Fuel Injected 2 stroke VS Carbureted 2 Stroke KTM 250 XC-W - Dirt Bike Magazine

For this edition of VERSUS we bring the 2018 KTM 250 XC-W 2 stroke head to head with the KTM 250 XC-W with TPI. The question is which one is better? We took both bikes out to our local testing trails and gathered all the info to see which bike is king. Both bikes feature WP PDS shock with no linkage, WP forks, head light, kick stand w/electric start, and Brembo braking components. Will TPI revolutionize 2 strokes? Only time will tell.....

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[acrrider]

Honda bring back the Two fifty Two Stroke!

[tosgem]

It seems like a no brainer to me:
- Lugs at even lower revs than carb, harder to stall, should be easier to find traction and feather throttle
- Works at all altitudes without adjustment
- According to MaverickDH's comment on here it DOUBLES the life of the bottom end (no fuel diluting the lubrication), and gives 200hours life on the top end due to better fuel combustion
- no more mixing oil and fuel. Combined with lower servicing this significantly changes the ratio of time spent in the saddle vs time spend on the end of a spanner.
- Better fuel economy. EDIT think about how that leaves electric bikes further behind... "electric bikes are better, they just need better economy but they are getting there!"... yeah, well now you have 30% further to go hahaha

[perpelle]

Note 1; No one in Europe is riding their TPi restricted. The carb ones was also restricted and it was removed at the dealers.
2; Cold/warm weather climate. No need to "re-jet".
2; People mentioning "more things to go wrong!". Where have you guys been when 4-strokes got efi?
I rarely see any problem with them at all and I never had any problems with them.

[JasonCaville]

Did you notice any other improvements with the TPI? Cold weather starting, plug fouling, can you flood it?

[drmx]

It made four strokes better so I don’t see why it can’t eventually do the same for two strokes.

[rabbitfootedkitty]

2 stroke efi is the future. Period. For all sorts of high performance 2 stroke applications.

[CR-rbsr]

The less moving parts the better for me. I’ll stick to a carb and a simple kick starter

[parkerwise]

I'm sorry but it's obvious you're sticking MX riders to XC. You aren't lugging or climbing or weaving between tight spots. Just carving turns, just like the MX vids. Work on that please.

[IamAhmedMohammed]

How much is the milage difference between them? ?

[lsinvestonline]

I love Bike two Strokes. Made helo for Brasil.✊🇧🇷

[johnjirvin]

I prefer the carb, it’s much easier to work on

[a]

Cold start on TPI bikes it is very different as they only get pure oil injected into the crank and it takes time for oil to get to the piston specially in cold climate areas (like here where summer is +5C to +10C) and when doing winter riding. There is many videos here of pistons of TPI show wear marks probably caused by lack of lubrication on the piston during cold start. KTM should maybe make another cold start oil injector to lubricate the piston when starting.

[Dannyyzeee]

Damn I've been riding street all my life but I wanna get into mx so bad

[Axsel]

Bought a new 2018 carburated 250 and it was about 2k less considering the discount and no set up fees. Cant find a TPI here in CO for below MSRP without setup fees. Lectron carb made it run even better than the TPI and is more reliable.

[GoRideChannel]

I'm really optimistic about this tech, really as just a means to allow for year-round riding of a 2 stroke. I live in CA, and so these bikes get what's called a "red sticker" which limits your riding season. I find w stroke bikes are lighter and tend to carry the weight of the motor lower in the chassis for better handling. I do like the simplicity of a 2 stroke (no valves) and the fuel injection does complicate things slightly, but I think I'm willing to trade it for year-round riding... now if these things weren't damn near almost $10K...

[KCONXXX]

If it injects the oil does that mean you can use regular gas?

[carloscervantes]

So that means the gas and oil mixes automatically?

[derekwhipple]

I've ridden carb and tpi side by side. And I prefer the carb over the tpi just because how simple and robust they are. The tpi is really cool but it just feels like a 4 stroke to me. Id probably rather just buy a 350 4 stroke than the tpi.

[timothyhaskell]

It sounds like the injected model is more adaptable for mountain use. How so? Is it self adjusting? Can it go from sea level to Aspen elevations?

[spyropyro]

So the tpi model is a 4 stroke but still a 2 stroke?