My Hawk has near 15,000 miles on it now. It's been nothing but reliable, and it's pretty much "bottom of the barrel" quality wise in the Chinese bike world. The KPX is definitely a huge step up in quality, and bikes like these along with GPX and Kayo make it very difficult to consider Japanese bikes, especially if you're mechanically minded and can fix/wrench on your Chinabikes. Great review!
I just want to thank you guys for making all your content on the KPX 250, including this RUclips channel, the KPX250 website, the facebook group, and for being active members on china riders. Your work goes to bring this sport to more people by giving important resources at an affordable entry point. THANK YOU!
Thanks for the kind words. We always felt more of us should be able to get out there without breaking the bank and this community has made it possible for a lot of us. Ride safe!
Just ordered mine. 2700$ with a 200$ coupon and I'm in MT so no sales tax to worry about. Seems like it's going to be a heck of a deal and a good alternate option to a used Japanese bike.
Got mine delivered 3/27/24. Almost have my first 100 miles on it now. Really enjoying it so far for the money. Wanted a commuter/woods bike and something I can take on a hitch hauler when I take the family camping. If it keeps performing like this, I’m definitely glad I didn’t spend more for an xt250 or 250l for my needs.
Just ordered Black Friday Special $2999.98 delivered and fully assembled. Priced 300l last week but after all the extra freight setup brought it up to $6600, so I decided to start here. Glad to see there's a community around this bike. Only thing, i'm not looking forward to is valve adjustments, as I have never done it.
I mean at 6 grand you would have been better off buying a Honda xr150 it's simply a better bike and at less cost. And I'm a huge china bike guy it's all I have. Why did you pay that kind of money for the bike? I mean that in the most respectful manner.
@dadbodbikers oh okay lol I was like man how did any one convince you to spend 6 grand on a 3 grand bike. At 6600 that's great with delivery for two bikes that's not too bad.
@@plumbherhub1664 lol you're reading scottp05156's comment about a 300L. Ours were picked up, 2800$ each.. then tagged and titled for less than a few hundred.
'23 KPX250, Love it! All the mods but the sprocket ratio is good for me. I gave up on Dual Sport Tires.. I couldn't handle the wierd lean handling and swapped to street tires on the stock wheels.. Wow! Stability/Total Smoothness, no leaning into a corner and going too far into incoming traffic. Love it so much, I'm going full 17" super moto w/ 120/160 tires. You can lower the KPX 2" up front, and 3-4" rear if you exend the lower link by 1 inch. It's cast steel, and welds beautifully using MIG. I got the 17 rims, spokes on order to length. Should be easy to keep same hubs. Note worthy is stock rear spokes are 8 gauge/4mm, front are 10/3.2 gauge. Other stuff: 1. Never turn the throttle backwards! I made this mistake with improper use of ratchet straps! Anyway, threw a ECU code, and took full dissassembly of the throttle handle bar assembly. Required full battery dis/reconnect to fix. 2. Power has increased substantially after 500 miles.. gradual but easily 20% more over initial start. I keep only 93 octane around, so maybe that makes a diff? Full throttle in 5th is kind of impressive in fact. Good Power! 3. Got to have Bark Busters if you keep the stock dual sport tires. I dropped the KPX several times doing slomo parking lot maneuvers.. that "lean and Pray" just doesn't work on DS tires. Broke the clutch lever OFF, and luckily I managed to make it home being very creative with the lever remains to start rolling. 4. Dropping Front forks. You will need a handlebar mount that allows you to move the bars back by ~3/4 inch and likely raise them similar. You can make up the difference likely by rotating the bars. The Shocks are dropped by loosening the front tripe clap. A solid 2" drop is possible w/o any mods. Kickstand will need to be shortened or replaced with an adjustable version. 5. Throttle/clutch cable adjustments. I diddled the throttle body idle adjustment up 200 RPM which gave me a bit more idle torque. Without slipping the clutch in idle I can now do very tight lock to lock figure 8's at idle! Idle torque was a problem when I first got it, had to slip the clutch quite a bit.. now not so much. Throttle slack.. got to have some slack. Going lock to lock w/o slack moves the throttle and clutch friction point slightly which will throw you off in slo mo maneuvers. Check your cable routing around the triple clamp to minimize cable bending. 6. The passenger (Really??) footpegs are pretty heavy.. I removed them. Just a great bike.. With a superb fuel gauge, a nice dash! The motorcycle inspection guy was impressed.. passed no problem here in Maryland. Nothing overly cheap or Chinese. Kawasaki needs to drop thier prices.. this one is comparable to a KLX230 and gives the KLX300 a run at half the price. Wish Lifan made a super moto version. The gorgeous power line right of ways around here are signed up with Private Property, No Tresspass under some USCode threat of prosecution. Love this bike.. best ever (With Street Tires) to learn on.. Indestructable (with BBusters). Complaint: Stickers coming off! KPX250.com Chinariders.org
Amazon/Ebay are your parts suppliers for the KPX.. an entire engine/trans assembly is like $700? Many parts are generic/dirt cheap.. Decent Mirrors for $15.
