For the last few years we have had to endure subpar Japanese 450cc enduro livery. Yamaha have been the only manufacturer game enough to take it to the more polished European machines with the WR450F.
For the last few years we have had to endure subpar Japanese 450cc enduro livery.
Yamaha have been the only manufacturer game enough to take it to the more polished European machines, and have done so with some success in the form of the current model WR450F. However, even that’s now becoming dated and in need of an upgrade.
These current times could be considered sad for Honda, Kawasaki, and Suzuki enduro lovers after such a successful and lucrative period in the naughties. Long gone are the days of RMX250 or KDX250 two-strokes and indestructible XR400s. Don’t get me wrong, there is still a place for the models Honda and Kawasaki are pumping out as cheap 450cc trailbikes, but they are not the thoroughbreds they once were. This could be a result of the current rider’s needs somewhat shifting from reliable, do-it-all trailbikes to high-performance race bikes.
That being said, if I take my race goggles off and venture into the state forests that surround our capital cities, I can see a bevy of trail punters with fists raised in support of their KLX450R, the CRF450R – or even the Suzuki DR-Z400, which is not only cheap but also super-reliable – ready to knock me out.
But where then does the RMX450Z fit in? It is spawned from the motocross track and spent its last four years without an identity in the off-road scene, only available to those rec-rego States. What about those of us with yellow fever who don’t have rec-rego? Well, for 2015 Suzuki have answered your prayers and released the mighty RMX450Z with full rego, so it can be ridden legally on the road and in state forests all over Australia.
To see all the action from the official Australian launch of the RMX450Z and to hear what I thought of the bike, head to your local newsagents, woollies or servo to pick up a copy of the May edition of ADB when it hits the stands on Monday 6th April.