Suzuki tests

The most important thing you should have learned after reading last month's ?MXA 450 Four-Stroke Shootout? is that there is no such thing as the ?every-man bike.? Though the Kawasaki KX450F took top honors, all the bikes in the field have…
Read More...

The MXA wrecking crew has a unique relationship with Ricky Carmichael. We have tested more of Carmichael's race bikes than anyone, except for Ricky himself. It was 17 years ago that we began riding Ricky's race bikes, starting with his…
Read More...

FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2013 SUZUKI RM-Z450 BETTER THAN THE 2012 RM-Z450? A: Yes and no. First of all, it would be hard not to be, given that the 2012 Suzuki RM-Z450 was really the 2011 RM-Z450 with a red stripe on the seat cover. So,…
Read More...

FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2013 RM-Z250 BETTER THAN THE 2012 RM-Z250? A: To be precise, a better question would be ?Is the 2013 RM-Z250 better than the 2011 RM-Z250.? Why? Suzuki didn?t make any major changes to the RM-Z250 in 2012. Aside…
Read More...

We wouldn?t be telling tales out of school to say that Suzuki has pressed the pause button as of late when it comes to motocross development. Maybe it's just us, but we can?t help but feel that Suzuki is coasting because of poor sales for…
Read More...

2013 SUZUKI RM-Z450 For 2013, the RM-Z450 is also redesigned to give riders an even greater edge. Its powerful, four-stroke liquid-cooled four-valve engine features updates including a new lighter piston, revised piston pin and…
Read More...

The MXA wrecking crew spends the majority of its test time racing and riding brand-new production motorcycles, but early on in each test session every bike gets its day on the dyno. It really isn?t all that revealing because by the time its…
Read More...

Let's face it, not everyone is in the market for a 2012 250 four-stroke. That's okay with us. There are many choices when it comes to purchasing a motorcycle?two-stroke, four-stroke, 125, 250 and 450. Depending on your…
Read More...

Q: FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2012 RM-Z250 BETTER THAN THE 2011 RM-Z250? A: That depends on who you ask. Our aesthetically focused test riders were enamored by the feng shui of the red stripe on the seat cover in relation to the red accents…
Read More...

The first generation of Suzuki RM-Z250s weren?t built for the average motocross racer as far MXA is concerned. Suzuki's original target rider was an anorexic 12-year-old who never revved his engine. The fork and shock springs were soft, and…
Read More...

Pity the poor fool who enters headstrong and dimwitted into the 2011 motocross fray. For the uninitiated, the motocross world is a confusing maelstrom of conflicting information?made all the worse by the rapid expansion of avenues of…
Read More...

NUMBER ONE: 2009 KAWASAKI KX450F Unlike the other fuel-injected bikes, which stumble at 8000 rpm, the 2009 Kawasaki KX450F keeps pulling to 9400 rpm. The ?09 KX450F has the second most horsepower in the class and decent…
Read More...

The Honda CRF450, KTM 450SXF, Yamaha YZ450F, KTM 350SXF, Kawasaki KX450F and Suzuki RM-Z450 are all major players in what consumers might well think of as a $8500 crap shoot. It is the MXA wrecking crew's goal to take the gamble out of…
Read More...

Historically, choosing shootout winners is easy for the MXA wrecking crew. We race the bikes every weekend for six months, switch back and forth (sometimes between motos), try every possible gearing and suspension combination,…
Read More...

Q: FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2012 SUZUKI RM-Z450 BETTER THAN THE 2011 RM-Z450? A: Not unless the red stripe down the seat cover has some technical edge that we are unaware of. Q: WHAT DID SUZUKI CHANGE ON THE 2012 RM-Z450? A: When we tell…
Read More...

Q: FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2011 RM-Z450 BETTER THAN THE 2010 RM-Z450? A: Yes, but with so few 2010 RM-Z450s offered for sale last year, the important question is whether the 2011 RM-Z450 is better than the 2009 model?which it is by leaps…
Read More...

Q: FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2011 RM-Z250 BETTER THAN THE 2010 RM-Z250? A: Yes. How so? A total of 34 changes have been made to the 2011 Suzuki RM-Z250. That's quite a few updates, considering that in 2010 the RM-Z250 was practically new…
Read More...

With each new medium of information comes new opportunities for marketing, and believe it or not, computers are yesterday's news. Cell phones with web browsing, GPS and many other impressive applications are literally attached at the hip of…
Read More...

WHAT IS IT? The Hinson Billetproof clutch is a be-all, end-all solution to the lame-duck clutch that comes stock in the 2011 Suzuki RM-Z250. WHAT'S IT COST? $199.99 (fiber/steel plates and springs); $169.99 (clutch cover); $274.99 (clutch…
Read More...

1. Forks. If you?re faster than a Novice or weigh more than 150 pounds, then you will need to install stiffer fork springs. The stock 0.44 kg/mm springs are too soft. MXA switched to 0.46 kg/mm springs. Once the change has been made, your…
Read More...

2012 RMZ 450 Test from Travis Fant on Vimeo .
Read More...

1. Forks. The forks have issues. They have had spring-rate problems forever, and for 2009 they suffere from the same woes. Our best advice is to go stiffer on the fork springs. We changed the stock 0.47s to 0.49s. Once you have the correct…
Read More...

WHAT IS IT? Composed of titanium and carbon fiber and developed for Team Suzuki's 250 program, the Yoshimura RS-4 Pro Series RM-Z250 exhaust system is the cream of Yoshimura's crop. WHAT'S IT COST? $595.00 (stainless/aluminum); $945.00…
Read More...

2012 RM-Z450 The RM-Z450 changes visible to the naked eye are the black fork guards and red stripe down the seat cover. The 2012 RM-Z450 is an open-class motocross machine that's ready to dominate the toughest of tracks. As a racer, you…
Read More...

We live in a world of constant judgment. Critical eyes and biased opinions are everywhere. Everyone has an opinion on everything?even stuff they know nothing about. Sadly, one man's opinion is another man's resource for a fact. Ignorance…
Read More...

2011 RM-Z250 For 2011 Suzuki has taken its potent RM-Z250, and have fine-tuned it into an even more capable machine. The 2011 RM-Z has seen numerous updates: it now meets a stricter AMA noise limit (94db) while maintaining smooth engine…
Read More...

Sometimes moments pass so fast that you don't have time to muse on them. The 2009 season was like that for Ryan Dungey. He not only won the 250 West Supercross Championship, but the AMA 250 National Championship and the 450 class at the…
Read More...

The 2009 season will go down as being one of the most exciting championship battles of the last decade. Chad Reed and James Stewart went toe-to-toe all the way to Las Vegas for the Supercross crown, while more riders won AMA 450 Nationals…
Read More...

A few months ago the thought of testing this bike was a distant dream. Why? Word spread like wildfire through the racing world that Suzuki's 2009 amateur program went belly up. For all intents and purposes, Suzuki's amateur program was…
Read More...