2023 Sherco 250 and 300 SE reviewed

2023 Sherco Two-Strokes

Sherco 250/300 SE review with Ant

Recently MCNews.com.au was fortunate enough to be invited along to the Victorian launch of the new 2023 Sherco enduro range and we sent Ant along to check out the latest French enduro weapons and concentrate on the two-strokes.

2023 sees the 250 & 300 SE models receive a freshen up rather than a total makeover, the main changes coming in the way of graphics updates and the package made more attractive with some added value in the way of bonus accessory packs for early adopters. Australia only receives the ‘Factory’ versions compared to overseas markets where lesser spec’ models are also on offer.

The test location in Broadford Victoria offered a relatively tight dusty single-track circuit with enough off-camber loose corners and hidden obstacles to keep us riders honest, alongside an enduro-cross track where Sherco guns, Tim Coleman, Chris Perry, Jonte Reynders and Anthony Solar put us mere mortals to shame and showed off their technical prowess.

A little Sherco history before we delve into the new 2023 line-up. Why? My curiosity more than anything. We’re all familiar with the brand thanks to hard enduro hotshots Mario Roman and Wade Young. What you might not know is that Sherco is an amalgam of trials brands Sherpa & Bultaco, so despite being a fairly young brand, established in 1998, it has old school trials chops and it shows in what they have been able to achieve in what is a relatively short period of time. 2004 saw production of their first enduro bikes and in 2008, on his debut, the silent assassin Graham Jarvis won Romaniacs on a Sherco 450.

As someone who has been spending more and more time honing my skills in hard enduro, albeit at a very amateur level, I was pretty excited to get the opportunity to climb aboard the new 2023 Sherco two-stroke machines. I was eager to get a feel on how they stacked up against their market dominating Austrian counterparts.

With my own 2019 Husky 300 starting to get a little long in the tooth, it won’t be long until I myself am in the market for a new bike. So with the Husky as my reference point, I was keen to dip my toe in some cheesy French fondue to see if their dirt-squirters are as delicious as the offerings from the auspicious Austrian’s.

Straight off the bat rolling out of the pit, the riding position immediately feels different. The stock Sherco bars feature quite a low bend, bringing the riding position more forward which didn’t take long to gel with, and I actually grew to like the more I time I spent on the bike.

Surprisingly, with my body weight that bit further forward, there is still loads of rear end grip. Getting on the power out of the tighter bends I was expecting the rear to slide more than it did, and I wasn’t the only rider on the day to make comment on the remarkable rear grip these machines generate.

At my average 5’10” height, I found the riding position and spread from the pegs to the bars very comfortable, although I’d imagine if you’re a tall guy you’d probably want to fit taller bars or risers.

The Sherco’s ride on closed cartridge KYB forks with a linkage rear and out of the box it’s set up much firmer than the standard WP fare found on the Austrian brands. Personally, I prefer the more compliant WP set-up on the Austrian bikes as I find it less fatiguing in the riding I do, which is primarily slippery ascents/descents & long rocky creek beds, where I rarely spend any time in the upper cogs.  I think the firmer set-up also contributed to arm pump arriving earlier than I expected when pushing on the tight singles we were riding on the launch.

Many riders do however prefer the feel firmer suspension gives especially on faster trails, particularly more aggressive riders.  The previous time I rode the 300SE was around an open grass track course and I remember how impressive the front felt when hard under brakes, when I thought I’d braked too deep and it was going to tuck but it just kept tracking. Horses for courses. There’s no doubting KYB make great suspension and it’s infinitely tuneable to suit whatever style of riding prefer but I’d definitely be looking to soften it up a little if taking one home to live with in my quite hectic and slippery backyard up around Eildon. But your backyard might not be as wet and steep as mine.

Without a doubt the big surprise for me was how much of a punch in the pants these French two-smokers pack. With the map switch in sacré bleu mode, yes the Sherco comes with two maps and a bar mounted switch on your throttle hand as standard, with the fast map engaged, the Sherco 250 SE feels like it’s got just as much poke as my 300 Husky through the top end.

In stark contrast to the Austrians, the Sherco also feels noticeably different between the two riding modes, the fast mode offering much more aggressive throttle response. Even in dumb mode the Sherco delivers its power more aggressively than the Husky, which can make it a bit of a handful when riding tired and throttle control begins to waver, especially with that firmer suspension.

