KLX 300 ride

[One Dollar]

Well I went camping and riding this weekend and put 70 miles of Trails, woods, and some hills on my new-to-me KLX300. All I have to say is "yahoo" ! I have been riding all my life and have always had 2-smokes, boy was I missing some fun. Just the week prior to getting my KLX I rode a 2001 KTM300 and am much more impressed with the KLX. Now I have to explain that I ride mainly trails and woods that have alot of sandy whoops and some trials like hill climbing pits. The KTM felt too tall and pipey (well it was a 2 stroke) and did not feel friendly in the trail (the front end kept feeling like it was going to slide out on me).

The KLX was a dream to ride. I felt like it was tailer made for me. It tracked beautifully in the trails and hill climbing was a pleasure. There was one time where I stoped in the middle of a tight 45 deg. hill in second, pulled the clutch in and started off in second and tractored right up. I could crawl through tight trails in second and third and did not need to have a happy hand on the clutch. What I also noticed was that after all that riding I was not even tired and my hands and shoulders were not fatigued. To be able to just roll the throttle on and off makes riding so much more pleasurable. The compression braking is great, I hardly had to use the brakes in the trails and woods.

Now the KLX I bought already had these mods: 33 Mikuni pumper, Stroker header, end cap,tall seat, skid plate, idle gear fix & hot start; Acerbis handguards, moose bars (shortened to about 28.5") and 13 tooth front sprocket. The smaller sprocket makes 1st gear practically useless. Thanks Tim (aka Lemming) for doing all the mods, you took good care of the bike like you said, I'm very happy with it.

I'll never go back to 2-strokes again. I used to ride a YZ250 and albeit a good mx'er, it is not happy in the trails. No more fighting the power and trying to keep the bike from sending me off the trail into trees, no more happy clutch to keep the bike in the powerband, and no more worries when climbing hills that I'm in the wrong gear and can't get out of trouble halfway up.


Very very satisfied KLX rider

 

[kevkon]

I am glad to hear from another satisfied KLX owner. I lovemy bike also and I think it is very underated by many, especially the mag writers.By the way do you go to planet klx?

 

[penguin]

Yep, the KLX is one of the most underrated bikes in history. Mine will go fast enough over difficult terrain to scare the s*^t out of me. It may be a "girls bike" to the magazine editors, but I have seen some pretty fast girls wring the little green bikes guts out, and embarass bigger bikes in the process

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You weren't born knowing this stuff.

 

[Lemming]

Guido ($1)

Glad you like the bike. Sounds like the two of you will get along well. If you have problems, Penguin and the guys on PlanetKLX will set you straight.

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Tim, '99EC200, '01TXT200

 

[kevkon]

I can't understand why the KLX is so underestimated by so many people, especially the magazines. I know it is not perfect, but for the price it delivers a lot. I have seen so many articles on 4 strokes that fail to even mention the KLX. It is even more puzzling when you read an article raving about another 4 stroke and then going on to tell you how many modifications you must do to make the bike perform as it should.

 

[penguin]

Thats why I read the mags for entertainment and come here for useful information. How you pick the bike you ride and love is many times purely subjective and what works for you....works for you. The KLX can be a beast to hotstart, and it is underpowered, but I have owned 3 and they have never left me stranded. And at the price they can be had for, you can afford a few $$$ for mods to make them more competitive and to fit you.

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You weren't born knowing this stuff.

 

[One Dollar]

The KLX seems perfect for me. As penguin stated it's all subjective. The starting has not been a problem even after I overheated it while doing trials like hillclimbing. The hot start button worked great when I had to use it.

What I also like is I can ride with my 3 yr. old son on his mini-quad in the trails at his put-put pace without alot of reving or clutch work. Plus the kickstand comes in handy when junior gets hung up on a root

Tim, if you ever get the chance to come to Crooms Fla. Bring the TXT, there are some sick trials riding pits with rock and limestone vertical faces with exposed roots and eroded trenches just waiting for your mountain goat like bike

 

[KLX300A5L]

Case in point. Why doesn't the the test of the WR250 in the April issue of Dirt Bike fail to mention (or compare)the KLX at all ? The test talks about the XR250/400,DRZ but nothing about the KLX300. I find this rather odd. Look at what the KLX has to offer for a $1000 less then the WR250,hummm....

KLX

 

[penguin]

Yamaha spent more advertising $$$ than Kawasaki,and besides its a girls bike and those manly magazine editors can't possibly like a girls bike

:b

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You weren't born knowing this stuff.

 

[BUCKWHEAT]

One Dollar did it right by getting a used KLX that someone else had already corrected. I let my 98' KLX go to a lucky rider a few months ago to make room for the WR250f.
Since the rags won't compare the two, I will give my two cents worth of modified KLX vs stock WR.

Powerwise, the WR gets my vote because of it's top end rush while still maintaining very good low-end response. If the WR is a ten then I would give the KLX an eight.

Suspension action would go to the KLX on a very long trail ride while sitting down alot and snaking through the trees. I doubt any bike is better at that than the KLX. The WR gets the nod for very aggressive sprinting and MX style obstacles. If you want to sit down alot on the WR, wear some padded bicycle shorts. Ground clearance easily goes to the WR as well. Watch your toes on the KLX.

Can't say enough about the reliability of the KLX. I absolutely hammered mine for three years and never had to push it back to the truck. Just keep fresh oil in it and check the valves every few months. WR seems to be built well and that's all I can say for now.

While the KLX was a blast to ride, the WR is a little more fun I think because of that awesome smooth rush of acceleration in the upper revs.

If you were to buy a new KLX and wanted to make it race worthy, you would easily surpass the cost of the near race ready WR.
But for trail riding, the KLX is a better deal, especially the way One Dollar and the gentleman that bought mine did it.

Thump on!

 

[kevkon]

You know I would never argue with anyone about the superiority of the WR. It's a newer bike and engine design than the klx as well as a $1000 more. I just don't get why the klx is completely overlooked, especially since it offers so much. I know the dirt bike mags (or rags) must be getting a lot from Yamaha as they seem to devote every issue to the YZF and WRF and I understand this. The strange thing is that people I know that are into dirtbiking, including my neighbor who is a honda dealer, have been impressed by my KLX and they didn't even know Kawasaki made it!

 

[One Dollar]

kevkon,
It's funny that you said that because while riding this weekend there were tons of YZf's and XR's and KDX's but only 3 KLX's includung mine. When a friend of mine came over on his XR250 he was like "gee, I didn't know Kawasaki made a 300" I Let him ride it and he was very impressed. I was almost considering a 400 but after riding my KLX I'm glad I didn't because with my style and terrain I ride it would have been a waste of power and excessive weight. My KLX does everything I dare to do and more.

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2000 KLX300
2000 Polaris TrailBlazer (Wifes ride)
2000 E-Ton Rascal (Juniors ride)

 

[Shaw520]

Heres one for you KLX fans;
Before the recent release of the WR-YZF & RFS, the KLX had the most MX oriented frame of ALL the other fourstrokes. Handling and nimbleness where its best points, and still are. Put a 340 stroker kit it than steed and go and tear'em up!

 

[One Dollar]

To put things in perspective, the last bike I owned was a 1990 yz250 (bought used in'95). The only other 4 stroke was a 1982 XL250 dualsport (used mostly to get back and forth to college).

I'm 41 now and this 2000 modified KLX is awsome to me. Easily the funnest and most easiest dirt-only bike I've owned. I love it!

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2000 KLX300
2000 Polaris TrailBlazer (Wifes ride)
2000 E-Ton Rascal (Juniors ride)

 

[kevkon]

same here, one dollar!