2009 Kawasaki KLX250S , I used to write for CYCLE and CYCLE WORLD (Japan Correspondent) and I appreciate a clean, straightforward style. I have a strong lust to get a pair of the KLX250s for poking around West Java, which has more than its share of hidden trails. It's extremely rugged and volcanic and it's hard to find anything horizontal for more than a few feet. Great enduro territory. But the local machines come fitted with fuel injection - not with carbs, like the US models. Puzzling - you'd expect that they'd do it the other way around, letting the more technologically-advanced Americans have the injected model. I also hope that the FI machine has the same smooth response at small throttle openings as the carburetor-fitted one does. I've ridden machines before with snappy FI and it's not so pleasant when traction is tenuous. Keep up the great work. (Byron Black) .Considering its intended purpose as an all-around motorbike, the KLX transmits enough feedback to make it easy to go fast.Everything about the KLX250S is on the gentle side. The suspension is as soft as the mellow power delivery and the riding position is painless. On the trails the shock and fork absorb the rough stuff admirably so advanced riders will be able to easily push the KLX to its limit.The KLX250S might not be the biggest or baddest off-road bike to come out of the Kawasaki camp but it will go farther than most riders will be willing to go.At 250cc the KLX250S is clearly intended to be an off-road machine first and foremost. It can still move along just fine on the highway with an indicated top speed of just around 90mph but it doesn’t accelerate as fast as its more aggressive MX-style siblings. The '09 250S is Kawasaki's latest entry to the increasingly popular dual-sport market that its steadfast KLR650 has dominated over the years. 
Kawasaki sees a need for a competent off-road dual-sport and that's where the light, compact and quick handling S comes into play.Changes to the steering geometry have the rake decreased from 27.5 to 26.6 degrees to make it more responsive to rider input off-road. During our day of bashing we didn't tackle a ton of technical terrain but it was clear the bike is light on its feet and easy to manhandle in the rocks of Death Valley's twisty canyons. The first real challenge came at the halfway point through the rugged Echo Canyon section. After miles of rough road riding an imposing 100-ft section of boulders and rocks that climbed about 20 feet proved to be a challenge and assured us the 250S is an off-road bike at heart. An inverted 43mm fork with 16-way-adjustable compression damping does a nice job of absorbing small to medium sized hits but it dives quite a bit on the street under braking. The rear shock features 16-way adjustability for both compression and rebound. Stock settings are on the soft side, so it rides like a Cadillac over the roads we traversed, absorbing all bumps and moderate-sized ruts without complaint. As the speeds pick up and the hills become jumps and the rocks turn threatening the suspension is pretty wimpy. Despite this, it recovers from hard hits without much wag in the bars. A testament to its capable chassis arose when our guide dusted me out during a high-speed run through the desolate wasteland of the Amargosa Desert. Bombing blindly at 70-mph into a 90-degree left-hander at the start of a rutty silt-belt was a real eye-openerAn inverted 43mm fork with 16-way-adjustable compression damping does a nice job of absorbing small to medium sized hits but it dives quite a bit on the street under braking. The rear shock features 16-way adjustability for both compression and rebound. Stock settings are on the soft side, so it rides like a Cadillac over the roads we traversed, absorbing all bumps and moderate-sized ruts without complaint. As the speeds pick up and the hills become jumps and the rocks turn threatening the suspension is pretty wimpy. Despite this, it recovers from hard hits without much wag in the bars. A testament to its capable chassis arose when our guide dusted me out during a high-speed run through the desolate wasteland of the Amargosa Desert. Bombing blindly at 70-mph into a 90-degree left-hander at the start of a rutty silt-belt was a real eye-opener
Kawasaki sees a need for a competent off-road dual-sport and that's where the light, compact and quick handling S comes into play.Changes to the steering geometry have the rake decreased from 27.5 to 26.6 degrees to make it more responsive to rider input off-road. During our day of bashing we didn't tackle a ton of technical terrain but it was clear the bike is light on its feet and easy to manhandle in the rocks of Death Valley's twisty canyons. The first real challenge came at the halfway point through the rugged Echo Canyon section. After miles of rough road riding an imposing 100-ft section of boulders and rocks that climbed about 20 feet proved to be a challenge and assured us the 250S is an off-road bike at heart. An inverted 43mm fork with 16-way-adjustable compression damping does a nice job of absorbing small to medium sized hits but it dives quite a bit on the street under braking. The rear shock features 16-way adjustability for both compression and rebound. Stock settings are on the soft side, so it rides like a Cadillac over the roads we traversed, absorbing all bumps and moderate-sized ruts without complaint. As the speeds pick up and the hills become jumps and the rocks turn threatening the suspension is pretty wimpy. Despite this, it recovers from hard hits without much wag in the bars. A testament to its capable chassis arose when our guide dusted me out during a high-speed run through the desolate wasteland of the Amargosa Desert. Bombing blindly at 70-mph into a 90-degree left-hander at the start of a rutty silt-belt was a real eye-openerAn inverted 43mm fork with 16-way-adjustable compression damping does a nice job of absorbing small to medium sized hits but it dives quite a bit on the street under braking. The rear shock features 16-way adjustability for both compression and rebound. Stock settings are on the soft side, so it rides like a Cadillac over the roads we traversed, absorbing all bumps and moderate-sized ruts without complaint. As the speeds pick up and the hills become jumps and the rocks turn threatening the suspension is pretty wimpy. Despite this, it recovers from hard hits without much wag in the bars. A testament to its capable chassis arose when our guide dusted me out during a high-speed run through the desolate wasteland of the Amargosa Desert. Bombing blindly at 70-mph into a 90-degree left-hander at the start of a rutty silt-belt was a real eye-opener
