pw, I think the KLX gets a little more of a leg up than many DS bikes. It comes from the KLX250/300R which was designed and built to a more dirtworthy level than many pure DS models. Doesn't mean it can't be broken, but it's way above the level of an XT250 Yamaha.

 

As another poster mentioned, it looks like someone started a fix-it. I'd be asking the prior owner about this...

 

Glad you saw that before it completely broke while riding . Looks to me like it took a heavy impact and over time the crack traveled. Nothing a good welder can't fix. Good luck!

 

I wish I had the bike to inspect what looks like a weld but I remember it looking like it was the weld that held the radiator mount. You can see the bent tab and the foot in that photo and the weld is at the end of it. I could be wrong, and like I said I don't have the frame at this moment to inspect. There is no indication in the paint that a "fix" was done or any grind marks. Does anyone have a weld at the foot of that tab? That would help me determine if it was done later as a fix. The bike is a 2009 klx250s. Thanks

 

Here's a photo of that area of my '09 S.

 

Mmmm....yours looks so nice and uncracked! Thanks for the pic. I will try and figure out more when I get it back but otherwise I have the shop ready to repair it and get back riding!

 

Lots of folks on here are more knowledgeable that me, but I don't see how that crack happens in that spot without an impact of some sort. In other words, regardless of whether the PO attempted to weld it back up, I don't see how he didn't know there was a problem. That is definitely the weak spot in a front end impact. Below is a pic of the frame of the wrecked '09 that I am parting out:

 

With the bike you are parting out, what other damage is there? Front end impacts also occur with normal riding. Are you folks familiar with the trails in Moab? Specifically Slickrock, Fins n Things, and Kane Creek. These are the trails I ride there and there are numerous steep rock roll offs onto flat and many places you have to drive your bike into the rock to pop the front wheel up to climb the rock hills. I am going to fix the bike either way, I am just trying to determine the speed and force difference between front end impact that happens in a wreck and front end impact that happens when riding.

 

It's entirely possible that the PO didn't have any accidents with the bike. He could have been riding it off-road and looped it or something... even hitting a tree or whatever. Who knows.

A lot of dirtbike riders wouldn't even think twice about that kind of impact but I suppose it would be enough to stress the frame on these bikes if that's such a weak area.

 

Many of us have ridden those areas and worse on our KLX's. The KLX is more than tough enough for Southern Utah and others. My KLX has hit the ground, rocks, trees, and other obstacles with some regularity. I'm highly impressed at how well most of bike takes some pretty serious carnage...with perhaps the exception of the OEM handlebars and turn signals. GoWings, I wouldn't get down on the KLX if I were you. Someone at some point smacked that bike into something pretty darned hard...probably hard enough to damage most other quality dirt bikes in the same way. Trying to figure exactly how it happened and how much it took may be a moot point now.