...and I'm NOT talking about my wife!!! :^)

Hey guys n dolls. I'm brand new here so be gentle. My name is Nick and I live in North Carolina. We have about 2000 miles of trails in our back yard that are off limites to dirtbikes and four wheelers but a loophole in the regs allows LICENSED motorcycles. There are riders from all over that ride the roads through the Blue Ridge area. That's why I want to be off road. (no offense to the road rapers), I just prefer the (dirt) road less travelled.

I make my living selling "cutlery" so if you want to know about edgy things just axe. Bikes I've had off and on over the past XXX years. Ironiclly my first was a 1970 Kawasaki 125 2 stroke. Now with my new KLX 250 4 stroke I'm pretty much back where I started. BUT I WANT MORE POWER!!!!

I've got a question about getting better bottom end torque out of my KLX 250. Now b4 you jump my glutes and tell me to check past threads, I have. I'm still confussed. Once you get to know me you'll get used to it.

I've read about carb mods, airbox decapitation, exhast tweaks, smaller front sprockets, larger rear sprockets and even major engine mods. Now to be brutally honest I probably wouldn't need the extra torque nearly as much if I'd lose about 50 pounds but moding the bike is easier than moding my culinary and microbrew intake.

So........I don't really want to go into a great big expensive overhaul but there is SO much info here about moding that I'm confused (again) about where best to start.

I've already generously ventelated the airbox and I've "freed up" the exhaust a bit. No great improvement so far.

My next stab at it was going to be droping down a tooth on the front sprocket, then I read about jumping up 3 teeth on the rear. Which would be better??

I don't understand alot but I do understand there is some minor carb work that can be undertaken involving moding the slide or replacing it. OK. Simple enough even for me. What is the best way to do it??

Crankcase vent adjustement? OK. Please ellaborate.

You guys are light years ahead of me here so I'm going to trust your collective judgement and ask simply (like it not way too late for that):

If there were FIVE things you would do to a stock 2006 KLX 250, on a budget, what would those FIVE things be??

 

going up 3 teeth in the rear is equilent to 1 tooth on the front. the big difference outside of chain wear( forget about it) is that going up 3 teeth in the rear means you need a new chain. the stocker is too short.

there is a hose coming out of the crankcase going to the right side of the airbox on the lower right side(near the foot peg). the hole in the air box is rather small. a lot of guys have made the inside diameter of that hole larger. the gain is minimal at best if at all.

what I would do on a budget is:
1. jet the carb with a klx 300 DJ jetkit
2. get a better freer flowing air filter
3. get a 1/4 turn vortex throttle
4. go to a 47 tooth kdx200/220 sprocket(1996-now) with a longer chain
5. I'd get better tires if you do a lot of offroad riding Trackmaster II's are good.

your looking at $60 for the jet kit,$25 for the air filter,$30 for the throttle,$60 or so for a decent chain. Dennis kirk has a pretty tough chain for short money and get a used kdx sprocket off of e-bay, and $80 or so for the tires.
there's really not much power you can pull out of a stock motor on a budget. the big thing is to not be afraid to hammer the rpm's. get the rev's up and keep em there. You can't pull any 4 gear wheelies with this bike but it'll go up just about anything if ridden correctly.

 

Thanks for the quick and non codisending reply LCPL !!

I've got my eye on a rear sprocket as we speak. Probably a stupid question but.....what kind of beast would I have if I dropped to a 13 tooth front and upped to a 45-47 tooth rear??

I'll look into the carb kit. Will that take care of the slide issue as well?

The tires are Dunlop D603s and pretty much pure dirt. I put extra heavy michelin tubes in them and slimed em. I'm no expert but they seem pretty good to me, bite great and perform on road pretty well too for *****. I've seem many dual sports with more road worthy tread but these Dunlops are pretty dirtie. Should I still consider new?

I vented my airbox liberally and vented both ends of the stock filter then added some filtering material held in place by wire mesh inside the stock filter so breathing IN should be ok. I'd imagine K+N makes filters for these. I love them in my vehicles.

I don't know if this was good or not but I putt a 9 inch long half inch drill bit down the muffler and popper three extra holes in the rear end around the existing exhaust hole.

I'm not looking for speed but more torque would be very welcome.

I weight around 250 as does my son so the bike compreses to a give us good footing but my wife and daughter won't go near it because it's so high. I was thinking about a lowering link so it would be more comfortable for them. The bike is kind of a "family starter". I'd like to get everybody riding so we can eventually go together.

Will a lowering link change the handling characteristics? It would seem that my son and I already compress the suspension when we're on it and we, or I at least, don't do much air time.

A larger fuel tank is also needed. I'm looking for an extra gallon or so and have heard a tank off of a KLX 300 will work and holds about a gallon more. Any better suggestions?

 

