Have you ever wondered what the Difference between motocross and enduro?
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Motocross Enduro
First things first….no matter what type of riding you do their are specific bikes that for specific reasons.
The bike in the above picture is a Motocross bike.
Motocross bikes typically have stiffer suspension and higher gearing.
Enduro bikes typically have softer suspension and lower gearing.
Motocross enduro isn’t really a thing however they have races like the GNCC that combines motocross jumps with enduro as well.
Motocross bikes for years have been converted into hard enduro slaying machines….WHY?
For years all the “Enduro bikes” where just soft trail bikes not full fledge race beasts….
Think Honda XR or CRFX…Yamaha WR as well.
If you wanted to take one of these Trail bikes and make them into a hard charging Enduro racing Machine you would need to do the following….
- Ignition mapping
- Full Exhaust system
- Figure how to make it lighter…if possible
- Get rid of emission green sticker crap…Thanks Cali
- Remove Throttle stop
- Upgrade the Suspension
- High compression piston
- Skid plate if it didn’t come with the bike…most didn’t back then
- Hand guards if it didn’t come with the bike
- Rear Disk Guard
It was cheaper to take a Motocross bike and turn it into an Enduro bike
You would take a YZ450F which was built for Motocross build it for Enduro
Here is what you would have to add to a motocross bike.
- Softer suspension
- Different gearing
- 18 inch rear wheel
- Larger gas tank
- hand guards
- Skid plate
- rear disk guard
- Tubliss or Mousse bibs
So back then you had a choice..
Motocross or Enduro
This all changed when KTM decided it would make a FULL fledge offroad enduro bike.
KTM decided that they would take their motocross platform and build a XC model that was somewhere between their EXC/XCW and the SX models.
This brought the world a do it all bike….These XC models are only sold here in the states.
WHY?
That’s because people in the past where taking Motocross bikes and trying to turn them into Enduro bikes.
The great thing is most of the Manufactures have followed suit.
Honda now has the
- CRF450RX
- CRF250RX
Yamaha now has the
- YZ450FX
- YZ250FX
- YZ250X
- 200XC
- 250xc
- 300XC
- 125 SC
- 250SC
- 250SCF
- 300 SC
- 300SCF
- 450SCF
- 500SCF
KTM/Husky
- 250xc
- 300xc
- 250xcf
- 350xcf
- 450xcf
and Beta just has enduro race bikes not these hybrid bikes.
KTM, BETA, Sherco, and GasGas make full fledge HARD ENDURO race bikes…
These bikes are designed for the gnarly.
- Softer suspension
- E-Start
- KTM has PDS rear shock for more clearance
- E-Start
- Gearing for hard enduro
Here is a picture of a Enduro Race dirtbike
Riding a enduro bike on a motocross track is harder to do as the suspension can’t really handle the huge jumps, and whoops Motocross Enduro
That doesn’t mean that it cannot be done…it just means that its not all that great. Now some dirt bike manufacturers make a hybrid….a bike that might be able to do motocross and enduro.
The Yamaha YZ250X or the KTM300XC are examples of 2 stroke bikes that are more closely related to Motocross and enduro.
However these bikes can ride on a motocross track and then head out on a gnarly single track trail….
Are this type of bikes better than a true hard enduro bike on gnarly single track?
No….however they are WAY better out in the desert and on a Motocross track.
Motocross Enduro has turned into an entire MARKET….
You can ride these hybrid bikes just about anywhere and they really are the do it all bike….
If you told me I can only have one bike….(Who only wants one bike?)
I would get one of these bikes because you can really ride it EVERYWHERE.
Is it as good as a Motocross bike on the track…NO
Is it as good as a XCW in hard Enduro….NO
But can it do all of the above YES. and it can do it well enough for my abilities.
Leave us a comment if you have any questions about Dirtbikes.
Tubliss review 2018 – This is a review of the TUbliss 2.0 Gen system