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I'm coming off my 250 XC and love my KDX 200 "play" bike and I'm wondering if I should go with a fork and RB mod'd 200 or a 220 for HS racing in northern california? I weigh 175 and I'm not if the 200 upgraded will be enough bike/motor.

The 200 is the more "high strung" of the two as it has more top end. With those mods you would be competitive. Hell, You are not going to really gain anything over the 200 by switching, and you already have the 200, so why not go with it?

THe 200 is my kids bike, it's plenty for him and doesn't need any more HP and I'll have to buy another KDX if I want one for myself. THe 200 as-is . . . requires extra shifting and clutching to keep in the powerband. With the carb and head mods I'll be able to just twist the throttle and worry less about being in the optimum gear?

Sounds like what you really want is a 4t!

The 220 has more low end grunt than the 200 at the expense of losing some top end from what I understand. However, it is still a small bore 2t so gear selection will still be important. Maybe a 200 with an suto-clutch would do what you need?

As for the 200 itself, I ride nothing but desert here in Southern AZ. Single track to fire roads. I wish it had more top end in long straights but it more than makes up for it in the tight twisty stuff with it's grunt. I can lug my 200 as low as a 4t and climb every hill I have encountered in 2nd gear. BTW, I never use the clutch when riding. Only on very steep, tractionless hill climbs and taking off from a stop do I ever use it.

Anyways, hopefully someone who has ridden both can chime in here and give you a more educated comparison.

I rode a 2000 KDX 220 before buying the 2000 KDX 200, both new and stock.

To me, the 200 felt like it had so much more life in it. I didn't notice any difference in low-end torque whatsoever between the two.

Torque will usually come from a longer stroke, not necessarily a slight increase in bore size.


To add, I've heard nothing but bad things about the 220 top-end.

200 it is. It sounds like I can get a lot out of the mods listed on this Site.

One of the reasons for a 200cc displacement is the fact that there is a class for this to be raced in. If you get a 220, just race your 250xc instead....That's the class you'll be in. RB'd head/carb, and a VF3 reed cage will do a lot concering grunt to pull gears where you would've downshifted otherwise.

It's a fun bike and I'm looking forward to the mods. Thx for all the great advice.

A word of advice about D36 Hare Scrambles. Don't. Really. Not unless you want to get hurt. It's not D36's fault or the promoters fault. The problem is lack of space to race in Nor Cal.
The courses are getting smaller and the entries are going up.
The loops are at MOST twelve miles long. The are so many riders, that in my opinion, it's dangerous.
Make the drive to Nevada and race Mrann. Some of the races have two 50 mile loops!

http://www.racemrann.com/

My club is putting on a kick-ass race in November... hell, you can stay at my house if need be.

I'm a D36 B Rider and I agree with you partially. I did one NV race and, well sand, dust and wnd. I'm not a sand rider . . . brutal . . .I was very, very tired. My cousin used to race Mrann and he's a big fan. It looks like you guys have two races in November. You know, with a little moisture I could be interested in an Mrann race. Who knows and thanks for offering a place to stay.

curtisa wrote:I'm a D36 B Rider and I agree with you partially. I did one NV race and, well sand, dust and wnd. I'm not a sand rider . . . brutal . . .I was very, very tired. My cousin used to race Mrann and he's a big fan. It looks like you guys have two races in November. You know, with a little moisture I could be interested in an Mrann race. Who knows and thanks for offering a place to stay.

Your cuz is right. Our race is the Dead Camel 100, Nov 13/14. The course in a mix of virgin track and awesome single track. It was voted ROTY 2009. Dust usually isn't an issue in November.
Check out the vid. It's the womens race (= to mens d36) it'll give and idea of the track conditions.

Kidding about the d36 mens race!

how the heck do you know where the course is on that race??? Nothing but wide open desert!

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heckler wrote:how the heck do you know where the course is on that race??? Nothing but wide open desert!

That's the beauty of it. Actually it's my job to make sure all the intersections, corners and hazards are clearly marked.

Racing in the Dez is not for everybody. Gotta be on your game... 110%

What's so hard about this?


Heck, my wife can do it...


See a trail here?

Your wife is a stud. Deep sand gives me the jitters;) That was nothing like a D36 HS course. There's nothing like riding new terrain . . .