Kawasaki is bringing the two stroke back!

kevin204
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3/12/2025 9:08am
PRM31 wrote:
Any talk of a 500 2T is crazy to me. Have you ridden one? I’m a big 2t fan, but don’t need to go there again...

Any talk of a 500 2T is crazy to me. Have you ridden one? I’m a big 2t fan, but don’t need to go there again. Sign me up for a 300cc at the most. 

spimx wrote:
500 2t are the most difficult and not fun bike I've ever ridden. The novelty of riding a 500 wears off quick and your bones get...

500 2t are the most difficult and not fun bike I've ever ridden. The novelty of riding a 500 wears off quick and your bones get the punishment 

Honestly, depends totally on what type of riding you’re doing. I wouldn’t be caught dead on an MX track on one, but for open trail riding and blasting fire roads, they’re great. The vibration and antiquated chassis are really the big downsides, aside from the astronomical prices they are going for now. 

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3/12/2025 9:52am
kAW LACKEY 2

 

It's gonna be a 450 with a black color scheme...or so I'm told. 🙄

 

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BryceO766
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3/12/2025 5:43pm

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

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Village Idiot
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3/12/2025 6:19pm
BryceO766 wrote:
Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with...

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

Here's hoping it's a hanger frame instead of a perimeter frame - much easier for maintenance... which is a lot of a 2T's innate charm. They go together like PB&J. 

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The Shop

Village Idiot
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3/12/2025 6:22pm
 It's gonna be a 450 with a black color scheme...or so I'm told. 🙄   
kAW LACKEY 2

 

It's gonna be a 450 with a black color scheme...or so I'm told. 🙄

 

Black?

Wouldn't have seen that coming - some very original outside-the-box creativity on display there. Maybe they'll really push the envelope and put black rims on it?

Nah, no one's that crazy.

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3/12/2025 6:28pm Edited Date/Time 3/12/2025 6:36pm
BryceO766 wrote:
Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with...

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

Here's hoping it's a hanger frame instead of a perimeter frame - much easier for maintenance... which is a lot of a 2T's innate charm. They...

Here's hoping it's a hanger frame instead of a perimeter frame - much easier for maintenance... which is a lot of a 2T's innate charm. They go together like PB&J. 

It’s a Kawi. It’s gonna have a perimeter frame. It is the biggest part of their brand identity besides greenness

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Village Idiot
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3/12/2025 6:47pm
BryceO766 wrote:
Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with...

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

Here's hoping it's a hanger frame instead of a perimeter frame - much easier for maintenance... which is a lot of a 2T's innate charm. They...

Here's hoping it's a hanger frame instead of a perimeter frame - much easier for maintenance... which is a lot of a 2T's innate charm. They go together like PB&J. 

It’s a Kawi. It’s gonna have a perimeter frame. It is the biggest part of their brand identity besides greenness

Notice I used the word "hoping". 😁

OleTex2
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3/12/2025 7:47pm

Seeing how smooth Broc Glover was on his YZ490 still amazes me. Air cooled engine too. 

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3/12/2025 8:30pm Edited Date/Time 3/12/2025 8:31pm

I still think it will be either a KX125 or a KDX200 

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3/12/2025 8:36pm

I still think it will be either a KX125 or a KDX200 

or KX150 and KDX220 with the same frame, different engines.

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Gravel
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3/13/2025 1:38pm
PRM31 wrote:
Any talk of a 500 2T is crazy to me. Have you ridden one? I’m a big 2t fan, but don’t need to go there again...

Any talk of a 500 2T is crazy to me. Have you ridden one? I’m a big 2t fan, but don’t need to go there again. Sign me up for a 300cc at the most. 

I rode 500s for about 10 years, the first year hurt a lot, after that it was great! As other have mentioned, you learn to ride a 500 differently than a smaller bike/four stroke, you gotta respect it a little more and learn good throttle control. 

I think a modern, FI, counterbalanced 500 could be a big teddy bear of a bike. But not for me, I just turned 60, it’s for the strong young guys, lol!

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3/13/2025 4:35pm

I still think it will be either a KX125 or a KDX200 

or KX150 and KDX220 with the same frame, different engines.

I guess the brain trust decided it was gonna be a big bore 

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3/13/2025 4:42pm

I still think it will be either a KX125 or a KDX200 

or KX150 and KDX220 with the same frame, different engines.

I guess the brain trust decided it was gonna be a big bore 

A KX250 and KDX300 would get the most vet sales.

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agn5008
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3/13/2025 5:56pm

I still think it will be either a KX125 or a KDX200 

Anything other than a 300 (or similar) would be absolutely idiotic when it comes to the number of bikes that will be sold. If they want to produce an entire lineup like KTM does that’s fine, but as far as building one full size 2 stroke, it has to be a 300. 