simple, you want more low-end?
first, add a 13-tooth front sprocket up front- ($15 at denniskirk.com) this mod is immediately noticeable in power delivery.
the 1/4 throttle does NOTHING to add power and makes it harder to control throttle input for all conditions where moderation is required like street riding. adding a larger rear sprocket requires a new chain, not the cheapest mod out there. not to mention, adding a larger rear sprocket in conjunction with the 13-toother up front will make the bike nearly unrideable anywhere besides a residential street and off-road as the rpms will be sky high on a 13/45 at faster speeds, I know, because I did that to my '06 and frankly, it wasn't much of an improvement over just the 13-tooth alone. the cheapest rear sprocket, which is steel is around $38 and the cheapest chain at denniskirk.com is around $60. $100 of unnecessary mods imo. just do the 13-toother and be done with the gearing.
second, get yourself a KLX300 exhaust as the muffler on the 300 flows excellent and once the buttplug is removed (just screws), it is as good if not better than any slip-on aftermarket slip-on exhaust but be sure and get the 300 header with it as the 250's header is a bit shorter and won't match up with the 300's muffler. check ebay for a used one but be warned, they are getting harder to find for this exact reason. cheapest slip-on aftermarket is the HMF, a nice looking unit for around $200.
third I would buy the Keihin/kawi carb parts from ronayers.com. the N1TC adjustable needle and a new main jet for your sea-level would do the trick for around $30, or if your dealer stocks these parts you could get them there quicker and skip the shipping charges making them even cheaper. furnish your sea level and we can recommend the setting for the needle and mainjet size.
fourth- Uni-filter or Twin-Air filter. ($20-$25)
fifth- remove the snorkel on the airbox. free
sixth- if you really want to, enlarge the crankcase vent hole with a heated up drillbit. just push it through with some tightened visegrips to skip the drilling and mess. 2-3 seconds and you're through. This mod isn't that noticeable, but it does enable the bike to rev quicker. free

so depending on prices, $60 plus the exhaust could do the trick for you. I wish I could have spent like that on my first KLX. my '09 is a different story. I got a full used Muzzy system for $100, got a DJ jet kit for $45, a Twin-Air filter for $25 and the Moose 13-tooth sprocket for around $17 after shipping. so I'm in it for around $140 and I'm pretty happy with it. good luck and just remember that everyone will tell you something different but all in all, we know the cheapest ways to make the KLX go faster.

 

Thanks guys. I'm always a little warry of new forums because a person is never real sure about the "atmosphere". So far so good.

Air Box. I've left the snorkle on but I've drilled about a dozen half inch holes in the top of the box all around the snorkle.

Filter. I'll buy a better aftermarket but for the mean time I've taken the stock filter and bored about 6 half inch holes in each end, cut some filter material to fit and secured it in with wire mesh.

Should these take care of everything north of carburation ?

I've also punched the muffler and perforted therear plate and whaterver is under it with 3 haf inch holes.

These are all kinda jerry rigged quick experimental fixes and so far not much noticable giddyup.

I think since the 13 tooth front is the cheapest and less involved that will be where I start.

Then carburation.

As far as exhaust goes I would like to keep things a quiet as possible so not to disturb hikers and wildlife and to keep a low profile. Is there a whisper quiet exhaust that will increase performance or are those 2 things at opposite ends of the power curve?

Lowering link. I'm 250 and so is my son. It's a little high to get my leg over without a little jump but compresses quite a bit. I would like to get my wife on it so we could get a second and go together but she's affraid of it because it's too tall and her toes barely touch the ground when she is sitting on it.

I've heard that lowering can screw with handing characteristics. My theory is that I compress hell outta the suspension anyway so probably no big. If Joyce rides that will be different. Does a lowering link really interfere with handling. We aren't real agressive riders. Mostly backroads, fire roads and trails.

If lowering the rear, should the front forks be adjusted down as well?

 

1. 13tooth
2. Re-jet
3. airbox decapitation
4. air filter and drill last baffle out of stock pipe (free if you own a 1/2in bit)
5. id say remove the smog assembly- its free and while it doesn't give the motor more power it lets it rev freer and removes weight so you only have to lose 48lbs now

 

$4750.00 wazzat??

When I'm looking at parts alot of sellers on greedEbay don't know what the parts will interchange with. Me niether.

It seems that there are a bunch of parts that are interchangable between the KLX 250 and the KLX 300 as well as the DRZ 250 and 300.

Am I safe buying KLX 250/300 - DRZ 250/300 parts for my KLX 250 as long as the model years are the same?

Ebay can be kinda a crap shoot. I'd rather spend my money with a company that does good business and get most of my stuff from one or two places which saves some shipping and gives more peace of mind.

I'd imagine youze guyz got some favorites. If they b good enuff for you, they b good enuff for me.

 

Lots of good tips and food for thought. So far you've got me pretty busy.

Has anybody experimented with different spark plugs?

This is out there a bit but what about water injection?

I've rigged up an O2 injection system on my Suburban and it seems to get a bit more power with a bit less fuel.

 

yeah I put in a new NGK iridium plug from the stock unit a few weeks back, but it didn't offer a bit of performance and to be honest, it doesn't run any smoother or start any better. not that I expected a boost but I figured I should put in a new plug and this is the best NGK plug you can get. spark plugs are overhyped just like oil- a spark is a spark and can only travel in one direction; as long as you've got it, a new plug is a waste.

 

Hello Nick,

Welcome to the site and here is what i did,

13 t frt sprocket
std carb mods (see FAQ)
smog delete (see FAQ)
KLX300 OE exhaust w/ buttplug. Great mod for $60 off Craigslist. Nice throaty sound when on it and very stealthy when cruising
Dunlop 606's front and rear. Significant improvement in all conditions off road. Fine on road.
Vortex quick throttle. This is a great mod. It feels like you got an extra 50cc in the motor. Great grunt down low. This was done last and i can now loft the front wheel in the woops at will. It is not difficult to moderate the throttle on the street unless your name is 09KLXowner Check past posts on this mod and you will order one.

Be very carefull of 09KLXowner. He claims to know everything but knows little. Changes his mind and bikes on a whim and is disliked by almost everybody on this forum and he is the only one that doesn't know why.......

He is on his 2nd screen name and i am not sure why he hasn't changed it again. This way he can polute the newbes with his trash and they can't look at his past jiberish.

I had lowering links on my bike, but at 185 lbs they make the rear too soft and bottom out very easly. Buy an 2003 or so XR100 for the wife($1200 or so) and leave your 250 alone. The 100 will be much better for here to handle and learn on while gaining confidence and experience. Move here up from there and give the XR100 to your daughter.


KLXelent