[hardrider]

Rear has adjustment, suspension is fine, power is where this bike fails. I got mine last week in chicago. I do love the bike even though is lacks some power. First place i took mine was off-road and it did well. overall this bike is Great. With a pipe and power commander should be able to get a little more out of the power dept. This bike is a 7 out of 10.

[crfsonly]

congrats on your new ride!

couple of questions:

1. what other CRF's do you have if any?
2. how does the power output compare to what other bikes you ride?
3. where are you MOST looking for more power, down low, mid or top end?

ken

[hardrider]

I have 2009 250r,2010 450r, 2007 trx400ex. I was looking for the power to be along the line of the 250r but its not. the mid is the only place it has power dead on the bottom and top.

[crfsonly]

yeah, definitely not going to have the power of the CRF250R. it's geared pretty high with the stock final drive gearing. i've been researching what CBR250R owners have done to increase performance. there doesn't seem to be any real performance parts available for the CBR250R other than exhaust and a powercommander. of course, CBR exhaust will not fit the CRF version. i was hoping to find higher compression pistons and cams. nothing so far. if you find any let me know.

ken

[hardrider]

I waiting to hear back from FMF on release date for exhaust. i guessing early next spring. If can get 7 more hp out of this motor ii think it would make all the difference. Knew it was'nt going to perform like the R but the lack of torque in off road makes it tricky.

[crfsonly]

7 additional ponies would be a 30% increase in power. that will require more than an exhaust and EFI tuning. at the very least it will also need a higher compression piston and high performance cam.

[lightflight]

I'm curious of the current air filter set up. there may be room for improvement there. maybe.

[hardrider]

I think it might get close to 7hp with pipe and tune, there is a lot of room to grow in this motor. crf250r stock has 34hp and the L has 22hp. if somehow can get this bike up to 29hp it would make a big difference. maybe some different cams. not sure yet. when i pipe it and tune, i will dyno and let you all know.

[hardrider]

Ok well this weekend i had the chance to ride this bike all day in all different conditions. all riding was off road from dirt to sand and rocks. I know there has been a lot of talk about suspension. Well its not the best, but its not bad. it handled everything i put it through pretty well. besides the rear tire needing to be a little more aggressive it did really good out there. My buddy was on his 250r and i was hanging with him, except in some tight turn area's where the rear tire made it loose. But i went threw bumps and up hills pretty easy. I say let the suspension break in and get a some more ride hours on it and its not bad. FYI: FMF has a exhaust out for right now.

[crfsonly]

good ride report. on the FMF exhaust I know they have it on their website but i was told it is not yet available. we will have them in stock as soon as they are.

ken

[Rustygunz]

I just got back from a test drive a few hours ago...

First, I love the idea of a CRF for the road and had to block that excitement to avoid being partial for the review.

First thing I noticed right out of the gate was the power... or lack there of. The dealership is on a 50mph highway so i knew i had to get up to speed relatively quickly, but frankly, it left a lot to be desired in the first couple minutes. Did I get rear-ended? No. Did my '96 4 runner pull out of the lot quicker after the ride? Sadly yes. I was told before I even got on that this bike is begging for a computer, gear change and pipe, and I'd be willing to bet it would make a difference but it's still a tall order.

On the road it felt great once up to speed, but again lane changes and throttle-on avoidance measures instilled little confidence. Handling is surprisingly swift, the bike feels light and turning around in a one lane road while staying on the pegs is a cinch-the radius is very user-friendly.

Besides riding to work, 50% of this bike's usage would be in medium to soft sand around my area. I was hoping for enough low end power to maneuver quickly through that scenario, but just from the road test I felt it would fall short once off road. I'm sure easy/moderate trail riding on fairly firm ground would be fine and probably quite pleasurable, but you'd be hard pressed to throw the throttle back to get out of a sand pit or over a log with the current power band. Many moons ago I used to have an XR250, which although not perfect, you could leave in 3rd and go just about anywhere. I was hoping for that ability, which ultimately may have led to my enhanced dissatisfaction.

I'm not new to thrashing through gears having started on smaller 2-strokes, but it was difficult/almost impossible to get this motor to really come to life. It sounded like it was suffocating, which maybe an intake and exhaust could take care of.

Its a shame because you simply can't beat the price tag and Honda build quality. My juices are flowing for a street legal enduro bike after riding this however, which unfortunately may lead me away from red and into orange, though the price tag becomes significantly wider.

I hope this doesn't offend any owners. It would be a great recreation/starter bike but for those who want to be just a little more aggressive you should probably look elsewhere.

[mrclortho]

Give it a thousand miles or so to break in. My new bikes have always run better after they break in, especially the small displacement engines that need a lot of RPM's. They have all felt 'tight' when new.

Intake, exhaust and a programmer should make a big difference. Honda wants the fuel economy numbers so they are probably running the fuel ratio on the leaner side and a super quiet muffler doesn't help. I don't own the bike yet so not speaking from personal experience on this model.

On my HD 883 Sportster (the only FI bike I have owned), it completely changed the bike from dull and slow to peppy.