Vital MX 250 Shootout

GuyB
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GuyB
The full text version with dyno charts, etc., will be up soon, but in the meantime, you can find the video here...

https://www.vitalmx.com/videos/features/2020-Vital-MX-250-Shootout,1839…
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Tarz483
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Tarz483 10/4/2019 3:51pm
10/4/2019 3:51pm
So far
MXA KTM
ML Honda
CivBars
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CivBars 10/4/2019 4:05pm
10/4/2019 4:05pm
Tarz483 wrote:
So far
MXA KTM
ML Honda
Swap Moto Live- Yamaha

Vital MX- Yamaha

ML was tied, Yamaha and Honda but the tie breaker went to Honda for 3 number 1 picks vs 2 for the Yamaha.
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Tarz483
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Tarz483 10/4/2019 5:15pm
10/4/2019 5:15pm Edited Date/Time 10/4/2019 5:16pm
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year ,
thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about The KTM and HUSKY 250f
Lightest Fastest Perfect amount of low end perfect amount of top end on and on , so I cant help but wonder is a 2018 better than a 2020?
If you could find a Super low hour used one that has been sitting in someone's garage for 2 years is that the way to go ?

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gavinmgrant
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gavinmgrant 10/4/2019 6:25pm
10/4/2019 6:25pm
I’ll be getting the KTM 250 tomorrow. Most guys I ride with sold their 2018 and 2019 yz250f’s due to reliability issues. The Honda seems really solid. I’ll always bleed green but just not impressed with the kawi compared to the upgrades the Ktm comes stock with. I think most bikes are about the same, just personal preference for your style and ability. KTM for me.
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T-MAC
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T-MAC 10/4/2019 7:30pm
10/4/2019 7:30pm Edited Date/Time 10/4/2019 7:34pm
Tarz483 wrote:
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year , thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about...
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year ,
thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about The KTM and HUSKY 250f
Lightest Fastest Perfect amount of low end perfect amount of top end on and on , so I cant help but wonder is a 2018 better than a 2020?
If you could find a Super low hour used one that has been sitting in someone's garage for 2 years is that the way to go ?
If you can find the bike you speak of, that probably would be a really good option to save some bucks as I'm sure they are really good bikes too. Both the 2020 KTM and Husky are awesome bikes, and the power they have and how they deliver it were my favorite. If you are a more point and shoot type of guy you might have to do a little more shifting. Other than that they have a really smooth but strong power curve that feels like it just keeps pulling.

Totally unrelated but I just need to mention it haha... I think the "Husqvarna Carbon Polyamide Composite Subframe"
is badass. And even though it isn't "true" carbon fiber, it really isn't all that far off strength wise (especially in this application) and is a far more clean and precise part than traditional hand layup, or even compression molded (forged) carbon. My guess is it's a nylon base resin with 6-12mm long carbon fiber pieces chopped up into bits at 30% into the plastic, which makes for a super strong and super trick piece of (p)art.

Anyways, I think the biggest differentiator this year is their suspension and the route both manufacturers went with their setup. I also think it is fair to say a lot of folks out there typically have their suspension sent off and setup for their specs these days anyways.

