2012 KTM 250 SX-F: Review

The following is from Cycle News Digital Edition...

The KTM 250 SX-F has seen some pretty big changes over the past couple of years. In 2011, the 250 SX-F took on fuel injection, ditching its former Keihin carburetor in favor of Keihin injectors. KTM also joined the masses by giving its single WP rear shock a linkage with the company choosing to abandon its unique direct-mount PDS rear suspension system for more traditional linkages on all of its SX-F motocross bikes. The chassis also got a major update, mainly to accept the new rear suspension design, and the motor was significantly tweaked to work better with the new fuel-injection system, which KTM calls Engine Management System (EMS). In essence, it was an all-new bike. And a pretty good one, too.

In 2011, KTM gave the 250 SX-F EFI and shock linkages, but they didn’t stop there. For 2012, it gets electric starting.

In the hands of Ken Roczen and Jeffrey Herlings, the KTM 250 SX-F finished one-two in the MX2 World Championship, and it can even boast a win in the AMA Supercross Lites Championship.

Although the 2012 version is very similar to the '11 version, the SX-F did get one new major feature - an electric starter, something no other motorcycle in its class has but something its bigger brothers have had for a while. The 2012 KTM 250 SX-F also gets a new air-intake boot and revised ignition mapping, which is said to be tuned leaner to give it a more aggressive power characteristic.