A review of the CRF250 Rally.

[minkyhead]

Just been on a 170 mile camping trip on mine. Throw overs worked well.

how did the suspension do with all the luggage ferdi ?

[FERDINAND PICK]

Suspension is better than I first thought. The softness is nice, it handled fine with luggage. I got my dealer to add more preload when I purchased it from honda. Off on a 5 day camp this week, so more info to follow.

[The Sarge]

glad you liked it sarge ive knocked another 100 miles off today and even though i cant rev it above 7 im getting about pretty well ..cant go off road as i have a foot problem

started sorting stuff its easy to order for as the 250l stuff goes straight on

handlebars and risers sorted heated grips on too ,,green barkbusters :sick: c/f the klr ,,ive ordered some black plastics :laugh:

DSC_0263 by minkyhead56, on Flickr[/img]

all this will go in such a way they can be neatly rejoined later ?

aaaaa by minkyhead56, on Flickr[/img]

toolbox platic thing will be removed and pannier alloy suports off the rack someway


DSC_0258 by minkyhead56, on Flickrr[/img]

new plate on its way ...

skidplate-axp-enduro-honda-crf250l by minkyhead56, on Flickrrr[/img]

braaap

Love it Minky, so spontaneous!!

[P4ulie]

I'm just back from Bolton to test the CCM, I went up saturday on the CRF, took the scenic route, stayed with a friend & spent Sunday riding the Peaks. Yes I really liked the Ccm enough to buy one BUT if I didn't already have a 2014 CRF going strong I doubt I would have bothered going to Bolton.

640 miles over a weekend, if I'd had a screen & fairing I wouldn't have frozen me tits off today, the larger tank I wouldn't have had to fill so much ( I got a top speed of 84 mph on the gps & not downhill either, the rally is better), engine was smooth without any vibration & I overtook everything I needed to overtake. I even did some green laning while I was up there. Filling up on 110 miles & finding I still had a litre on board is remarkable on exposed, windy, open throttle roads

You will either love em or hate them but my god I think the CRF is an excellent bike. (thumbs)

[scoobydidler]

It will be a piece of kit when Minkys done with it. I want one.

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[scoobydidler]

Just got on the Ferry to Roscoff but wanted to share this mornings demo experience of the Rally 250. Not sure if it was because the sun was shining and my general demena was one of high spirits but within 20 mins of riding this bike I was smiling like it was my first legal day on the road riding my Gileta moped 40 years ago. The fit for me was instant, a 30 inside leg I was placed well and the seat height was just right although I tend to have bar risers and I would add them to this bike. Screen was a tad low too and I was purposely wearing an open face to get what protection the screen could offer but again a simple mod would sort that. I had been out on my 710 CCM on Saturday and riden it pretty hard so the power delivery took a further 20 minutes for me to get what this bike is all about . It's not arm wrenching, not going to get the adrenalin pumping but it's soooo smooth and coupled with the gearing gives you a confidence as if you were riding a much bigger bike, if that makes sense ? It's exceptionally well balanced and I managed half an hour on the inadequate tyres of some decent undulating ground high above Bridgend without ever feeling this bike was going to fail me. It's 157kg weight is masked by the ergonomics and the power delivery, never stalled, no surges, great engine breaking and with the ABS off I was happy and confident I was going to stop when and how I like. I love the instrumentation, love the switch gear but feel the bars and mirrors could be better and would immediately replace with decent set of foldable mirrors and alloy Renthalls. The only dislike for me is the lower cowl, I clipped the right hand side going through a gate and although it was a light touch I know it would be a problem were you to use the bike for trails, same can be said for the tail light assembly, why Honda have a big dangly affair that bounces about gathering shit is beyond me, but again tail tidy is a simple mod to make. After an hour and a half, I forgot I was riding a 250 and settled into the way this bike was meant to be, an effortless and enjoyable experience, and will there be one inky stable ?? I have yet to find the perfect trail/ adventure bike, but value for money this is pretty good at just over £5k and would happily fit in !!

Makes total sense Sarge, i thought the same when i rode Cowlings crfl, it has a proper spread of gears and the motor is silky smooth, feels more like a big bike in its delivery.
The rally is improved further according to the man who tests these things, going to make a great bike for a lot of people hopefully.

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[Zookman]

Been after a naked road bike for a second bike, so went to Bransons Yeovil today to test ride a couple of bikes, a Yam XJR1300 (the latest one with their heritage stylee) and a Yam XSR700. Neither of them suited me for various reasons.

Anyway, seeing as they had a CRF250 Rally demo there, i thought i'd give it a go. Found it really comfortable, in fact it fitted me like a glove. As i got onto open roads i thought this thing is as gutless as i expected. But as i got used to it I started opening it up and started to get whats its all about. At higher revs a power band comes in and it was going far better than i expected a little 250 single to go. The clutch is so ultra light, great for my hand arthritis. The more i rode it the more i liked it.
Never thought a 250 would appeal to me, but it did and i'm seriously thinking about buying one.

[minkyhead]

had a bit of a battle with bad headwinds and long slopes on the m58 today ,,it certainly didnt like it much but it dispatched the daily comute without fuss and did its job pretty well ...just up to 500miles in five days now ..so oil change tommorrow and then ill up the revs ...speedo is very optimistic riding accross the moss i found a pipe laying outfit had left a little play area ..so couldnt resist a little mess about ..bike felt good ..stock gearing felt ok and should chug you over most trail stuff ...im waiting for me foot to heal up and get the bodywork sorted and start off with a easy trail day ..shes a bit heavy but its low and feels pretty capable ..it can make your ride home from work very dick aboutable it has its limitations but it is fun to ride (thumbs) ive upped the preload on the rear suspension and banged it over some very very rough tracks and its continues to ride very very well ..from expecting to have to replace it ..im now thinking they have done a very fair job with it..it does a very good job of isolating the rider from some pretty rough surfaces so wind apart its going well ill get stuck into some proper milage in the summer months

[Paul-S]

Nice review Mike. Cheers

[HarveyCamm]

Good review and nice pics ta.
I see that the Rally has a 10.1 ltr tank and the L model is 7.8 - anyone know whether the Rally tank can fit the L model without any / too much faffing? I'd be interested in the upgrade if it can be done (thumbs). I know aftermarket tanks can be had for the L but a nice bit of factory spec fuel bucket could be desirable

(Edit)
Found a price for the 10.1ltr Rally tank: $117.98
http://www.hondapartsnation.com/oempart ... uel-tank-2

(end edit)

Cheers
Harv