Kawi Tecate-4 Hybrid.

[250Renvy]

Well, after officially giving up on my Laeger 300ex hybrid, I found a deal on a KFX 450 frame and parts.

Hopefully this one goes a little better.

So far my biggest concern is the pipe. If the pipe ends up being too big of a hassle, this one will have to be ditched too, but then I may try putting it in a 250R frame - or my HRE frame.

After I got my KFX450 frame I tried to just set the motor in the frame to see what I have to work with. Just by looking at it, it doesn't look like there will be any way to just build motor mounts so that anybody could put the motor in a KFX frame.

I think it could work, but the pipe could be a big problem - I also don't have one to see if it will fit or not.

Here are the pictures:
Bare frame space
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4723.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4723.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4724.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4724.jpg)




Motor just set in the frame: - I could really use the measurement from the end of the exhaust to the motor exhaust port.

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4725.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4725.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4726.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4726.jpg)



It sits pretty low and may not give enough chain tension or with the swingarm fully compressed may cause chain slap or the chain to fly off.


The KFX450 swingarm bolt is much heavier duty and thicker than the Tecate bolt and won't fit through the motor. A smaller bolt would have to be used or as shown here, the motor would have to be propped up and
fixed in the frame higher than the bolt.

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4727.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4727.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4728.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4728.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4729.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4729.jpg)

If I mount the motor through the pivot bolt, I'll either need to bore the case or
get a custom swingarm made, but then finding the right size bearings may be an issue.

The KFX swingarm only has 4" in between and is centered. The tecate pivot bolt mount is 6" long and off center.
A kick start extension will also have to be utilized.






I happen to have picked up an actual stock 250R frame just recently as well and it looks like a much better potential donor than even my Laeger Hybrid. See how everything almost just fits? This is an 89 frame so the rear mount would have to be changed but the rest is almost just bolt in - maybe an 86/87 frame would need very little changed.

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4713.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4713.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4714.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4714.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4715.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4715.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4716.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4716.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4718.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4718.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4720.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4720.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4721.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4721.jpg)
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/th_DSCN4722.jpg (http://s75.photobucket.com/albums/i289/250Renvy/?action=view&current=DSCN4722.jpg)


I know everybody tries to put the 4-strokes in the 250r, but I think this is more practical

Any thoughts?

[jcs003]

these pics are too small to actually see whats going on.

[250Renvy]

They are thumbnails. You click them and get a larger image.

[audioworks04]

Dont destroy an OEM 250R frame just to make a tecate 4. Just buy a Tecate 4. I think the tecate 4 or maybe a kx 250 or 500 motor would be awesome in a newer kfx450 aluminum frame. Would be like modern tecate. Very light with tons of power and parts that are available all over the place.

[bubsyfz450]

it kind of seems like if you cant get it to work you just give up and try something else? not trying to bash, but you couldnt get the 300ex to work, you gave up. you couldnt get the motor to work witht his motor, you gave up and are trying a different frame?

good luck tho....

[250Renvy]

Originally posted by audioworks04
Dont destroy an OEM 250R frame just to make a tecate 4. Just buy a Tecate 4. I think the tecate 4 or maybe a kx 250 or 500 motor would be awesome in a newer kfx450 aluminum frame. Would be like modern tecate. Very light with tons of power and parts that are available all over the place.

The tecate 4 is one of the worse handling quads ever so I wouldn't be inclined to build one of those. However the motor was the best and most powerful of the 250 2-strokes. You can see by the pictures that the frame wouldn't have to be altered in a 250R. I would go with aftermarket or try to fit it into my HRE frame.



Originally posted by bubsyfz450

it kind of seems like if you cant get it to work you just give up and try something else? not trying to bash, but you couldnt get the 300ex to work, you gave up. you couldnt get the motor to work witht his motor, you gave up and are trying a different frame?



It's a little more complicated than that. Partly I gave up because it was more work and money than I wanted to put into a 300ex motored machine.

I don't think you can fault me for trying different things. Sometimes they work out sometimes they don't and we move on.

If this doesn't work, I have other ideas I may try.

[jcs003]

now that i have overlooked the pic. i think you can do it if you have some machining and welding abilities.

wasnt the tecate 2-stroke only 2 more horsepower than a honda trx250r???

[racerx573]

It was the fastest in the '88 shootout they did. I have the retro 4 Wheel Action Magazine with the throwback article.

[headache]

i think the tecate kfx hybrid would be cool. The tecate motor is powervalved and has a nikasil bore for reliability. They were the fastest of the stock 250 2stroke quads... I say keep trying lol.

[bsmith106]

the countershaft position wouldnt matter if you chose to use an amp link style chain torque device. Tecate lower end will accept up to 04 kx250 top ends with minimal work from my research. Id love to do this myself but other priorities come first. Dont give up on the kfx frame, it will be more original if you keep it all green.

[audioworks04]

any updates on this build?

[250Renvy]

I'm still looking for a donor machine. These are hard to come by near me.

[SRH]

i bet that would vibrate awful with a rigid kfx frame... cool idea , im sure if you did some engineering you could find a way to keep the vibes down, why a tecate motor tho???? personally i think the tecate motor was junk....kfx with a kx 500 would be cool, but a rigid aluminum frame is going to vibrate more than steel

[250Renvy]

Originally posted by SRH
i bet that would vibrate awful with a rigid kfx frame... cool idea , im sure if you did some engineering you could find a way to keep the vibes down, why a tecate motor tho???? personally i think the tecate motor was junk....kfx with a kx 500 would be cool, but a rigid aluminum frame is going to vibrate more than steel

Why would it vibrate any more than a KFX motor? The tecate is counterbalanced.

A tecate motor is because it's a 2-stroke Kawi in a Kawi frame. It's a powervalve and there are still more parts left to build new than a 250R or LT 250. Hopefully we'll see today if the pipe will work or if it needs custom. If it needs custom it'll probably be too costly and thus abandoned - also because it's nearly impossible to find a donor for the right price in good shape nearby me.

I figure if I sell the frame and parts, I'll finally find a Tecate donor for $800 or less.

[deathman53]

he's right, the 84-87 tecate 3 wasn't counter-balanced, but the 87-88 tecate 4 was, almost identical to the 3 wheeler engine cases, but the crank and cases were different for fitting of a counter-balancer. The reason why the tecate engine parts are easy to get is because the 85/86 and later year kx250's are so similar, its not even funny. The weak link and why alot of them aren't running/junked is because the stator and flywheel are junk, the magnets become unglued and take out the stator and even break the cases. Luckily, the kx250 ignition fits and works in it. Most of them around now are using a kx250 ignition or a "updated" ricky stator stator/flywheel.

[250Renvy]

Well, I got some parts together for mock up and found out that this project is nearly impossible without a lot of custom parts. There is just not enough space for the motor and pipe to fit. A custom pipe would absolutely have to be made, but even then I 'm not sure if there would be enough room.

I was really hoping this would work because it would be such a cool and unique quad.

Oh well, you win some and lose some.

The only other modern frame I can see a 2-stroke motor fitting into is the KTM but that is way out of my budget for an experiment.

Needless to say, I'll have a complete KFX450 frame, a-arms, swingarm, axle, hubs, spindles, brakes and parts for sale as well as shell tecate-4 motor.

[mini]

laeger frame , had a cr85 ,then cr125,now yz250f will be done in the next few weeks.

[quadpornstar]

that will be a sweet quad when its done. Where is Bonney Lake in realationship to Seattle. Be interested is seeing that bike in person if its not too far away...