2018 MXA 250 SHOOTOUT: WHAT WORKS FOR YOU?

On Jul 2, 2018 Last updated Jul 2, 2018

No bike off the showroom floor is perfect. Every bike has its peccadillos, just like every human that inhabits the earth. New bike buyers need to be aware of this, because high expectations can guide you in the wrong direction. Sometimes an all-new bike’s allure can alter rational thinking. Sometimes a buddy can talk up his new bike, largely because he isn’t going to talk down something he paid 10 grand for. Sometimes the advice is coming from a bad source, and sometimes your favorite color is the wrong color—for your needs.

The best advice when buying a new bike is to keep emotions out of it—just like the financial geniuses do when the market crashes and everyone pulls their money off the table. They take human emotion out and bet big—millions and billions big. To us, it seems crazy, but how do you think they got that much money to invest in the first place? To them, it’s a sure thing. They did their research and know that history repeats itself. They know that the market will bounce back, because it always does. Meanwhile, human emotions have others in financial turmoil.

IF YOU TAKE EMOTION OUT OF YOUR PURCHASE CHOICE AND USE GOOD JUDGMENT WITH THE INFORMATION PRESENTED, YOU WILL FIND A BIKE THAT SUITS YOUR STYLE, POWER NEEDS, BUDGET, SUSPENSION WANTS, AND HANDLING TRAITS.

If you take emotion out of your purchase choice and use good judgment with the information presented, you will find a bike that suits your desired riding style, power needs, budget, suspension wants, clutch feel and handling traits. But, you won’t find all the above in one package. Unicorns only exist in fairy tales and North Korea. What comes first on your priority list?

Is it finding the best price? Then maybe avoid buying a new 2018 model or wait until the price comes down in 2019. There are plenty of 2017 and 2016 (and possibly 2015) models still on showroom floors that can save you thousands of dollars. I bet your wife likes the sound of that. Remember, happy wife, happy life. A perfect example is the 2018 Suzuki RM-Z250. Nothing about this bike has changed since 2016 other than accent colors and BNG. So, why buy a new one at full price when you can get an identical 2015 model on the showroom floor that will save you cash and actually put more power underneath you.

Since no 250F in the class of 2018 is perfect, we are going to grade them on a bell curve. For those who don’t know, bell curve grading is a technique generally used in college classes where the student with the highest score gets a 100 percent or A+ even if he didn’t get all the answers correct. For example: If the highest scorer in the class gets an 80 percent on a test, the 20-percent difference from a perfect score is then added to the highest scorer as well as all the other students’ scores. If you’ve ever been graded on the bell curve, then you know it doesn’t usually work out that way. There is always that one peer who scores extremely high and ruins it for the rest of us.

This system will only compare the 2018 250Fs against each other. We will compare their predecessors on occasion, but not when it comes to grading each bike.

MXA has been in the business of giving our readers the hard facts since 1973. These facts have gotten us in trouble with the manufacturers many times. We have been called “Honda Action,” “Yamaha Action” and, most recently, “KTM Action.” People think we actually get paid big money from these manufacturers to rate their bikes higher on the charts. These people obviously haven’t seen the old high-mileage vehicles that we drive to work or the bad reviews we gave to Yamaha’s 2013 YZ450F, Honda’s 2009 CRF450 or KTM’s 2012 250SXF. Truth is, the MXA test riders often cost our parent company money when they give their honest opinions about bikes, but our first responsibility is to our readers.

If you want to know more details about a specific bike, click on the link in the header.

2018 KTM 250SXF REPORT CARD #1

ENGINE

Low-end: B- This is the 250SXF’s weakest point of the powerband. But, weak is an overstatement since the rest of its powerband is so good.

Midrange: B We like the 250SXF’s midrange power. With a flick to the clutch, the midrange comes alive.

Top-end: A+ Top-end power is where the KTM engine shows its excellence. The power just keeps on building and moving forward. We love it.

Over-rev: A+ It is like the Energizer Bunny—it just keeps going and going.

Torque: B The engine could use a bit more torque, but we are not going to complain about it, because it’s better than some bikes that can’t touch it on top.

Clutch: A+ If you’re a clutch abuser, the 250SXF’s hydraulic self-adjusting clutch was built for you.

Overall powerband: A This is the best overall powerband in its class, mainly because of its dominant. top-end, over-rev and horsepower.

Overall usability: B This engine suits fast riders best.

Notes: This is an engine that favors faster, more experienced riders. Not because it is a bad engine for slower riders, but because only the faster riders will be able to efficiently use its 43.79 peak horsepower at 14,000 rpm. The YZ250F, KX250F and even the RM-Z250 have powerbands that are easier to manage than the 250SXF’s. The 250SXF is a race engine. It you are a racer, no engine in stock trim will beat it. Even if you threw thousands of dollars at the Japanese engines, they still would not come close.

CHASSIS

Ergonomics: B The feel of the bars can throw the comfort off for some riders. Most don’t care, or they manage to get used to the feel. Other than the bars, test riders like the overall feel of the bike, but they don’t love it like the CRF250.

Turn-in: A The planted feel allows the front wheel to get into the corners with grace and lean over with minimal effort.

Apex: A Whatever input you give the bike at turn-in, it flows through to the apex of the corner with nary a wiggle.

Corner exit: B The rear end tracks well, but the rigidness of the subframe and the input from the rear shock make the bike feel busy when accelerating at corner exit.

Overall turning: B Only the RM-Z250 and KX250F do it better.

Line selection: A+ Just point, shoot and score.

Planted feel: A The front wheel is glued to the ground.

Overall feel: B Everyone likes the overall feel of the bike; however, the CRF250 and its brother, the FC250, feel better.

Brakes: A+ Best brakes in the class.

Notes: This is a chassis that is comfortable for the masses. The bike is superbly balanced from front to rear, and the AER air forks can be tailored for a wide variety of riders. We love the front-end handling of the 250SXF, but we don’t love the rear.

SUSPENSION

Forks: A These are the best air forks on the market and can compete with the best coil spring forks on the market.

Shock: C The shock feels harsher than it is due to the stiff subframe. You feel this on the exit of corners, square-edge bumps and whoops.

Balance: A+ The 250SXF has the best balance from front to rear of all the bikes. With just a few minor adjustments, this chassis comes alive. It can drive into corners with precision and be extremely stable at speed.

ELECTIVE CLASSES

Gearing: D The stock 14/51 gearing works well at the Bonneville Salt Flats but not on motocross tracks. Change the 14 countershaft to a 13.

Maps: D We love the sophistication of the multi-switch, but only one map works well out of the three, and only KTM technicians are able to re-map it for you.

Noise: B Not too loud; not too quiet.

Tires: A We love the Dunlop MX3S tires, front and rear.

Price: D Are you willing to spend $750 more on a new bike compared to the Japanese competition? Every dollar is worth it, but if it were in the same price range as the competition, the KTM would be the only bike sold.

Weight: A+ At 218 pounds, this bike is the lightest in its class.

OVERALL 250SXF RATING

Rank in class: First place.