If its "a piece of **** " bike, why don't you sell it and get something you want instead of complaining about it and coming on here and trying to enlighten us about how crappy our bikes are ? Just say "it didn't have enough power so i sold it for something else", instead of writing a novel about how stupid kawi is and that all other bikes are superior regardless of price point.

 

First of all i googled KTM250exc and found several dyno charts with properly jetted carbs producing 28 HP not 38HP.
Bill Blue got 26HP on his.
Secondly i have a Honda CRF250X which is a nice light bike that is geared to the moon (stock) and will not go faster than 40 mph without bouncing on the rev limiter.
The WR is the same way. They are trail bikes geared for trail performance.
Your SF bike is geared for the street. If you did the swap correctly, and you are not happy, try gearing it down a little bit. I your first opening statement you said you really were not sure what you were looking for but the girlfriend had a big smile on her face.
Is SHE happy with it? Obviously she can touch the ground on it, the added torque should help her to learn to ride. She most likely wouldnt be happy with the screaming top end of the KTM if she had to ride it all day. If your girlfriend was an enduro racer i can understand her disappointment, or yours for that matter.
It sounds as if you were on the right track and bought a bike to fit the bill, either you did the swap wrong, and ended up with a dog, or you think you need more power for a play bike.
I swap back and forth between the 250X and my 351, and i have to tell you i really like the bottom end power of the 351. Yeah the honda is faster and makes more power on the top end,,, but,,, i have to change the oil every 100 miles as well as check the valves for clearance because it IS a high strung motor. On my 351S, i actually put a 15 tooth front sprocket on to get more speed on the street. Even with that, there is enough torque to wheelie the bike in second gear at will,,, not clutching or pulling, just all throttle. I think you need to either gear your bike or check your jetting.
Before you bash, maybe ask some questions of others SF bikes and their performance.
Try putting on a smaller front sprocket.

 

I'd bet the 38 hp figure was for the 2 stroke 250exc not the 4 stroker.

The 350 kit coupled w/ a fcr35 keihin carb really perked up the anemic stock 09 klx250s. Made wheelies w/ stock gearing happen & not a dream. 10 mph more on the top end easily tripling the fun factor for the wife.

Classic malcolm smith ear to ear grin under her helmet below

 

It's a real pity that this conversation has degenerated a little as there is some valuable debate to be had here. I am happy with my KLX250s with it's mods, but I still feel that it is a big compromise in some respects. The biggest positive for me is the relative lack of maintenance required. I am more than happy to change the oil and oil filter more frequently than the scheduled servicing (which seems to be unbelievably long compared with other dirt bikes out there). But when it comes to things like valve clearances, shims, etc. I am useless. Because the KLX doesn't seem to need much attention there I think I have the right bike.

Compromise-wise, I was very very disappointed with the stock performance and suspension. I guess you will need to do suspension work on any machine you buy when you are my weight, so lets drop that point. Performance-wise, the improvement gained from jetting and slip-on were amaizing, and given there are other street legal and emissions legal 250's out there with much better performance than the KLX, I struggle to understand how Kawasaki can't improve their stock performance by pre-doing the "standard" tweaks we all seem to do.

My next issue with the KLX250 is it's weight. I know it has a steel frame and so will inherently be heavier than aluminium frames bikes. With the re-design of the KLX for the 2009 model I think Kawasaki missed a great opportunity to reduce weight and stay in line with its main competitors. And by reducing the weight it would have helped in the power-to-weight ratio stakes, as well as made it a more nimble bike IMO.

But, at the end of the day, mechanical maintenance put the KLX head and shoulders above the rest, which is why it was my first choice. I just could not get enough of a straight answer and assurance on the other options (KTM, Husky, Honda, Gasgas, Yamaha WR, etc). I clock up at least 150km's during the working week, and then obviously more on the weekends that I take her offroad. With the other bikes this would mean oil changes at least fortnightly - which I guess I could handle, but it would be a bit of a pain. On top of that, I could not get much info on how often I would need the valve clearances checked and adjusted, shims replaced, engine rebuilds, etc. I would love to have had a chart showing the bikes, routine servicing intervals, other maintenance required and how "easy" it would be for a layman.

So I am interested to hear what you were saying about your KTM not needing much more than oil changes, as this is contrary to what I had been told and read about in other forums.

Oh, just on this topic, has anyone noticed how little coverage of the KLX250S there is in dirt bike mags? Plenty of coverage on the other brand's 250's and the KLX450, but basically nothing on the KLX250. I am not sure the dirt biking community consider the KLX250 to be much more than a road bike in the guise of a dirt bike, or perhaps as only an occasional offroader. In saying that, the 2 gatherings I have been to, a lot of the guys there on their KTM/Husky/etc's seemed to have owned (or still own) a KLX250 and didn't have anything horrible to say about them. Seems they just got the more dirt biased bikes because they were better suited to the type of riding they did.