Broke down and ordered one. I'm normally super-opposed to buying anything Chinese if I can help it, but from what I've seen these are worth the money. I just want something cheap I can enjoy.
I have a goldwing and I have a CSC RX4. Two different bikes. I had the CSC RX3 in the past. It was a fine bike but I could not ride on the highways here with the high speeds and high winds. I now have the RX4 which is the 450. We will see how it goes. So far, it is a good looking bike for the money and I expect it will be fine going back and forth to work. I just wanted something smaller for the day to day. But nothing compares to riding that goldwing on a long trip and riding down the road. I almost bought the Lifan KPX 250 but for $1k more, I picked up the RX4. More power, luggage, wind protection, etc. I hope it works out. If not, I will be looking at the new Lifan next year.
I thought about the rx4 too.. but actually plan to purchase an older goldwing (99 or so) to have for some wild road trips we have planned and the kpx will be our local trails and shorter trip bike. Best of both worlds :)
these bikes look better with out the decals i’m thinking about pulling the trigger and getting one myself. did you guys change the stock oil before the first ride.
Of course. Even though lifan states it's good oil it's worth swapping it out just for peace of mind. Documented our assembly on kpx250.com Motocheez also did a great video of his assembly.
Love my bsr raven, i was planning on upgrading to a CRF, but with the 6-speed and true 249cc engine, i might just have to buy a new kpx instead of a used Honda 🔥🔥🔥. I wish there was a cheap US made dual sport, but all the American bike manufacturers are intent on pricing out the poors 😢
Hi Great video. I am 6 foot 185 lbs and am a beginning biker. I am debating between the 200 and the 250. Price is not a big difference. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks!
I'd suggest the kpx250 over the 200 just for more power. It is a taller bike too which will suit you well. I'm 6'3 and Dan in the video 6'2 if that gives you some perspective.
@@dadbodbikers absolutely! I only have a couple hundred miles on mine. I'd like to have a better exhaust, air filter, and chain. A little more aggressive tire than the stock ones also. Just enjoying the stock bike for now. It's a great bike for beginners or experienced riders. I'm still new to off road and have been thrown a couple times due to mud and water holes 😅. Have no idea how to hit those lol. Um, little pain but worth it. The bigger you are, the harder the ground hits you in the face. I'll get it eventually. I'm going to keep watching you guys for sure.
Are all the Chinese made dual sports basically the same? My buddies all have Dual Sports KTM, HONDA etc. I'm not rich and want to ride.. I know these type of bikes can't compare to their bikes but.. It is what it is.. I'm 5'7 and suggestions..Thank You For Your Time..🤜🏻⛈️🤛🏻🤘🏻😎🫡
The same? Nah, they equate to 5+ year old Japanese technology. The quality isn't always up to snuff compared to nicer ktms and Hondas.. and you'll end up doing basic maintenance yourself because they don't have a ton of dealers around. Worth it? Ya! At 5'7 I'd recommend a Tbr7 or magician 250 as a starter bike.. the kpx is much taller and may be harder to get started on. That being said, we ride all the same trails and group rides as those guys!
New chain is cheap. I had bought it to replace my stock one.. but was trying to wait on it to break. I'll probably slap it on in the next few hundred miles anyway and then keep the old one and some extra master link.
@@dadbodbikers I bought a new chain also, got a new Condor 150 and it seemed to need a lot of chain adjustments. I’m going up one tooth up front as I’m pulling 9,200rpm in 5th, figured I’d upgrade the chain at the same time.
@@jimstenlund6017 Ya we both went up a tooth for this trip, but I am switching back down to stock tonight when I (finally) clean the bikes up and take off the saddle bags.
Fiberglass the side of your saddlebag that leans against the exhaust, and it won't burn the saddlebag anymore. Then you could spray paint it, but nobody will see it anyway.
