2010 RMX 450 Z http://www.racerxonline.com/article/2010-suzukis.aspx Wow! Not street-legal and only 21+ lbs. heavier than a street-legal KTM 450 or 530 EXCR.
Yea they screwed the pooch again with the gas tank..... Do they even know what they are doing sometimes.....:huh They can build AMA race bikes (GSXR1000) that kick butt...but they can't build a MotoGP bike to save their life to win a race.....
My guess is you are really looking at the work of the Yoshimura team and the leadership of Don Sakakura when it comes to AMA racing. He runs a tight ship where winning is a tradition.
No doubt the aftermarket will jump on this and we will see and IMS and Clarke tank available the day the bike appears in showrooms. My guess is the small tank is due to the F.I. inlet track and air box space conflict. Still .... stupid on Suzuki's part. Did they forget where this bike is likely to be ridden? And who will be riding this bike? Sure, some racers will race it, but lots of trail riders will too and mid level enduro riders. I wonder if the bike will be Green Sticker legal for Ca? And where is the 250cc version? You don't go desert riding with 1.6 gals. of gas. And you don't go to Baja that way either. Will it match the WR for long term reliability? (WR is current champion in this area, so it seems) The wide ratio gear box is good and it's got lots of the same components as the MX'er .... but would be nice if they put a plate on it, but I suppose the cost is too high and would add weight in order to bring it into 50 state compliance. KTM & Husky are given special small manufacturer dispensation and need not be as "Clean" as the higher standard the Japanese are held to EPA wise. BTW, fuel economy should be BETTER, NOT WORSE with F.I. At least every F.I. bike I've had has been really frugal with the gas. (Honda VFR, Aprilia Capo and Tuono, two Vstroms, BMW GS ) A good example is to compare a Carb version of a 950 KTM Adventure to the F.I. version. BIG difference in favor on the F.I. version.
Quoted curb weight: 272.3 lbs without fuel, not necessarily any worse than the majority of their four stroke competitors, but oink, oink... 996DL
I imagine they don't want to plate it, bcause it would then require a minimum 12 month warranty. Guessing the same reason Honda, Yamaha, and Kawasaki don't plate theirs either. Oh, and it says right there in the press release that it is Green Sticker eligible in CA.
Huh :huh Husky TE range is street legal and AFAIK they don't come with a 12 month warranty in the US.
I doubt if any of the big four are afraid to offer a warranty for the bike, although none offer much of a warranty for race bikes. Some 30 days or less? Warranties are not a problem if the product is reliable. But there are other costs and mucho complications to having a new product certified by EPA/CARB for sale as a street legal bike. Do you know what it costs? It's very expensive and takes time. Once again, both Husky and Ktm are not required to pay as much as a major company due to their relatively small sales numbers. So certification for them is more feasible. Trust me, the Japanese companies are NOT happy about this situation and are lobbying hard to change it. Generally the big four never make street legal competition bikes but undertake to redesign a NEW bike. See DRZ400S for an example. Compare to DRZ400E. Very different motorcycles.
For some strange reason, Suzuki finds it necessary to use a pressurized (and small) aluminum fuel tank; I'm curious how the aftermarket will respond to this. Honda, Yamaha, and Husqvarna get by with a plastic fuel cell with their fuel injection systems. I'm not sure that KTM gets special small manufacturer dispensation and does not need to be as "Clean" as the higher standard the Japanese are held to EPA wise; as KTM sells more dirt bikes than Kawasaki. Current reports on the motocross version RMZ450 say that it is a bit thirsty, which really doesn't matter for a 45 minute or less moto, but maybe the RMX map is tuned for economy.
NOT.... I'm not going it get in to a flame war with you Cody but you're wrong. 90 day powertrain warranty is all you get on the new KTM race bikes. I just called Moore and Sons KTM here in SC to confirm. Also checked the KTM website and they make no claims on warranty.
Still rather have a ktm 200 smoker for the woods. Or any mx 250 2stroke with a flywheel weight, skidplate, and handguards.
i'm gonna have to start saving... this is everything a DRZ owner could ever dream of having! its exactly what drzers have been wanting since the drz came out! look at every thread in every forum about what would make the drz better and this has everything, FI, 450bore, and light as a 450 mxer(just no fricken 6speed) this bike is brilliant!!!! I wouldn't be surprised if this was a rebadged kawi as suzuki as we all know has a history of teaming up with them to make bikes
The RMX 450 Z is 25 lbs. heavier than the RMZ 450 (272 lbs. vs. 247 lbs.), and the RMX 450 Z only has a fuel capacity of 1.6 gallons. The Kawasaki-Suzuki relationship has long been dissolved.