While the Sherco may not be quite as smooth in dampening out engine vibes with their counter-balanced crank as the Austrians, the Sherco’s really outshine their competitors in off the bottom power delivery. Where the transfer port injected Austrians have a tendency to be a little fluffy and frustrating right off the bottom, the Sherco’s offer predictable power for those slow speed, short sharp blips of throttle to help carry the front over tricky sections.

For me the tried-and-true Keihin carburetted Sherco wins out over the injected TPI’s when it comes to throttle control, however who knows how long it’ll be before emissions legislature pushes Sherco’s shift to injection.

Feedback from the Brembo brakes & Galfer disks is firm but with good feel, maybe even slightly nicer than the Magura set-up on my Husky and the clutch was equal to the task.

The Selle Dalla Valle seat offers good grip and looks like it should last a good while and stand up to a decent beating. The rest of the cockpit feels good, the speedo is small but functional and the switches & levers feel sturdy & well made. I also prefer the simpler single throttle cable the Sherco’s run over the push/pull twin cable set-up on the Austrian two-strokes as they can be fiddly to adjust and tend to get a bit sticky on full lock.

One other small point of difference between the Sherco two-strokes and the Austrian models is Sherco’s decision to run a remote coolant overflow reservoir tucked up in the rear left hand side of the bike.

Sherco have been running this set-up for a while and I’ve witnessed first hand the difference this extra coolant capacity makes, reducing engine temps in tight slow creek bed sections where there just isn’t enough airflow through the radiators to cool the machine. In these situations, my buddy’s riding Sherco’s consistently run cooler than the KTM’s & Husky’s.

250 or 300SE? For me it’d be the 300. At the beginning of the day, I was pretty sold on the 250 as it puts down plenty enough power for my needs, with a little more chuckability in the tight stuff than its bigger 300 sibling.

However, when I spent more time in the endurocross arena in the afternoon hopping over obstacles, I missed the extra low-end torque the 300 possesses.

I swapped back-to-back between the 250 and 300 and found I could meter out the instant power delivery for those short sharp bursts of throttle more easily and more precisely on the 300. Interestingly, speaking to the legend Tim Coleman on the day, he prefers, in his words ‘the zappy power delivery’ of the 250 SE for the trials & trick riding he’s known for.

When it comes to bang for buck it’s hard to beat the flamboyant Frenchie’s. Off the show room floor the 250 & 300 SE models come standard with a thermo fan fitted, 6mm AXP bash-guard, plastic radiator guards, frame protectors and hand guards.

Until the end of June Sherco are loading up the 2023 range with a raft of additional accessories which include pretty much all the bolt on hard parts most of us would vajazzle our machines with for free. These include Bark Busters, 8mm poly AXP bash & linkage guard, ally radiator braces, front and rear alloy disk guards, case saver and speedo guard. The only things I’d add to this set up is a set of tugger straps on the front and rear guards.

That said, the shape of the moulding running lengthways along the top of the front guard actually makes for a good hand hold to lift the front out of a spot of bother.

So have the French fried their Austrain opposition? Terrible line sorry but let’s run with it. If you have a hunger for the hard enduro burger with the lot, complete with a killer accessory pack, the 2023 Sherco 250 & 300 SE’s offer unparalleled value.

With a recommended retail of $15,499 +ORC for the 300 SE, its almost $1000 cheaper than the comparable Austrians and at the moment they come with that mega accessory pack valued at $1100, so you’re over 2k in front straight away. Sherco also have a four-stroke range that includes the A4DE winning 300 SEF.

Pricing aside, from a riding point of view, I feel like the Austrian models are a bit more forgiving in the hands of an amateur straight out of the box when it comes to the slow and slippery stuff thanks to a more plush set-up and softer throttle response. Faster terrain is where I think the Sherco would really start to come into its own and any reputable suspension tuner would be able to soften it up nicely for you down the track, if you decide that’s the way you want to go. Or with more time on the bike you might just adapt and leave well enough alone…

2023 Sherco 250 SE FACTORY/300 SE FACTORY Specifications

Sherco two-stroke servicing

Sherco recommend transmission oil changes every 20 hours, spark plug every 50 hours and piston replacement every 80 hours of recreational use. Current parts pricing has a piston kit selling for $322, little end bearing for $48, base gasket for $27 and o-rings for $32. So if you do a top end rebuild yourself that comes in at around $430.