That's fair... However I had the similar bike and believe it is worth it. I haven't had to tinker with my bike at all since getting it. Just being able to jump on and ride is priceless.
The materials used to build these Lifan bikes are of the cheapest available. They should last 2 years max....then the Problems start. In South America...Lifan is Known as "descaratable" throw away after use...products.
We're almost at 2 years now. I believe part of that is maintenance, and we're on top of it, constantly changing oil and checking for tolerances on everything. Plenty of the TBR7 and Hawk250s have lasted longer than 2 years and these seem to be much higher quality than those.
@@dadbodbikers Hi, friend ! I want to buy such a motorcycle. What can you say about him? Can I buy it for driving on the highway and sometimes for trips to the mountains?
It's always good to see more KPX 250 content on here
My Hawk has near 15,000 miles on it now. It's been nothing but reliable, and it's pretty much "bottom of the barrel" quality wise in the Chinese bike world. The KPX is definitely a huge step up in quality, and bikes like these along with GPX and Kayo make it very difficult to consider Japanese bikes, especially if you're mechanically minded and can fix/wrench on your Chinabikes. Great review!
agreed.. I love Japanese bikes but I'm having trouble justifying not buying two of a Chinese bike for every 1 Japanese bike :P
I just want to thank you guys for making all your content on the KPX 250, including this RUclips channel, the KPX250 website, the facebook group, and for being active members on china riders. Your work goes to bring this sport to more people by giving important resources at an affordable entry point.
THANK YOU!
Thanks for the kind words. We always felt more of us should be able to get out there without breaking the bank and this community has made it possible for a lot of us. Ride safe!
Great trip and nice recap. Recently added a small chinese dualsport to my garage as well and have really been enjoying it.
They're a lot of fun, my wife even rides one now too :)
Just ordered mine. 2700$ with a 200$ coupon and I'm in MT so no sales tax to worry about. Seems like it's going to be a heck of a deal and a good alternate option to a used Japanese bike.
That's a great deal, where from?
How’s it doin now ?
Got mine delivered 3/27/24. Almost have my first 100 miles on it now. Really enjoying it so far for the money. Wanted a commuter/woods bike and something I can take on a hitch hauler when I take the family camping. If it keeps performing like this, I’m definitely glad I didn’t spend more for an xt250 or 250l for my needs.
Great choice, glad you're enjoying it!
Just ordered Black Friday Special $2999.98 delivered and fully assembled. Priced 300l last week but after all the extra freight setup brought it up to $6600, so I decided to start here. Glad to see there's a community around this bike. Only thing, i'm not looking forward to is valve adjustments, as I have never done it.
Valve adjustments aren't bad.. just time consuming and some weird angles. Welcome to the club!
I mean at 6 grand you would have been better off buying a Honda xr150 it's simply a better bike and at less cost. And I'm a huge china bike guy it's all I have. Why did you pay that kind of money for the bike? I mean that in the most respectful manner.
@@plumbherhub1664 they were $2800 each, if I said 6k I meant for two of the bikes, not one.
@dadbodbikers oh okay lol I was like man how did any one convince you to spend 6 grand on a 3 grand bike. At 6600 that's great with delivery for two bikes that's not too bad.
@@plumbherhub1664 lol you're reading scottp05156's comment about a 300L. Ours were picked up, 2800$ each.. then tagged and titled for less than a few hundred.
'23 KPX250, Love it! All the mods but the sprocket ratio is good for me. I gave up on Dual Sport Tires.. I couldn't handle the wierd lean handling and swapped to street tires on the stock wheels.. Wow! Stability/Total Smoothness, no leaning into a corner and going too far into incoming traffic. Love it so much, I'm going full 17" super moto w/ 120/160 tires. You can lower the KPX 2" up front, and 3-4" rear if you exend the lower link by 1 inch. It's cast steel, and welds beautifully using MIG. I got the 17 rims, spokes on order to length. Should be easy to keep same hubs. Note worthy is stock rear spokes are 8 gauge/4mm, front are 10/3.2 gauge. Other stuff:
1. Never turn the throttle backwards! I made this mistake with improper use of ratchet straps! Anyway, threw a ECU code, and took full dissassembly of the throttle handle bar assembly. Required full battery dis/reconnect to fix.
2. Power has increased substantially after 500 miles.. gradual but easily 20% more over initial start. I keep only 93 octane around, so maybe that makes a diff? Full throttle in 5th is kind of impressive in fact. Good Power!
