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Class Legality

IHRA · sport

X2 Vintage

IHRA 2026, T. A closed-list class. The craft must stay stock except where the rules allow otherwise, so anything unlisted is not permitted.

  • 1Not legal
  • 2OEM part required
  • 17Not permitted, not listed in the rules
  • 31Legal, with conditions
  • 13Legal

Read out of the published IHRA rulebook on 2026-09-11, so confirm anything that decides a purchase. The full note is at the foot of the page.

Running the class

Eligible craft
The Kawasaki X2, built 1986 to 1995.
Displacement limit
850cc (T.1). T.2.1 allows aftermarket pistons and requires the engine displacement not to exceed the 850cc limit, so the figure is a ceiling on the engine as raced and not only as the factory built it.
Licence or tier
Not stated.
Minimum weight
Not stated.

Read from the same class section as the part answers. The rider side of the sport, tiers, ages, licences and what gets inspected, is set out across the bodies at Racing.

Open questions on this class (2)

Places where the rulebook contradicts itself, or where a figure could not be settled. Nothing in this list is decided, and it sits here rather than in a footnote because it is what you would want before spending money.

  • T.2.3 permits added holes in the crankcase up to 10mm provided they do not penetrate internal surfaces. A hole that does not penetrate an internal surface is a blind hole, and the rule does not say what the allowance is for.
  • T.3.3 requires a replacement fuel tank to come from another personal watercraft and permits a fully aftermarket tank only with Race Director approval. Whether that approval is per event or per season is not stated.

Sections this rulebook does not contain for this class

Confirmed absent by a targeted read rather than merely unnoticed. In a closed-list class an absent article is why a part reads as not permitted; in an open class it is why one reads as open.

  • No forced induction article.

What the rules say (64 parts)

13 permitted outright, 31 permitted with stated conditions, 1 refused by a rule we can quote, 2 held to the original part by a rule we can quote and 17 refused by our reading of the class rather than by a quoted rule. Grouped where the same rule gives the same answer, so two "Not legal" groups can sit side by side under different rules.

What each answer below means

Not legal
This comes off. The rules refuse it in this class.
OEM part required
This comes off. Only the part the manufacturer fitted is allowed here.
Not permitted, not listed in the rules
Treat it as coming off. The class requires the craft to stay stock except where the rules allow otherwise, and this part is not on the list, so this is our reading rather than a rule we can quote at you.
Legal, with conditions
Keep it, but measure it: the rules permit this part only inside stated limits.
Legal
Keep it. The rules permit this part in this class.

Read the refusals as a list of work. Anything below marked Not legal, OEM part required, or Not permitted has to come off the machine, or go back to the standard part, before it races in this class.

Not legal1 part

Bolts, nuts and washers may not be substituted with titanium unless originally equipped. Locking mechanisms are allowed. J.7

Not permitted, not listed in the rules17 parts

On a closed list an unlisted modification is not permitted. A.2.2, J.1

Legal, with conditions1 part

An aftermarket flame arrester is allowed if it meets USCG, UL-1111 or SAE J-1928 Marine standards. T.3.2

Legal, with conditions1 part

The CDI unit may be aftermarket or modified and the RPM limiter bypassed or removed, and as the class's control unit it may not exceed the original unit's capabilities, must use the original connectors and takes no added sensor or input. T.4.1, T.4.2

Legal, with conditions1 part

Gauges may be modified or removed provided no hazard is created and any resulting hole is sealed. Section J permits modification and removal and never addresses adding an aftermarket instrument. J.15

Legal, with conditions1 part

Replacement wiring is allowed as a maintenance part under J.7, and T.4.1 keeps the ECU on its original connectors with no added sensor or input; J.7 opens no harness redesign and no ECU. J.7, T.4.1

Legal, with conditions1 part

Kawasaki two-cylinder two-stroke crankcases permitted. Added holes must not penetrate internal surfaces. Limits: max added hole 10 mm. T.2.3

Legal, with conditions1 part

May be modified or replaced with an aftermarket part. The original diameter must be maintained in Stock class, and the rulebook never defines which classes that is. J.18.2

Legal, with conditions1 part

May be replaced within OEM specifications. J.18.3

Legal, with conditions1 part

Aftermarket or modified, full-length type with at least one bar parallel to the driveshaft, dropping no more than 12.00mm (0.47 in) below the flat plane of the pump intake. J.18.1

Legal, with conditions1 part

Aftermarket or modified. An extension may not exceed the width of the original plate, and on a ski may not extend more than 100 mm (3.94 in). J.18.1