The Yamaha suspension damping felt really good (really good), but it did seem like maybe it had a bit more of a neutral setup per-se where both ends of the spectrum speed/weight wise seemed to get along without much adjustment out of the gate. I personally felt like the KTM probably catered to slightly heavier, or more aggressive/faster riders out of the gate, whereas the Husky catered more towards the lighter/novice riders in stock spec. The Yamaha also has a really good motor. For me personally the Husky was the complete package and I got along really well with the bike and it's power characteristics. I'm looking at what things in my garage I can sell now...
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Dimblewambie
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Dimblewambie 10/4/2019 7:59pm
10/4/2019 7:59pm
Tarz483 wrote:
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year , thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about...
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year ,
thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about The KTM and HUSKY 250f
Lightest Fastest Perfect amount of low end perfect amount of top end on and on , so I cant help but wonder is a 2018 better than a 2020?
If you could find a Super low hour used one that has been sitting in someone's garage for 2 years is that the way to go ?
Something I’d like to see from a (or multiple) media outlets would be taking the past say 5 model year shootout winners and putting them all against each other. I know this would be very difficult to accomplish as the manufacturers would definitely not be interested in these results, nor do they likely still have the bikes to contribute. But still it would give consumers something valuable to base 2nd hand bike purchases off of.
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T-Fish
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T-Fish 10/4/2019 11:58pm
10/4/2019 11:58pm
Tarz483 wrote:
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year , thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about...
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year ,
thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about The KTM and HUSKY 250f
Lightest Fastest Perfect amount of low end perfect amount of top end on and on , so I cant help but wonder is a 2018 better than a 2020?
If you could find a Super low hour used one that has been sitting in someone's garage for 2 years is that the way to go ?
I know of a 2018 250SXF with less than 2 hours on it not super far from you. Asking price is $5,750.
1
tttrailhunter 10/5/2019 5:58am
10/5/2019 5:58am
PastranaWho wrote:
Still loving my zook. Shootouts mean nothing.
ah ha ha ha,

a triggered brand defender awakes,

geuss what....
great you love your rm....

no one cares and few agree...

go out and give it a consoling pat..

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Blue flag
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Blue flag 10/5/2019 6:06am
10/5/2019 6:06am
PastranaWho wrote:
Still loving my zook. Shootouts mean nothing.
tttrailhunter wrote:
ah ha ha ha, a triggered brand defender awakes, geuss what.... great you love your rm.... no one cares and few agree... go out and give...
ah ha ha ha,

a triggered brand defender awakes,

geuss what....
great you love your rm....

no one cares and few agree...

go out and give it a consoling pat..

To be fair, way way back when I was racing (19 cough 85), I raced the slow '85 RM 250. After pulling the majority of the holeshots that year, I wish I had a quarter for every time someone who rode a YZ or KX 250 said to me "I thought those RM's were supposed to be slow", repeating what the magazines all said.
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Timo_2824
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Timo_2824 10/5/2019 6:51am
10/5/2019 6:51am
Blue flag wrote:
To be fair, way way back when I was racing (19 cough 85), I raced the slow '85 RM 250. After pulling the majority of the...
To be fair, way way back when I was racing (19 cough 85), I raced the slow '85 RM 250. After pulling the majority of the holeshots that year, I wish I had a quarter for every time someone who rode a YZ or KX 250 said to me "I thought those RM's were supposed to be slow", repeating what the magazines all said.
Tamer power increases traction which is usually overlooked for holeshots.
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Dirty Points 10/5/2019 9:33am
10/5/2019 9:33am Edited Date/Time 10/5/2019 9:34am
gavinmgrant wrote:
I’ll be getting the KTM 250 tomorrow. Most guys I ride with sold their 2018 and 2019 yz250f’s due to reliability issues. The Honda seems really...
I’ll be getting the KTM 250 tomorrow. Most guys I ride with sold their 2018 and 2019 yz250f’s due to reliability issues. The Honda seems really solid. I’ll always bleed green but just not impressed with the kawi compared to the upgrades the Ktm comes stock with. I think most bikes are about the same, just personal preference for your style and ability. KTM for me.
Hmmmm... I can buy that the first-model-year '19 had some issues, but the '18 YZ250F was a mature platform unchanged from the year before, and widely regarded as one of the more reliable bikes out there.
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newmann
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newmann 10/5/2019 10:48am
10/5/2019 10:48am
Still missing the 2 stroke 250’s that are all class legal?
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chump6784
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chump6784 10/5/2019 1:07pm
10/5/2019 1:07pm
Between the extra time and test riders needed plus the possible objection from some manufacturers I don't think we'll ever see 250 2 strokes in these shootouts.
What would be cool is a yz 250/250f or ktm 250sx/sxf shootout. It's been a while since MXA did one and there has been some big changes to the bikes since then, except the yz250

