WP Xact Pro Motocross Suspension Test – When Driving Becomes Fun
Today, motorcycles leave the factory so advanced that it is difficult to upgrade them later with additional, non-standard equipment. But at Dutch company WP, they know how to do it and thus take driving to a whole new level. To begin with, I can touch on the historical background of this suspension manufacturer, which currently equips the brands in series. KTM, Husqvarna and Gas Gas. The beginning dates back to 1977.when they started developing suspension and were the first to introduce inverted or inverted forks. All skeptics were silenced in 1984 by Heinz Kinigadner, who won his first WP world title with such a disqualification.
A lot has changed since then. Technology has advanced a lot, improvements are made year after year - that's all. this could be felt in the tests I conducted in Šentvid near Sticna on a hot summer day with WP's representative in Slovenia, MotoXgeneration. Even before the ride, I had to properly adjust the suspension to match my weight. Roughly speaking, I can say that the suspension is set correctly when the bike, when you sit on it, sits at a distance of ten centimeters, measured from the center of the rear wheel vertically to the fender. Sure, you can go into details, but this time we didn't bother with such fine tuning, as the suspension was mainly tuned for a sportier ride, which I liked.
After all the settings were done, I left with a big smile. 450cc KTM with Xact Pro 7548 front and Xact Pro 8950 rear, and hit the road on a packed, stiff and crumbling track that was perfect for testing the suspension. It's hard to talk about the feel and comparison of this suspension to the standard one, as I noticed in the first few rounds that they are two completely different worlds. The Xact Pro suspension with Cone Valve technology worked great on all sections of the track, both when accelerating and when braking.
I noticed the biggest difference in acceleration, so a little about that first. The task of the suspension is, in theory, quite simple, namely to provide maximum contact between the tires and the ground and thus allow the driver to accelerate quickly and aggressively. It's a lot more difficult in practice, but the WP did a great job as the rear shock provided tremendous traction, especially in closed corners where I stopped almost completely and then accelerated quickly. The difference between the standard suspension was so obvious that on one of the jumps on the track, I barely jumped to the end due to the extremely dry conditions, while with the Xact Pro I have had success in almost every round. It quickly became clear to me that this suspension not only provides a much better and safer feel, but is also very familiar during laps.
The serious, if not the biggest, test for the suspension is of course braking, as it leaves the largest holes on the track. But even this test, the best WP components passed with honors. Here I would especially praise the return of the forks and rear shock, which is called rebound in motocross jargon. It should be borne in mind that when braking, the motorcycle already crouches a little, which also reduces the suspension travel, but even in planes, where the pits followed one after another, it did not give me any problems, since the forks returned quickly. to its original position and thus nicely soften each of the holes.
Of course, the differences between the standard suspension and the Xact Pro suspension I noticed not only during acceleration and braking, but also on every meter of the track. The handling is better, the ride is softer and less tiring, all of which allows the rider to focus more on other things like lines, braking points, correct position on the bike, so I can go on and on. I conclude that this was the reason I did not suffer from the so-called "pumping arms" or tight arms, which is the biggest nightmare for motocross riders. Then my feeling was confirmed by a stopwatch, which showed that I was on average about a second and a half faster on a lap with the Xact Pro suspension on a track length of about two minutes than with the standard suspension.
Along with all the pluses, of course, there are also minuses, or better to say minus, of course the price. You will have to dig in your pocket for such a suspension kit, since the fork costs 3149 euros, and the rear shock is 2049 euros.... I recommend the Xact Pro suspension to those professional motocross riders trying to enter the international arena as it will certainly help them get their best.
