1975 Kawasaki KT250 Trials Motorcycle

Description

A pioneering industrialist, Shozo Kawasaki’s company was founded in Tokyo and manufactured everything from locomotives to steel components before diversifying into aircraft in 1937 and then, from the end of the Second World War, motorcycle engines.  Kawasaki merged with Japan’s oldest motorcycle manufacturer, Meguro Works, in 1960 and the revitalized company’s two-strokes proved remarkably popular for the next decade, the model line-up expanding rapidly to cover a wide range of engine displacements.  Like all Japanese manufacturers, Kawasaki jumped on the dirt bike craze that swept the world in the 1970s and the KT250 introduced in 1975 was a trials machine developed from the bikes raced by European Champion Don Smith. Closely related to the Motocross KX250, the KT250 was Kawasaki’s first production trials bike and typically minimalist to keep weight down, with a torquey motor and ‘70s graphics. Equipped with lights and instruments for road use, the dual-purpose KT250 was powered by a two-stroke single-cylinder unit mated to a five-speed gearbox. Featuring a twin plug cylinder head, the maximum output was 16 horsepower at 6500 rpm, the carburettor was a 26mm Mikuni and total weight was just 211.4 lbs. Other features included a quick release rear wheel and hub, a drop feed drive chain oiler with a reservoir located in the swing-arm. The KT250 proved a worthy challenger to the dominant Spanish-made trials bikes and these vintage Japanese off-roaders are now becoming increasingly collectible.