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2006 Cr250 and 2000 Yz250. The Cr250 was the fastest 2 stroke I ever rode. It had great ergonomics and the engine would scream once up in the revs. However, it was a little sleepy off idle. For my type of woods riding, the yz has the better all around motor. So , that's the one I still have. Both great bikes though.
--kehin pwk or lectron carb (some say the JD jetting kits work too)
--keeping the powervalve cables adjusted/fresh
-i believe some would use the airboot off the 05-07 on the older motors and it would help..i never did it personally but hopefully some else can chime in
--getting the head milled to fix the squish band
--using the older, heavier 00-01 crank or using an 05+ crank as the lobes were solid metal and i believe the 02-03 had some sort of plating/plates on them that could shear off
--extreme fix: using an 94-01 motor in the newer generation frame ..you can get custom made headstays and kits on ebay to do this
the good thing about hondas is you can interchange parts from most years and build the "perfect" bike.
you can fix the motor and use the forks off the 04+ or a newer crf (or use the kyb stuff off the 125) or swap in an 01 motor.
if the cr250 had the older motor or if honda had properly developed the case reed motor it would have won shootouts as the ergonomics and suspension are awesome and still good to this day. the stock suspension was very good.
if OP wants a project bike and doesnt mind fiddling around with setting a bike up to fix its flaws the CR250 is hard to beat
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with that setup 3rd gear revved out really quick, so i installed a 10 oz or so steahly flywheel. man that bike was sweet.
EDIT: (Well, I suppose evey model since then is pretty good, too.)
and as a proud papa, just thought this would be a good thread to show it off.
Tom Morgan big bore, WPC treated tranny, 49mm Showa conventionals, and other stuff.
Hope to finally ride it tomorrow!
I will say, though, that I wanted a steel frame as I recall when I rode them back when, the aluminum frame just felt a little rigid and I want a little more cush at my age.
YZ250 - Solid, reliable, great suspension which gives a nice active feel, aluminium frame but still very compliant. Good reliability, but feels a little chunky. Does take a bit of getting used to the 'feel'. But generally a great bike, I really like how broad and useable the motors are on them.
CR250 - Great build quality and general feel. Ride quality is nice but the motor is odd in stock form, however easily fixed with all the well known and talked about mods. Major negative about the CR's now is the extremely high purchase costs, however it seems likely the price will hold or continue to increase.
Unfortunately ive never ridden a KX250!
Even though they both have case reed engines the euro bikes signed off much sooner up top. I ended up keeping the 03 CR & still have it. Unless they get rid of the air forks on the Euro Bikes I'm staying on the Japanese brand. I don't see a need to change since I don't see it as an upgrade.
Pit Row
Suspension - Front: '06 forks with DCL coated lowers, anodized upper tubs and lugs. Factory Connection springs and re-valve. Rear: '05 CRF swingarm with stock '03 linkage. Shock had DCL coated shaft and Factory Connection Spring and re-valve. Triple Clamps: Ride Engineering 20mm offset and ProTaper bars.
Engine- FMF fatty pipe with shorty silencer. 38mm Keihin PWK Air Striker Carb with Boyesen RadValve. 13/49 gearing (13/48 stock).
Brakes: Front: 270mm MOTOstuff oversize blade rotor, braided stainless steel brake hose. Rear: Blade type brake rotor
I remember hearing about the ICat back in 04 going off memory. It was designed to help with the spark advance of the plug. What I found out worked really good was a JD ign.. The 03 has a programmed map by PC to compliment the cyl. & head mods.. The 07 has 2 maps programmed by JD the manufacturer in Italy. There is a noticeable difference from oem to the aftermarket ignitions. The low rpm range is enhanced with the mid being slightly better & the most noticeable being the topend overrev.
2008 RM250 is an absolute blast to ride. Currently running '98 conventional forks and they are very, very good.
Just picked up a basket case 1994 KX250 and have some neat things planned for it. Updated front suspension, TMR big bore and a thorough going-thru. Hope to have it on track come fall!
Post a reply to: 02-07 Japanese 250 2 strokes.