It's Been Fun!!!

[owenlo]

Well folks I hate to say it but I have bailed on Kawasaki and moved on to the 2003 YZ250F. You have all been great help on this site and I sure will miss all the KDX advice. Y'all know what your talking about when it comes to ole reliable(KDX)!!! If anyone is interested in a never raced 2002 KDX200 that is ready to race I have a great one for sale. I'll take 4000.00 or best offer. You can read all the mods below and click on MY GALLERY and see a pic if you like. I have ALL parts to go back stock PLUS!!!! It is money well spent.

Obie ;)

 

[toalco-kdx]

thats a real nice bike

 

[KelvinKDX]

Yeah - nice looking KDX.

We'll miss you - pop in from time to time and let us know how things are going with the blue bike. :cool:

 

[Jim Crenca]

It would be great if you could post a comparison like Fred T did.
Thanks in advance! :aj:

 

[owenlo]

I will definately do a comparison on this forum. I have heard that the YZ250F will pull like a horse and handle like a dream. As soon as I can get it broke in and have a few hours seat time I'll let y'all know the comparison between the two bikes. Again, you guys have been great, although this may not be goodbye for good if I decide to keep the KDX too. Wouldnt that be nice. The best of both worlds. HMMMMMMMM

Obie ;)

 

[bh]

I'm sorry to hear about some one else geting one of those heavy, slow, loud (when compared to a 2-stroke of the same size) 4-strokes.:-)

 

[bh]

I'm just kiddin. Good for you on the new bike!

 

[owenlo]

Figure this,
KDX200=227lbs. dry, add fuel= 11lbs a gallon x 2.9 gallons = 30+ lbs

KDX200 with fuel= 260 lbs. 30lbs of VERY high weight(fuel)

YZ250F with fuel = 226lbs.

Now which one is heavy????

I notice a BIG difference JUST pushing it around. Very light bike and the ergo's are AWESOME compared to the KDX. I will post ride results next week.

Obie ;)

 

[Hogwylde]

try ~8lbs/gallon for the weight of gasoline (or MOST other liquids) and try your math again.

 

[owenlo]

I have found the weight of gasoline and it is about 6 lbs http://www.santacruzpl.org/readyref/files/g-l/gasoline.shtml

so 6lbs x 3gal =18lbs + 227lbs dry weight = 245lbs

KDX200 WET = 245
YZ250F WET = 226

Goodness, we are still talking 20lbs lighter. AMAZING!!! Believe me, it is 20 lbs you will notice too.

 

[fury1]

especially where the kdx holds it up top,my cannondale is a pig when it comes to weight,but the gas is under the seat down low,the only time you feel it is when you drop it and have to pick it up:)

 

[gooleo]

hey obie, i checked out your kdx, nice. is your black excels on your bike? or are they for sale seperately? i'm looking for a pair for my bike. good luck with your new yami.
gooleo

 

[owenlo]

THANKS and Yes, they are on the bike. You can see them if you click on "MY GALLERY" below.

Obie ;)

 

[gooleo]

that bike is sweet!

looking at that pic just confirmed that i'll get a set of black exels. did you use your stock spokes and hubs too? or was everythink spankin new?

thanks

 

[owenlo]

I Just got rims and excel spokes. The Excel spokes are GREAT because the nipples are splined insterd of square and they give you a special wrench to tighten them with. Much stronger!

Obie ;)

 

[jeffw]

The YZ250F really looks really nice this year and is super light and should be great on the track and in the woods.

But why are they so tall? I sat on an 03 250F and its about the tallest bike I've ever been on. Something to do with the frame? To keep the seat height from getting ridiculous, they put a real thinly padded seat on them. Hmmm....

 

[fuzzy]

When comparing the wet weight keep in mind that the YZ holds less gas. Any reason you switched to a YZ instead of a WR???

 

[sledman]

Originally posted by owenlo
Figure this,
KDX200=227lbs. dry, add fuel= 11lbs a gallon x 2.9 gallons = 30+ lbs

KDX200 with fuel= 260 lbs. 30lbs of VERY high weight(fuel)

YZ250F with fuel = 226lbs.

Now which one is heavy????


TRY CLOSER TO 222# DRY.
I notice a BIG difference JUST pushing it around. Very light bike and the ergo's are AWESOME compared to the KDX. I will post ride results next week.

Obie ;)

 

[owenlo]

The YZ250F is TALL but you must give it a month or two to break in the front springs and then they say it sits a little lower. Even with the height thought, They also say it handles like a dream. I went with the YZ instead of the WR because I have found myself on more MX tracks the more I ride, It was a close call between the two. I think I would have been happy either way.

As far as weight, It is simple THE YZ IS MUCH LIGHTER ANY WAY YOU CUT THE PIE, PERIOD!!!! Try one you'll see. And sure it is a smaller tank but it is a 4 stroke and the gas milage is great. around 60 miles on a tank.

Obie ;)

 

[jeffw]

While I was doing the looking (drooling) I talked about above I picked it up by the subframe, and they aren't lying about the 208 lb dry weight. It's really light! They dropped over 20 lbs since the 01. Lighter than the 250 2 strokes now.

But I bet the WR doesn't get all the weight shaving the YZ got, not this year anyway. Add e-start and its probably 230 dry.

 

[Lew]

Way to go Obie, My riding buddy has a yzf250 and wrf250. The yz pulls for days and handles very well. The seat is a bit harder than the ole kdx, but the yz seat is still softer than the one on my ktm.
Lew

 

[owenlo]

Thanks Lew. Thanks for all the info you supplied me with on the KDX too. We'll keep in touch. Congrats on the new K-toom too.

Obie ;)

 

[Jim Crenca]

Owenlo,

60 miles on a tank sounds great but hard to believe as I thought they didn't hold much fuel. Where did 60 miles come from? I think that Trailrider Magazine recomended the YZF over the WR for woods work; if they get great gas mileage and will actualy start with a kickstarter, this could be a good KDX replacement (as opposed to riding orange).

 

[Lew]

My bud with the yzf 250 consistantly rides 30-40 miles without fuel stop. Some of this is in hare scrambles where he is pushing hard. So I would think some casual trail riding would most likely net you around 50+ mi. Stay close to the truck for the first try....lol
Jim, the '03 start almost as easy as a 2 smoker.
Lew

 

[owenlo]

60 came from a rough estimate a buddy of mine gave me from an enduro he ran with his 03 yzf. As for starting, yes almost as easy as a 2-smoke. First time I tried to start it and it started FIRST kick. Next time I tried to start it , it took a few more kicks but I found that I should not have choked it. Since then it has been 1 - 3 kicks MAX.

Obie ;)