3. Got to have Bark Busters if you keep the stock dual sport tires. I dropped the KPX several times doing slomo parking lot maneuvers.. that "lean and Pray" just doesn't work on DS tires. Broke the clutch lever OFF, and luckily I managed to make it home being very creative with the lever remains to start rolling.
4. Dropping Front forks. You will need a handlebar mount that allows you to move the bars back by ~3/4 inch and likely raise them similar. You can make up the difference likely by rotating the bars. The Shocks are dropped by loosening the front tripe clap. A solid 2" drop is possible w/o any mods. Kickstand will need to be shortened or replaced with an adjustable version.
5. Throttle/clutch cable adjustments. I diddled the throttle body idle adjustment up 200 RPM which gave me a bit more idle torque. Without slipping the clutch in idle I can now do very tight lock to lock figure 8's at idle! Idle torque was a problem when I first got it, had to slip the clutch quite a bit.. now not so much. Throttle slack.. got to have some slack. Going lock to lock w/o slack moves the throttle and clutch friction point slightly which will throw you off in slo mo maneuvers. Check your cable routing around the triple clamp to minimize cable bending.
6. The passenger (Really??) footpegs are pretty heavy.. I removed them.
Just a great bike.. With a superb fuel gauge, a nice dash! The motorcycle inspection guy was impressed.. passed no problem here in Maryland. Nothing overly cheap or Chinese. Kawasaki needs to drop thier prices.. this one is comparable to a KLX230 and gives the KLX300 a run at half the price. Wish Lifan made a super moto version. The gorgeous power line right of ways around here are signed up with Private Property, No Tresspass under some USCode threat of prosecution. Love this bike.. best ever (With Street Tires) to learn on.. Indestructable (with BBusters). Complaint: Stickers coming off!
KPX250.com
Chinariders.org
Amazon/Ebay are your parts suppliers for the KPX.. an entire engine/trans assembly is like $700? Many parts are generic/dirt cheap.. Decent Mirrors for $15.
Broke down and ordered one. I'm normally super-opposed to buying anything Chinese if I can help it, but from what I've seen these are worth the money. I just want something cheap I can enjoy.
It is definitely cheap and enjoyable :). Let me know how it goes and join the Facebook group for the bike, lots of good info in there.
I have a goldwing and I have a CSC RX4. Two different bikes. I had the CSC RX3 in the past. It was a fine bike but I could not ride on the highways here with the high speeds and high winds. I now have the RX4 which is the 450. We will see how it goes. So far, it is a good looking bike for the money and I expect it will be fine going back and forth to work. I just wanted something smaller for the day to day. But nothing compares to riding that goldwing on a long trip and riding down the road. I almost bought the Lifan KPX 250 but for $1k more, I picked up the RX4. More power, luggage, wind protection, etc. I hope it works out. If not, I will be looking at the new Lifan next year.
I thought about the rx4 too.. but actually plan to purchase an older goldwing (99 or so) to have for some wild road trips we have planned and the kpx will be our local trails and shorter trip bike. Best of both worlds :)
@@dadbodbikers great plan. I love my 2010 goldwing. You can't go wrong with the wing. great bikes. Thanks for the KPX videos
these bikes look better with out the decals i’m thinking about pulling the trigger and getting one myself.
did you guys change the stock oil before the first ride.
Of course. Even though lifan states it's good oil it's worth swapping it out just for peace of mind. Documented our assembly on kpx250.com
Motocheez also did a great video of his assembly.
@@dadbodbikers oh cool I’ll be sure to check that out now thanks 🫡✔️
Love my bsr raven, i was planning on upgrading to a CRF, but with the 6-speed and true 249cc engine, i might just have to buy a new kpx instead of a used Honda 🔥🔥🔥. I wish there was a cheap US made dual sport, but all the American bike manufacturers are intent on pricing out the poors 😢
agreed.. buddy just picked up a klx300 and was into it for almost 7k new. He could've bought 2 of these with money left over.
Curious if you guys sold your old tbr s?
I’m wondering how the resale is on china bikes.
Sold 3 of the 4. They sold between 13 and 1500... But we're very well cared for.. no rust.. no issues.. all upgraded and tuned and titled.
Nice!
Hi Great video. I am 6 foot 185 lbs and am a beginning biker. I am debating between the 200 and the 250. Price is not a big difference. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks!
I'd suggest the kpx250 over the 200 just for more power. It is a taller bike too which will suit you well. I'm 6'3 and Dan in the video 6'2 if that gives you some perspective.
