The Sherco line-up for 2024 has been announced. In a nutshell? Engine changes
for some of the four stroke range. And minor tweaks with the two stroke models.
Lets start with the smokers.
We still have the 125, 250 and 300 motorbikes.
As mentioned it's all small changes.
The LED headlight should be a big improvement over the weak globe.
Stronger lighter wheels will be a plus, although I never heard of issues with the existing wheels.
Everyone I know sees the lack of major change as a good thing overall.
Carburetor and pre-mix. Woohoo.
I'm sure emission laws will change this soon.
But lots of us don't want the new technologies.
Beta has fixed their main bearing issues, but many still don't like the oil injection system.
It's generally quite reliable but it gets expensive when it does fail.
The majority of TPI owners have trouble-free riding.
But the list of TPI issues is a long one, with a small but significant number of engine seizures.
And every TPI motorbike we've ridden has poor power at low revs.
We know quite a few riders who have spent up toward a thousand dollars for remapped
CDIs and aftermarket cylinder heads to get closer to the power of carb models.
So anyone who was hoping for major changes will be disappointed.
But most of us who own Sherco two-strokes think 'if it ain't broke don't fix it'.
I'm not sure about other countries, but the Sherco two strokes have become incredibly
popular in Australia in our local area and in the hard enduro scene.
Ridiculous amounts of grunt.
KYB suspension.
What's not to like?
I was really hoping Sherco would fix the awkwardly placed fuel tap.
But it seems every manufacturer likes to keep one ridiculous feature for years and years.
Maybe it's a kind of elaborate April Fools Day thing?
The four strokes.
These get most of the small changes as the two-strokes.
But there are bigger changes for the 250 and 300 four-strokes.
A new engine design claims better engine cooling, less weight, quieter,
less vibration, repositioned oil sight glass and oil filler cap.
The 300 model also has new intake and exhaust ports,
a bigger throttle body diameter, and titanium intake valves and springs.
Sherco says it produces more power and now can rev to 13700RPM.
I got to ride one of these in the outback and it already seemed to
have plenty of power and a free-spinning top end then.
If I understand Sherco's information correctly,
the 450 and 500 models are still essentially unchanged when it comes to the engines.
The mechanic for this tour company said the big Shercos have been very reliable.
Compared to some big bore enduro four strokes it definitely leans more toward dirt
performance with a fairly close ratio gearbox, KYB suspension that works better as you ride harder.
But it would be interesting to see an adventure conversion with the Sherco 500SEF.
A big fuel tank. Comfy seat.
Cush drive hub. Extra oil capacity.
A windscreen.
It might be an interesting project for the future.
I spent a whole week on the big bore Sherco and found it a delight to ride in every respect.
See our review for more information.
It will be interesting to see what changes are forced by emission laws in the future.
But overall I'd say many of us are happy to
see it's 'business as usual' for most of the 2024 models.
What do you think?
Has anyone ridden the 2024 models yet?
Keen to hear your thoughts.