I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

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John_S
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I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

Post by John_S »

A friend of mine just bought one and I got the chance to ride it. I'm 6'1 and the bike is a no go for me. It feels heavy and really small. The power is very mild but it gets up and going ok. Just looking at the two side by side it appears more like a CRF 230 in size. He's been falling a lot just learning how to ride on deep sand trails and it has a hard time restarting every time. Like to the point where we're pretty sure we're stuck there, and then it fires up. It seems like it just may need to sit for a little bit. If he tries to start it right away it cranks with no hint of firing up. It also runs really hot and I've since read about how lean they made it for emissions reasons. The pipe and silencer will fry your skin in a split second. He's about 5'6 - 5'7 and it fits him well and is the perfect bike for him to learn on. If Kawasaki would've made that the KDX 300 instead of KLX I still wouldn't like it based on the proportions. If it turns out to be reliable then it will make a great bike for a lot of people but its no match for the ol KDX.
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Re: I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

Post by John_S »

Tell us what you really think, huh? It wasn't my original intention to dog the bike but apparently that's how I feel about it. I think its a great bike for him. His other buddies give him hell for scratching his "wife's bike" up. He's already talking about getting a little more hours on it, giving it to his 13 year old son and getting something different. I think he could keep the bike and be perfectly content on it.
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Re: I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

Post by KDXGarage »

Say what you think.

Many of us like what we have, but none of us can go buy a new one from a dealer now. :-(
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bufftester
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Re: I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

Post by bufftester »

The motor in the new KLX300 is basically the same motor from the earlier version, just with E-start and FI. The original bikes had a horrendous hot start problem. You could fix it with a hot start lever, or the better fix involved taking out the cams and adjusting the auto decompression mechanism, and the addition of a pumper carb. With FI I wouldn't expect those issues, but if jetted really lean it's possible I suppose. I haven't had the chance to sit on one, but I'm curious, because my 99 KLX300 is nearly the same size as my KDX, sounds like the new one is closer to the street version KLX250 in ergonomics.
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SS109
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Re: I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

Post by SS109 »

There are already hand held tuners available to fix the lean tuning from the factory. From what I've heard, the tuner and and exhaust change really make for some nice gains on the 300. Not 250f/450f race power but noticeable improvements.
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Re: I got to ride a 2021 KLX300R

Post by KDXGarage »

SS109, thanks for the info. I remember reading a couple of people saying it was lean from the factory. (SURPRISE, I think about all are)
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