Love my KPX 250. Smooth, fun, and carries my big self anywhere I want to go. I'm 6ft, 270 lbs. No, not all fat. 😅
Nice, I'm 6'3 but only 215. We have some around your weight that don't have issue too. It's a great bike for the price :)
@@dadbodbikers absolutely! I only have a couple hundred miles on mine. I'd like to have a better exhaust, air filter, and chain. A little more aggressive tire than the stock ones also. Just enjoying the stock bike for now. It's a great bike for beginners or experienced riders. I'm still new to off road and have been thrown a couple times due to mud and water holes 😅. Have no idea how to hit those lol. Um, little pain but worth it. The bigger you are, the harder the ground hits you in the face. I'll get it eventually. I'm going to keep watching you guys for sure.
Are all the Chinese made dual sports basically the same? My buddies all have Dual Sports KTM, HONDA etc. I'm not rich and want to ride.. I know these type of bikes can't compare to their bikes but.. It is what it is.. I'm 5'7 and suggestions..Thank You For Your Time..🤜🏻⛈️🤛🏻🤘🏻😎🫡
The same? Nah, they equate to 5+ year old Japanese technology. The quality isn't always up to snuff compared to nicer ktms and Hondas.. and you'll end up doing basic maintenance yourself because they don't have a ton of dealers around. Worth it? Ya! At 5'7 I'd recommend a Tbr7 or magician 250 as a starter bike.. the kpx is much taller and may be harder to get started on. That being said, we ride all the same trails and group rides as those guys!
@dadbodbikers Thanks, Appreciate it
Where are you guys from?
Buford, Georgia.
hey brother i have Lifan X-PECT 250cc can u tell me what is engine oil capacity???
About 1.25 quarts.. maybe a little more than that.
Q: Have you had to replace the rear shock? What can you replace it with?
Have not yet but I will eventually with something stiffer. I'm just going to pull and measure and find something online
Funny ending
Carrying an entire extra chain? I’d think a breaker and a short length of chain would suffice.
New chain is cheap. I had bought it to replace my stock one.. but was trying to wait on it to break. I'll probably slap it on in the next few hundred miles anyway and then keep the old one and some extra master link.
@@dadbodbikers I bought a new chain also, got a new Condor 150 and it seemed to need a lot of chain adjustments. I’m going up one tooth up front as I’m pulling 9,200rpm in 5th, figured I’d upgrade the chain at the same time.
@@jimstenlund6017 Ya we both went up a tooth for this trip, but I am switching back down to stock tonight when I (finally) clean the bikes up and take off the saddle bags.
Fiberglass the side of your saddlebag that leans against the exhaust, and it won't burn the saddlebag anymore. Then you could spray paint it, but nobody will see it anyway.
@@davidt1621 ya I've only used them one more time since then.. we do mostly localish road trips nowadays
Not worth the extra money,I’d rather have two of the bone stock hawk 250 for the same price
That's fair... However I had the similar bike and believe it is worth it. I haven't had to tinker with my bike at all since getting it. Just being able to jump on and ride is priceless.
5200 after taxes in canada ill stick with used japanese bikes for cheaper 😂😂
Ya that's a rip compared. We picked one up a month ago for 2850 brand new. And used with a few hundred miles they're in the low 2000s.
The materials used to build these Lifan bikes are of the cheapest available. They should last 2 years max....then the Problems start. In South America...Lifan is Known as "descaratable" throw away after use...products.
We're almost at 2 years now. I believe part of that is maintenance, and we're on top of it, constantly changing oil and checking for tolerances on everything. Plenty of the TBR7 and Hawk250s have lasted longer than 2 years and these seem to be much higher quality than those.
@mishaguevara, you have one?
@@jeffstewart7439of course he has nothing, riding a chair ;) these are great bikes for the price, Lifan is a big factory and motors runs a lot.
*Hi, friend ! Please tell me, how is the motorcycle in terms of the quality of parts? How is the quality of the plastic?*
It's higher quality than other Chinese motorcycles. It's just a notch below the Japanese in quality but half the price
@@dadbodbikers Thank you very much for your answers 😊
*Здоров бандіти ! Шо, можна брати такий мотік ?*
Didn't translate correctly, can you ask in English?
@@dadbodbikers Hi, friend ! I want to buy such a motorcycle. What can you say about him? Can I buy it for driving on the highway and sometimes for trips to the mountains?
@@yurifox624 yes, it is great for trail riding and good on the highway as long as you don't want to travel over 75mph for extended amounts of time.
@@dadbodbikers Thank you ! 😊