They have a nice initial bite, yet are capable of slowing the 250 EXC-F down on the dirt, as well as the pavement. Brembo brakes, front and rear, are flawless. I stalled in the middle of a rocky hill climb and had to use a lot of clutch plate to get going again from a dead stop in first gear. For long power-draining hillclimbs, the tallish gearing and lack of low-end grunt in the low-rpm range require a good run-up to clear the top. As long as vast amounts of power aren’t necessary to zap up a rocky dry waterfall, the handling and plush suspension work extremely well on knuckle-busting goat trails. The 250 EXC-F eats tight and gnarly single-track for breakfast, but big sandy or rocky hill climbs are its Kryptonite. Sixth gear acts as the perfect overdrive, and is really only practical for use on the street. That is plenty fast for the average trail-to-trail link up. I was able to cruise comfortably in the 65-70 mph range without jaw-rattling effects. Stock gearing is a bit tall, and that works very well on the tarmac. expertise that can tune the suspension for increased (or decreased) weight and rider ability. Fortunately, there are a plethora of shops with W.P. The compromise comes in that it’s relatively soft and a bit twitchy in the rear when the speeds increase and the whoops get deeper. The stock settings work well for single track chop for my 170-pound body mass. Just like the off-road race models, the Xplor suspension is a big differentiator on the 2019 KTM 250 EXC-F compared to other quarter-liter dual-sport motorcycles. Fully adjustable WP Xplor suspension is the real deal. Of course, for the newbie-to-average rider, having a docile power delivery over a long day of riding is an advantage in and of itself. Like any smaller displacement bike, you have to find and use it to your advantage. The motor is tame, really tame, but the power is there. If you’re wondering if the street-legal version of the KTM 250cc powerplant pumps out enough ponies to keep up with the pack, the answer is an absolute and unequivocal-it depends. An exhaust screen on the muffler tip limits the air flow through the engine, but it matches up well with the lean throttle body settings to provide a quiet and subdued power delivery. With the evaporative charcoal canister concealed in the downtube of the frame and an intake reed valve hidden in the airbox, KTM did an outstanding job of keeping the smog and sound-reducing paraphernalia out of the way. The 2019 KTM 250 EXC-F is completely street legal, with engine performance to match. Although great for big adventure bikes, the TKC 80s are not ideal for lightweight dual-sporting, while the Dunlop D606s are proven and predictable. KTM ships the 250 EXC-F with road-quiet adventure tires to decrease the decibels for the third-gear drive-by sound test to meet Euro 4 compliant emissions. We swapped the stock Continental TKC 80 adventure tires for Dunlop D606 DOT-legal rubber. Instead, it is imbued with the same high-performance pedigree as its larger displacement siblings. This is not a motorcycle intended primarily for street use and the occasional foray into the dirt. The 2019 KTM 250 EXC-F is a serious off-roader that shares virtually the same chromoly steel chassis and DOHC engine platform as the KTM 350 EXC-F. So, with the proverbial clock ticking, we set out to get our hands on one of the last available models to see if KTM made the right decision.With countless hours of seat time across twisted single-track, dusty jeep trails, and wide-open tarmac, here are the 14 Fast Facts that you need to know about the soon to be hard-to-find, 2019 KTM 250 EXC-F. market as part of its 2020 model year offering. As of the time of writing, the unofficial word on the street is that KTM will not be importing the 250 EXC-F to the U.S.

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