I figured some of you may find this interesting. My best friend just switched from a 1998 xr 600 to the 05 crf 450x. He took the bike on its maiden voyage today on our usual trail ride consisting of 40-50 miles of rocks, roots, uphills/downhills covered in 4-6 inches of leaves, creeks, single track blah, blah.
Observation one: Do not let this bike sit and idle very long during warm up. It will spit antifreeze out the overflow.
Observation two: the electric start is very slow about starting the bike in gear. The electric starter doesnt always work. On the trail it acted as if the battery was dead. It starts with the e start best if you put the bike in neutral.
After my friend noticed drool running down the side of my mouth, he offered me the first "guest" ride. I have owned an 1996 xr 400, 1999 cr 250, 2002 xr 650 and lastly 2004 yz 250. Luckily the bike fired right up with the e start. Once on the single track (rocks, roots, uphills, downhills), the first thing I noticed was that this bike has an amazing amount of torgue. The next thing I noticed was that the bike cornered like a dream. The power is perfect for eastern woods riding. The suspension on this sticj bike is better than the $700 Factory Connection suspension I have on my 1999 cr 250 setup for woods riding. There is no need for even a steering stabilizer on this bike.
If you have doubts about this bike, Im a two stroke man all the way and I love the bike. My best friend is a xr 600 man all the way and he loves the bike if that tells you anything. The crf 450x is one of those bikes anyone can ride fast through the woods and it doesnt beat you to death in the process. After a day of riding, I will have to say that this bike is the best I have ridden to date. Im just curious how the valve train will hold up under my friend's abuse. I will let you know in a year of so.
Ride on
Observation one: Do not let this bike sit and idle very long during warm up. It will spit antifreeze out the overflow.
Observation two: the electric start is very slow about starting the bike in gear. The electric starter doesnt always work. On the trail it acted as if the battery was dead. It starts with the e start best if you put the bike in neutral.
After my friend noticed drool running down the side of my mouth, he offered me the first "guest" ride. I have owned an 1996 xr 400, 1999 cr 250, 2002 xr 650 and lastly 2004 yz 250. Luckily the bike fired right up with the e start. Once on the single track (rocks, roots, uphills, downhills), the first thing I noticed was that this bike has an amazing amount of torgue. The next thing I noticed was that the bike cornered like a dream. The power is perfect for eastern woods riding. The suspension on this sticj bike is better than the $700 Factory Connection suspension I have on my 1999 cr 250 setup for woods riding. There is no need for even a steering stabilizer on this bike.
If you have doubts about this bike, Im a two stroke man all the way and I love the bike. My best friend is a xr 600 man all the way and he loves the bike if that tells you anything. The crf 450x is one of those bikes anyone can ride fast through the woods and it doesnt beat you to death in the process. After a day of riding, I will have to say that this bike is the best I have ridden to date. Im just curious how the valve train will hold up under my friend's abuse. I will let you know in a year of so.
Ride on