
host of chassis tweaks, like a shortened frame (5mm) made with higher-quality steel, and a new aluminum subframe. The YZ now hangs onto an inside line better than before, but didn't lose any of its straight-line stability. In this grouping, though, the YZ stands out as being big and feeling heav ier. At 244 pounds, it's just 5 pounds up on the KTM, but feels as if it carries that weight high in the frame.
While all that new power and punch make the YZ-F go faster, it now takes a bit more effort to ride. Most riders loved the boosted 426, but there's more of a pronounced powerband hit in the midrange. It is, motor-wise, the fastest bike here if you can keep it “on the cam” all the time. But caught up in the cut-andthrust of a heated battle, it’s a lot easier to make mistakes on, as well.
HONDA CR250
Downs You don’t get a toolbox when you buy one Much easier to dent the pipe than the other bikes
Finally a completely integrated package Almost four-stroke-like hookup Not as finicky as before
KTM 520 SX
Ups A Doesn't feel big and heavy like a four-stroke A Doesn't start like a four-stroke A Makes big four-stroke power
Downs Sold out ’til 2001 Too-touchy brakes Oil changes amundo
In the suspension area, the YZ426 is the best of the Yamaha motocross bikes this year, but it still has a few glitches. The initial stroke of the fork and shock are sprung stiffly, great for holding the bike up in its travel and putting the kibosh on any sort of wallowy feeling. But the suspension goes through the rest of its stroke without much progression, not getting stiffer, as you’d expect. Now, not only do you have to charge hard to get the bike to work, when you really hit something, it bottoms-a Pro beginning and a Novice end. We ran our bike with 97mm of sag with the rider on the bike and typically a few clicks less compression damping than standard on the fork. Now, remember, as good as these bikes are, we’re being picky here, but frankly we liked the settings on the old YZ400 better, especially for comfort when riding at less than ten-tenths.
Chapter Two of the four-stroke revolution has been penned by KTM, underscored by light weight and compact size. The 520 mirrors the size of two-stroke KTMs; close inspection shows how the Austrians used every option to squeeze the motor into such a tiny space-take note of the shrink-wrap gas tank and engine cases. The KTM bottomend is a masterwork of function and minimalist necessity. The SX gearbox houses just four speeds; first and sixth of the E/XC are gone, as is the electric starter. There are four difoil filters and the clutch is undamped in any way-hence the “Racing” (read as “maintenance-heavy”) that KTM emphasizes in selling this bike. Starting the KTM pokes another jab at the sometimesflnicky Yamaha, with a buttery, simple, just-kick-withoutmuch-effort approach to starting, hot or cold. Women and small children can start the KTM.
YAMAHA YZ426F
Ups A Two-stroke hit out of a Thumper A Losing a little weight each year A Easiest four-stroke to ride for a two-stroke kinda guy
Downs ▼ What’s that starting procedure again? ▼ Tall, top-heavy feeling
Again, we stress that this bike is not like any other fourstroke you’ve ever ridden. It has a light and nimble feel-almost like a 125-with big Thumper power on tap. The layout of the KTM is incredibly roomy. Too roomy for most riders. We moved the handlebar back in the four-positionadjustable top triple-clamp and it still was waaay more spread out than either of the other bikes. Quickly, another thing becomes clear: The brakes are really strong. Too strong, or at least too grabby, lacking the progression we’d prefer. But one roll on the throttle and everything else is a blur. The 520 boasts a blend of smooth traditional Thumper power, but with quick-revving snap. You can easily ride the bike a gear high-heck, sometimes we rode the whole track in one gear-the power is so long-winded. Are there really only four speeds? And the rear brake can be ignored; compression braking does the job.
Though his bike may not feel as fast as the YZ or CR, the haust tone and big power strokes are misleading. Corner exits are muffled cannon blasts~
The KTM is a quick-handling bike and the jinkiest of the
three. There isn't head-shaking instability, but it will twitch around in the chop if you 1et it. Part of this is due to knife-like geom etry that hunts the inside line like no four stroke before. It is also the key to the light eftort needed tp throw the bike around in the air or make abrupt line changes. The uspensidi is Fmpressive, too. It has a very light action at first-plush like we thought a
linkageless suspension couldn't be, especially with the amount of bottoming resistance available. In fact, when you first feel how well the bike responds to little bumps, you're somewhat afraid to hit big stuff or overjump an obstacle for fear of harsh bottoming, but this doesn't happen. It's soft enough to trailride, but with the ability to handle 100-foot jumps, no problepi. Pretty amazing.
On to the CR250, the shocker of this comparison. Typically, it's been love or hate with the alloy-framed CR, but Honda has pored over this bike, finally melding its components into one unified package. Even test riders who usually hate CRs were ready to go out and race the red rocket. It wasn't an easy chore, taking the better part of three years, but the `00 CR is proof that frame material isn't the issue so many made it to be. Narrowing the bike and providing a more aggressive rid ing position has given the CR a totally new feel.
Though the motor is externally similar to CRs of the past decade, a new bleiid of portipg, intake and exhaust tuning and ignition mapping has added another dimension There's still the screaming madness CRs have always had, but now with torque that can easily pull a gear higher through the turns. We changed overall gearing to a 14/52 from the standard 13/48, which let the bike pull each gear a bit longer, as well as getting the chain up off the rollers, freeing up the suspension ever so slightly.
We didn't have to endlessly tinker with suspension settings as on past CRs. In fact, after just adding 5cc of oil to each fork~Ieg. we ran stock suspension settings without changing the clickers at all. Even the jetting stayed the same through out the test, just a needle change allowing a half-clip leaner than standard, one size richer pilot and main jets, and away we roosted, 92-octane pump gas and Honda HP2 all the way through.
What good isn't there to say about the CR? It's a perfect blend of stability and agility, never head-shaking and still capable of mid-turn line changes. Power everywhere, but not overly intimidating. And light, really light, a solid 18 pounds under the KTM, which makes a big difference at the end of a long moto.
As the kpobbies wore, a few things became apparent. As the Yamaha has improved, it has taken on a more aggressive nature. Still very ridable and fast as all hell, but the harder you push it, the harder it is to ride. Plus, stacked against the KTM and Honda, the YZ has a big-bike feel. The evolution of motocross has caught the trend-setting YZ and one-upped it. Bad for Yamaha, good for the motocross market, show ing just how competitive things really are. -
The KTM is all about fun. It is the easiest, most comfort able, smoothest and plushest bike to ride. Even though it's a touch on the twitchy side, it never tires you out-until you go ftill-race, that is. After all, this is an Open-classer, and all that power gets you moving real fast. Light for a four-stroke still isn't light, remember. Still, hands down, the 520 is the most enjoyable bike to ride here.
But as the lap times pointed out, and track after track established, as a racebike the Honda CR250 rules the roost. Motocross is all about competition and getting that extra edge. The CR was consistently faster around every type of track, easier to ride at race speeds and easy to push the pace when needed. Meaning, you can get away with more on the CR. Its handling allows you to use any line you want. Power is as friendly as a bomb of this magnitude can be. It's got probably the most works-like suspension ever put on a motocrosser. In short, the CR25OR has finally come of age. All the pieces of its puzzle have been put together correctly.
In a very good year for motocrossers, two-stroke or four-, the Honda comes out on top.