Legal, with conditions1 part

Replacement trim plates may be used provided they mimic the handling characteristics of the stock plates. J.18.2

Legal, with conditions1 part

Fixed-position only. Manual or automatic trim tabs prohibited. Transom extensions count as trim tabs. Limits: max extension 100 mm. T.5.1

Legal, with conditions1 part

Braking devices may be disabled for safety, and reverse buckets and trim motors may be removed or modified to disable them, provided no hazard is created. J.18.4

Legal, with conditions1 part

Foam between hull and deck layers cannot be removed. T.6.3

Legal, with conditions1 part

Ventilation tubes may be altered, aftermarket, repositioned on the original ducting or removed, but inlet and outlet openings keep stock size, and vents may be covered or sealed with no other hood change, cover or cowling. T.6.2

Legal, with conditions1 part

Aftermarket, modified, repositioned or removed. Up to two, each no longer than 36 in (91.45 cm), protruding no more than 3.94 in (100 mm) horizontally, at least 6 mm thick with radiused leading edges, and not attached to a planing surface. J.16

Legal, with conditions1 part

Mat kits and padding are allowed in every class (J.14). Footholds and foot straps are not named there, so they stay not permitted, and footwells must be blocked off during competition. J.14, T.6.6

Legal, with conditions1 part

The handle pole assembly and mounting brackets may be modified or replaced provided original functionality is retained. Length may be altered and the attaching point reinforced. J.17.2

Legal, with conditions1 part

Replacement bumpers and side rails may be used provided they create no hazard. A permanently affixed nose bumper remains required. J.13, I.17

Legal, with conditions1 part

May be added to adjust handling. Constant mass only, and no other part may be modified to carry it. J.19

Legal, with conditions1 part

Aftermarket cooling lines and bypass systems may be used, but every cooling valve must be fixed or automatic, with no manual control of water flow. T.2.4

Legal, with conditions1 part

Work on the hull is open under T.6.4 while the top deck stays as the manufacturer supplied it, and no modification may take the craft past the original deck length. T.6.4

Legal, with conditions1 part

T.5.1 counts an extension mounted to the transom as a trim tab, so it must be fixed in position and reach no more than 100 mm (3.94 in) past the original planing surface, the same answer as the adjustable trim tab row. T.5.1, T.6.4

Legal1 part

The reed valve assembly may be modified or aftermarket, with no limit stated on petals, cage or spacers. T.3.5

Legal1 part

J.7, in the general rules for every class, names hoses and clamps as replaceable with aftermarket options, which overrides the closed-list default and covers an aftermarket fuel hose. Fittings are not named on their own. J.7

Legal1 part

The cylinder head may be modified or replaced with an aftermarket one, with no dome, squish or compression limit stated. T.2.6

Legal1 part

May be replaced, as may starters and oil injection systems, with the oil injection system removable or disconnectable. J.8

Legal1 part

Aftermarket hoods are allowed, with no shape or material limit stated. T.6.1

Legal1 part

Grips, throttle and cables may be modified or aftermarket. The bar must be padded at the mounting bracket or the crossbar padded. J.17.1

Legal1 part

Steering shaft, holder, handlebar holder and cables may be aftermarket, and quick-turn modifications are allowed. J.17.2

Legal1 part

The bilge pump may be modified or disconnected and aftermarket bilge draining systems are permitted, provided they create no hazard. J.10

IHRA 2026, T, read from the rulebook on 2026-09-11. Read the rule yourself. Every IHRA class · where the rulebooks differ · how this site reads a rulebook.

This is one class. Every part below also has a page of its own showing where it stands across every class this body runs, and legality by part is the index of them.

What we corrected here, and when

  • Aftermarket handle pole. Corrected 2026-10-06: the X2 Vintage row called the part not applicable to a seated class; the X2 has a handle pole, and J.17.2 applies to every class.
  • Footholds, foot straps and tray mats. Corrected 2026-10-02: the X2 Vintage row said the part must remain OEM, where T.6.6 only requires the footwells blocked off and J.14 allows mat kits in every class.
  • High-pressure fuel line and fittings. Corrected 2026-10-02: the X2 Vintage row read the closed-list default and refused a fuel hose, which J.7 allows in every class; until 2026-10-31 this line wrongly excepted the drag section, where J.7 applies too.
Cite this page

“X2 Vintage, IHRA class rules”, BaddJet archive, https://baddjetarchive.com/legality/ihra/x2-vintage/

Add the date you read it.

64 parts read · 13 permitted, 31 with conditions · 2026 rulebook

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