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Dropbear
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Dropbear 10/5/2019 1:15pm
10/5/2019 1:15pm Edited Date/Time 10/5/2019 1:16pm
Head to head, the KTM/Husky 2 stroke would win. With a top line rider it has to. That’s why a mixed test won’t happen.
Turbojez
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Turbojez 10/5/2019 1:29pm
10/5/2019 1:29pm
PastranaWho wrote:
Still loving my zook. Shootouts mean nothing.
tttrailhunter wrote:
ah ha ha ha, a triggered brand defender awakes, geuss what.... great you love your rm.... no one cares and few agree... go out and give...
ah ha ha ha,

a triggered brand defender awakes,

geuss what....
great you love your rm....

no one cares and few agree...

go out and give it a consoling pat..

He's got the point you know, all the new bikes are more than 95% of the people need, so you don't need to be a douchebag to a dude that likes his bike.
I, for one, care more for a fellow member's opinion on an RMZ, than the shootout guys.
Simply because as little as a respring might do wonders to the whole package, and shootouts are based on 100% stock bikes.
PastranaWho is not the first or second person that I heard of, that is totally satisfied with the yellow 250 either, go troll elsewhere.
5
Phillip_McCavity 10/5/2019 2:10pm
10/5/2019 2:10pm
I’d like a 250f/450f combined with laptimes.
The only thing stopping me on 250f is he starts in the vet class. Too many fast to the first turn guys that can screw you in short races
TogaSet
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TogaSet 10/5/2019 4:21pm
10/5/2019 4:21pm Edited Date/Time 10/5/2019 4:21pm
Phillip_McCavity wrote:
I’d like a 250f/450f combined with laptimes. The only thing stopping me on 250f is he starts in the vet class. Too many fast to the...
I’d like a 250f/450f combined with laptimes.
The only thing stopping me on 250f is he starts in the vet class. Too many fast to the first turn guys that can screw you in short races
Put a top pro on a 250F and and I bet he holeshots the vet 450 guys 9 out of 10 times. It ain’t all bike.
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Tarz483
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Tarz483 10/5/2019 4:46pm
10/5/2019 4:46pm
Tarz483 wrote:
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year , thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about...
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year ,
thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about The KTM and HUSKY 250f
Lightest Fastest Perfect amount of low end perfect amount of top end on and on , so I cant help but wonder is a 2018 better than a 2020?
If you could find a Super low hour used one that has been sitting in someone's garage for 2 years is that the way to go ?
Dimblewambie wrote:
Something I’d like to see from a (or multiple) media outlets would be taking the past say 5 model year shootout winners and putting them all...
Something I’d like to see from a (or multiple) media outlets would be taking the past say 5 model year shootout winners and putting them all against each other. I know this would be very difficult to accomplish as the manufacturers would definitely not be interested in these results, nor do they likely still have the bikes to contribute. But still it would give consumers something valuable to base 2nd hand bike purchases off of.
I've Though something along these lines too , another thing I think would be really cool would Be to get one of each from of any brand from 10yrs back to now and see how they evolved over a 10 year period,
Maybe I'm wrong but I would guess that it could be put together without buying all the bikes , by Just finding people with them that would be willing to bring them to a track for the day, may take a while but possible I would think and would be a very interesting video or magazine feature.
Tarz483
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Tarz483 10/5/2019 4:47pm
10/5/2019 4:47pm Edited Date/Time 10/5/2019 4:48pm
Tarz483 wrote:
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year , thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about...
The 250 Shootouts are a little confusing this year ,
thinking Back to 2018 , All of the Media outlets Couldn't say enough Good thinks about The KTM and HUSKY 250f
Lightest Fastest Perfect amount of low end perfect amount of top end on and on , so I cant help but wonder is a 2018 better than a 2020?
If you could find a Super low hour used one that has been sitting in someone's garage for 2 years is that the way to go ?
T-Fish wrote:
I know of a 2018 250SXF with less than 2 hours on it not super far from you. Asking price is $5,750.
Sounds like a great deal , I was just saying it as a though. I cant afford to buy one right now.
I do want one though so hopefully at some point.
Spergen
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Spergen 10/5/2019 5:50pm
10/5/2019 5:50pm
chump6784 wrote:
Between the extra time and test riders needed plus the possible objection from some manufacturers I don't think we'll ever see 250 2 strokes in these...
Between the extra time and test riders needed plus the possible objection from some manufacturers I don't think we'll ever see 250 2 strokes in these shootouts.
What would be cool is a yz 250/250f or ktm 250sx/sxf shootout. It's been a while since MXA did one and there has been some big changes to the bikes since then, except the yz250
I'm sure in this day and age a dedicated few posters on here could band together and do just that. Never has it been so easy for an individual to communicate with the masses
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T-MAC
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T-MAC 10/7/2019 12:34pm
10/7/2019 12:34pm Edited Date/Time 10/7/2019 12:35pm
newmann wrote:
Still missing the 2 stroke 250’s that are all class legal?
This would be really awesome to include in the test as well. That being said, I currently ride a YZ250 and I feel like (no data to substantiate this though) I was able to ride faster/more competitively on the 250f bikes. Between the traction and stability of the 250f compared to a 250 two stroke, it is easier to ride fast, and wears you out less doing so. The two stroke requires you to be more "on point" if that makes sense (in my opinion) - this is also what I enjoy about them too.