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early
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3/13/2025 6:19pm

A bottom end built to takes either a 250 or 300 jug in a common chassis would be the logical thing to build. Unless they wanted to build a bike for EMX125 and GNCC XC3 and possibly other future US 125 racing.

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sandman768
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3/14/2025 6:13am

Were a few months into this and…..so far all Kawa has brought back is a recall😂

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sam hain
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3/14/2025 6:58am Edited Date/Time 3/14/2025 6:59am

My local dealer sells Kaw and KTM, I was in last Saturday picking up some parts for my kids bike and asked the sales guy about this. He said he's been grilling his Kaw rep and all the guy will respond with is "it sure would be nice if it was a 300 2stk wouldn't it?". He said the Japanese (Kawi) guys came over to bike week at Daytona 4yrs ago and attended several races, one being the GNCC and noticed all the 2stks being raced and made a comment that was a market they needed to get involved in. Given all that and what I posted several pages back about a buddy of mine asking Stu Baylor and him saying a 300 to compete with KTM. My money is on a big bore woods bike.

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PRM31
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3/17/2025 11:44am
BryceO766 wrote:
Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with...

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

If true, surely someone has a camera with a long lens and can follow Broc to a track. 

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GPrider
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3/17/2025 12:31pm

no way they are still deciding frame material. They are literally two completely different styles. Everything else on the bike would be affected one way or the other. That decision was made a year or two ago. That would be one of the first things to decide, not one of the last!

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Gravel
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3/17/2025 12:34pm
BryceO766 wrote:
Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with...

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

PRM31 wrote:

If true, surely someone has a camera with a long lens and can follow Broc to a track. 

If Kawasaki hasn’t decided what the frame material will be, we won’t see a bike until late 2027 at the earliest. 

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280driver
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3/17/2025 12:57pm

I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis for one bike is way too specialized.

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BryceO766
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3/17/2025 3:29pm
GPrider wrote:
no way they are still deciding frame material. They are literally two completely different styles. Everything else on the bike would be affected one way or...

no way they are still deciding frame material. They are literally two completely different styles. Everything else on the bike would be affected one way or the other. That decision was made a year or two ago. That would be one of the first things to decide, not one of the last!

Was given this info straight from the source so…. 

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BryceO766
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3/17/2025 3:32pm
280driver wrote:
I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis...

I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis for one bike is way too specialized.

It won’t just be one bike, it’s going to be a full line of 2 strokes both trail and MX just like what KTM has done. I don’t have specific engine sizes but this is what I was told. It’s a 2 year plan from what it sounds like. Mx models first, trail models the following year. 

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TDC
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3/17/2025 3:36pm
280driver wrote:
I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis...

I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis for one bike is way too specialized.

Then there's the observation that there are no ali frames in the off-road segment. Well, other than the Japanese brands dabbling with compromising motocross based machines.

PRM31
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3/17/2025 3:43pm

I do realize, and agree, that if they are just picking a frame this seems a long way from production. I could see choosing between two very similar frames… 

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bvm111
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3/17/2025 3:44pm

A KX300 would be pretty cool sitting next to my 2006 KX250 in the garage! 

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RACING
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3/17/2025 4:09pm
BryceO766 wrote:
Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with...

Broc Tickle is testing frames next week. They have a steel frame and AL frame they are testing before it’s finalized. Fingers crossed they go with the steel frame.

I was about to ask "Anybody knows when we'll see a bike?", I got the answer: in three to five years.

😄

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RACING
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3/17/2025 4:30pm
TDC wrote:

Then there's the observation that there are no ali frames in the off-road segment. Well, other than the Japanese brands dabbling with compromising motocross based machines.

Capture d%E2%80%99e%CC%81cran 2025-03-18 a%CC%80 00.26.45.png?VersionId=X8FIs1kfAs.
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ratonmacias
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3/17/2025 5:24pm
280driver wrote:
I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis...

I would be shocked if the bike isn’t on the 4-stroke MX chassis as that is the most affordable way to go.  Having a separate chassis for one bike is way too specialized.

TDC wrote:

Then there's the observation that there are no ali frames in the off-road segment. Well, other than the Japanese brands dabbling with compromising motocross based machines.

Triumph Will have aluminium in their off road bikes

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Gravel
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3/17/2025 7:24pm
TDC wrote:

Then there's the observation that there are no ali frames in the off-road segment. Well, other than the Japanese brands dabbling with compromising motocross based machines.

RACING wrote:
Capture d%E2%80%99e%CC%81cran 2025-03-18 a%CC%80 00.26.45.png?VersionId=X8FIs1kfAs.

Honda has done pretty good in Baja over the last 20 years with aluminum frames. The XR650 was a tank, but it was an aluminum tank, and the 450x picked up right where the 650 left off.

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