AS3 Performance Bike Of The Week

2023 Kawasaki KX 450 SR with a long list of upgrades 

We start our Weekly Round Up this week with Mark Gerloff's (@papagerloff) 2023 Kawasaki KX 450 SR. Mark is a Veteran Pro Motocross rider over in the USA and is the father of current World Superbike BMW rider, Garett Gerloff! Mark went for the upgraded SR model of Kawasaki's KX 450 range, which already has a load of extras compared to the standard model, including better suspension and an upgraded exhaust system. He has also installed a range of AS3 Performance parts to upgrade the look and performance of his bike, which we have detailed below:

Nice shot of the left side of the KX 450 SR, our parts & logos standing out against the Showa suspension, Monster Energy Graphics & Guts seat cover.

Detailed shot of the left side of the bike showing our billet aluminium ignition cover with green timing plugs, green-tipped gear lever, black front sprocket guard & black racing series foot pegs.

Mark replaced the OEM ignition cover with our billet aluminium Factory Series ignition cover. These are CNC machined from a solid block of 6061-T6 aluminium, making them much stronger and more durable compared to the OEM cover. The hard anodised black colour is a huge visual upgrade too, not to mention the marriage of the ignition plugs, anodised in green and complementing the Kawasaki & Monster Energy greens nicely. 

Our black anodised, cold forged gear lever has replaced the OEM gear lever and with it, has made it less susceptible to snapping upon any impact. The cold forging process makes them much less brittle than the cast OEM levers. Tip colour is the rider's choice and here, Mark has gone for green as another stand-out feature.

The black front sprocket guard has been added to prevent mud and stones getting caught up in the chain and sprocket whilst racing. AS3 Performance front sprocket guards are an upgrade on the standard plastic guards as they are CNC machined from 6061 aluminium. They come anodised in green or black for the KX 450 and should be essential for any racer.

Mark has fitted our Racing Series foot pegs, anodised in black. These foot pegs are used by a lot of our motocross riders because they are wider and lighter than the OEM foot pegs and a great cheaper alternative to our titanium foot pegs. The foot pegs come in a range of different colours and feature a 57mm wide platform with 34 teeth, giving a larger surface area and better grip than OEM foot pegs. 

Detailed shot of the right side of the bike featuring our green-tipped rear brake lever (a great matching combo with the gear lever), black rear brake clevis and green oil filter cap.

This photo shows our black forged levers from above, our black anodised front & rear brake reservoir covers, plus black anodised, CNC-machined fuel cap. 

The brake lines on the KX 450 SR have also been upgraded from the rubber OEM brake hoses to our AS3 Performance by Venhill stainless steel braided brake lines. Braided brake lines eliminate the 'spongy' feeling you can often get from rubber brake hoses and will give you much better feel from the brakes. The 2023 KX 450 SR comes with a hydraulic clutch and we also supply braided clutch lines to match, as shown in the photo above. Mark has also upgraded the throttle cables on the bike and installed a set of our AS3 Performance by Venhill featherlight throttle cables. The cables are referred to as 'featherlight' because they have a teflon inner liner which is designed to reduce friction inside the cable to allow for smother throttle operation. All of our brake lines and cables for Kawasaki motocross bikes are available in green (as Mark has gone for), or in the standard black colour. 

Detailed shot of the rear back wheel showing our black rear axle block & black rear brake disc guard.

Towards the rear of the bike, Mark has installed 2 AS3 Performance protection parts. The first (shown in the photo above) is one of our billet aluminium rear brake disc guards. These are always a popular choice with anyone riding off-road bikes -  from motocross and enduro to trail and adventure bikes, the rear brake disc guard is an essential protection part to help prevent damage to your rear brake disc, which could lead to the end of a race, or leaving you stranded on a trail. The other protection part that Mark has added to the KX 450 is one of our rear brake caliper guards. Again, this is an upgrade from the OEM rear brake caliper guard, as they are CNC machined from billet alumium, where as the OEM guards are plastic. Our rear brake caliper guards come in a choice of anodised black or green for the Kawasaki's, but are also available for Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Fantic motocross and enduro bikes. 

Detailed shot of the rear back wheel showing out black anodised rear brake caliper guard.

These are just a small selection of the photos that Mark sent us of his Kawasaki KX 450 SR. If you would like to see more, they are all featured on the product pages on our website. You can find all of the products that we do for the 2023 Kawasaki by using our 'Shop By Bike' feature on the website, where you can narrow your search down from model, to year, to even colour - so for example, you can view all parts that we have in green for the 2023 Kawasaki KX 450. Click here to see.

AS3 Supported Rider News

2023 International Six Days Enduro (ISDE), San Juan, Argentina

Our Supported Enduro Riders; Nieve Holmes & Jamie McCanney, are representing Team GB in the 97th edition of ISDE this week. Nieve will be competing on her Sherco SE-F 300 R with Jamie on his Husqvarna FE 450 (pictured below). We wish both of them plus the teams all the best and we hope they can retain the championship which they won last year! 

Jamie McCanney's Husqvarna FE 450 that he will compete on at the 2023 ISDE.

AS3 are at EICMA Motorcycle Show

We are in Milan this week for EICMA - The biggest motorcycle trade fair in the World. Many of the manufactures in the motorcycle industry use EICMA to release new models. Keep an eye on our social media channels as we will be posting updates throughout the week. If you are visiting EICMA this year, drop us a DM on Instagram if you would like to meet up and discuss anything AS3!