On a more wide open, sweeping, loamy track the 250 two stroke might be the better bike, but for the majority of riders, the majority of the time, I think the 250f is the more competitive bike for most people.

A good example on the Milestone main track. There is a roller out of a corner (almost like a wall jump) that leads into a small 3-pack of doubles. This section is nothing to think about, but on my 250 two stroke, I need to shift more, time the roller better, and be really careful with the throttle through the doubles. It isn't a hard section, but it requires you to be on your toes and it was the most tiring spot on the track for me. On the 250f bikes, this section did not require any extra thought or effort. I was less tired, and more focused on the next obstacle. These small instances, lap after lap, over a whole day of riding or racing make a big difference.
newmann
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newmann 10/7/2019 12:42pm
10/7/2019 12:42pm
newmann wrote:
Still missing the 2 stroke 250’s that are all class legal?
T-MAC wrote:
This would be really awesome to include in the test as well. That being said, I currently ride a YZ250 and I feel like (no data...
This would be really awesome to include in the test as well. That being said, I currently ride a YZ250 and I feel like (no data to substantiate this though) I was able to ride faster/more competitively on the 250f bikes. Between the traction and stability of the 250f compared to a 250 two stroke, it is easier to ride fast, and wears you out less doing so. The two stroke requires you to be more "on point" if that makes sense (in my opinion) - this is also what I enjoy about them too.

On a more wide open, sweeping, loamy track the 250 two stroke might be the better bike, but for the majority of riders, the majority of the time, I think the 250f is the more competitive bike for most people.

A good example on the Milestone main track. There is a roller out of a corner (almost like a wall jump) that leads into a small 3-pack of doubles. This section is nothing to think about, but on my 250 two stroke, I need to shift more, time the roller better, and be really careful with the throttle through the doubles. It isn't a hard section, but it requires you to be on your toes and it was the most tiring spot on the track for me. On the 250f bikes, this section did not require any extra thought or effort. I was less tired, and more focused on the next obstacle. These small instances, lap after lap, over a whole day of riding or racing make a big difference.
Yep, it's no longer the early/mid 2000's where there was a 12-15 hp deficit between the 2 and 4 strokes. The gap has closed quite a bit. It's as if everyone wants to do a test or shootout for the pros who don't buy bikes while overlooking the amateurs who actually pay the bills.

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