 

I ride with some very serious desert riders/racers, and they disagree on the steel vs aluminum frame (and therefore, weight) arguement. MOST of these fellows prefer steel frames for the repairability. They don't mind the weight. Since their riding isn't consisting of wide open from one turn to full braking just before the next turn, rinse and repeat, they aren't so enamored with power to weight ratios and flat-out power. They want a bike that handles well, is reliable, and can be fixed when needed.

For a 250, the KLX does the job well enough, after it's had some tweaks, of course.

Still, I don't think I would have bought my 2009 if it weren't such a steal. 45 miles on it for less than 1/2 price of retail? That leaves me a good wad of cash to wake it up and suspend it well. I'm not a racer, so, it's even less important to me if I have 18 HP or 28 HP. I'll get to the meet-up area before many of those on "better" bikes, partly because I don't have to stop and rest as much as some of those guys!

It is what it is...which is a relatively inexpensive, reliable, nicely balanced, small displacement, carburated bike. Besides, it's green...how can that be bad?

 

The question was posed if SHE was happywith the bike. Well....no would be the short answer to the the question. When she first took the bike out I think she was just excited about getting a bike and the fact that it ran ok was all she care about. Driving it down the block didn't tell her if the bike had the needed torque and horsepower to keep up on the trails or keep up with bigger bikes.
Now I certainly don't want to compare her 250 to my 450 or 525 because as some of you mentioned it is apples to oranges. So I am taking her complaints of the bike which are also my complaints of the bike and posting them here to try to get some constructive way to solve them. Maybe I didn't make that clear in the beginning. Maybe going off this premise will keep this topic of conversation in order a little more. In stock form we (my girlfriend and I) do NOT like this bike. BUT because the seat height is pretty much the only thing that will fit her I have to work with it.

 

I really don't think your going to find a stock bike of similar size with much more horsepower than a properly tuned KLX351 with pumper carb, maybe 3-5 BHP but that will probably be all in the high end anyway.

 

Seems more like it although the EXC riders are losing out big time as the 2010 250SX makes 49+ rwhp. Drag race anyone.

BTW I love my KLX. It does what it says on the box, and I'll own it for at least another decade if not more. Great bike. BTW the 07 and earlier models are best, hey DEEJ?

 

Also this talk of price interests me. If the KLX is a couple thousand or whatever cheaper but you have to dump well over a grand into it, are you really saving any money? Also the WR250 that I tested was a motard like our KLX and it easily did 80mph on the freeway. I am certain the guy put an aftermarket muffler on it and no doubt rejetted it but it was considerably more powerful from start to finish. I have no idea on longevity or maintenance of said bike, but it was more what I thought a 250 SM should be like. Maybe adding the muffler will bring up the power enough on the KLX. The bike runs quite smoothly and I know it is jetted and tuned properly with the stock muffler. Don't get me wrong...it is night and day difference from the stock bike, but not what I thought a 351 displacement bike should be.
I have pondered gearing it down but she also rides it on the freeway and the bike is running 70mph at 7500 rpm and I hate to tax the motor in higher rpm's for too long down the freeway if I did gear it lower.
I dont know that much weight could be saved if any going to an aluminum frame. There seems to be other issues involved when a 250 bike weighs more than my 525 which also has a steel frame.
As far as lighting goes...if the lights work then that is really all I care about. I'm not trying to run a stereo or huge spot lights off the bike.
And in reply to Wildcard, I can find something I don't like with every bike I have ever ridden as I am sure so can everyone else who has a serious interest in bikes. That doesn't mean I am just going to sell it because I don't like something about it. To me it is an area to try to improve upon. That is the point of this thread. What mods. work and what don't do anything. Try to dispell some of the myths to gaining power in these bikes. If you don't like my expressed thoughts then just don't read this thread.

 

Ok, let's address the power first. Depending upon what mods you do, a properly dialed-in large bore kit with good flowing exhaust (anything is better than the stock pea shooter) will deliver in the neighborhood of 27-28hp. The power delivery is a very un-KTM250exc-like curve, which peaks out at about 7000RPM. You won't be able to change that curve without serious, non-bolt-on, big money mod's. You will see varying results between dynos, but one thing I've noticed is the guys getting the higher (say 28hp figures) most often are using a tire that hooks-up well with the dyno. Your SF tires should be just fine for that.

Not everybody buys this bike just to turn-around and perform all of those mod's, so you can argue price point until you are blue in the face. Not everyone is looking for the same thing out of their machine. If you want to keep arguing points like that, you will continue to get some of the undesired responses you are prompting.

I hate to tell you this after the fact, but that nice, state of the art, fuel injected WR250X you rode, which has the type of power delivery you like, can be lowered a GRUNCH and still perform quite well. Their are people over on the adv rider WR250R thread who almost qualify as midgets. They lowered their bikes with a combo of spacers, fork raising and seat foam mods and are very happy with the results. Hindsight is 20/20 I guess. Since you bought the KLX used, you might be able to re-cover a good portion of your money, then find a good deal on the WR250X. Maintenance intervals on the WR250X/R are pretty much on par with the KLX.

The KLX power delivery will alway be low-to-mid range. It will never be a top-end screamer without seriously ridiculously expensive mods.