XT250 Lowering Links - read before you buy!

[cullenking]

I picked up an XT250 for my 5'1" girlfriend, and she has been having a blast riding it around. She can just *barely* tippy toe with both feet, which means parking around town is a bit of a pain. So, Soupy's adjustable lowering links were bought, which advertised a 1-4" adjustable drop.

After installing, I realize wow, they drop the bike 4.5" at their highest setting. I couldn't believe this, so I put the stockers back on, measured, put the new ones back on, measured, and got the same result.

So, for all y'all out there using google to find out the best lowering link for a 2008 XT250, don't get the Soupy's, it looks like the links from Emig Racing are the better option.

Stock lowering links, center to center of bolt holes, measure just around 3.25". The Soupy's measure 4.25". So, while they are 1" shorter, due to the nature of the linkage that actually results in a 4" drop.

I just ordered a set from Emig Racing, and had them measure center to center before I purchased. It came out to be 3.75" or so. Since it's not a linear relationship between link length and drop, I expect somewhere between 1-2" of actual drop when I get these installed next week. I'll followup then.

[150ron]

Mind posting up some pics, id like to see what it looks like, this is the first ive heard of lowering a newer xt250.

How did you lower the front? by raising up the triples closer to the handlebars?

[cullenking]

I'll post some pics when the new links come in today or tomorrow. I haven't bothered figuring out the front yet. If it's just 1" in the rear, and for my short girlfriend to be comfortable around town while she gets more confident, I may not even bother.

[cullenking]

New links came in, here is a shot comapred to the Soupy's. You can see this one is much shorter.

[cullenking]

Final update after having the new Emig Racing lowering links installed for a week:

Heights of links, measured from ground to a point on license plate:

Stock: 25.5"
Soupy's: 21"
Emig's: 23.5"

So, Emig's provide a full 2" of drop, which is the lowest I would recommend anyone take it. at 2", the kickstand is only usable on a flat surface. Anything with a slope and the bike cannot support itself. I will be shortening the stand this week. Additionally, I was able to cause the rear wheel, with new IRC GP1's (low profile knobs) to scrape the underside of the tail while riding it hard in a local dirt patch.

I weigh 50lbs more than my girlfriend, so I don't think she has much to worry about in regards to bottoming out. However, if she ever gets comfortable enough to actually go on a semi-rough ride, I will consider putting the stock links back on.

Final word: avoid Soupy's Performance if you can. There are many lowering link options out there for bikes, and Soupy's has proven to be a poorly run business. Still waiting on a refund even after returning the links, which were received by Soupy's 10 days ago. Finally escalated to a paypal claims agent. It took initiating a paypal dispute to even get a response from him, after two weeks of trying via email.

[moise]

hey, complete noob here. i'm considering getting a set of emig racing lowering links for my xt250 http://www.emigracing.com/LL.htm

i'm just wondering how much i'll need to raise my front forks and cut my kick stand to balance everything out.

i'm about 5'2" and 120-125lbs. thanks guys. this is an awesome site.