(Another...) What bike to get?

[Rickrune]

1) your physical size
5'11 / 180lbs
2) How physical / aggressive are you?
Medium, no big jumps, but some little ones under 5'-8'.
3) what do you plan to ride- MX/SX tracks, woods, fields with friends or ?????
Trails, Fields, with friends.
4) Do you have any riding experience?
Yes, 2 years on a 1979 XR75 4stroke about 9 years ago.
5) Do you think you will race ?
No
6) Are you mechanically inclined and will you be doing your own bike work?
Surely.
7) Do YOU have a preferance to a brand/ motor choice (2 or 4 stroke)?
I only have experience with 4-strokes, looking for most reliable model that is dual-sport.
8) Do you have a dealer close by your home that you might use and what brand(s) does he carry?
Probably.
9) How much ($) do you plan to spend on a bike?
1,000 at most.
10) Do you live in California?
Yes, Central coast.
11) Your age?
23
12) anything else that you think would help form an opinion
I'm looking for something that I can take out trail-riding and small jumps while keeping dual-sport street legal because I don't want to tow it everywhere. I rode a small 4 stroke in the past, I'm partial to them because I dont have to mix oil/gas. I'm hoping to find a reliable bike that takes little maintenance to keep it running happy. I want enough horsepower where I wont get bored with it right away. I've thought of XR250R or XR500R Honda dual-sport but open to suggestions.

Thanks!

 

[TC21]

I think a kdx220 or 200 would fit the bill. Maybe even an xr400.

 

[2 strokes for life]

TC21, KDX is a 2 stroke, and you will not find a XR400 for under $1000.

A XR250L if you could find one but otherwise a older XR250.

 

[Rickrune]

Thanks for the responses.What would be the advantage of a XR250 vs XR500 and vice versa?

 

[TC21]

2 strokes, what do you mean a kdx is a two stroke. Duh?! You can get them to be a dual sport and the power is like a four stroke in the sense of the powerband is very minimal.

 

[XMotoX]

An XR250R/L would be great for the trails. The L comes street legal, and you can dual sport the R easily with mods. The 500 would also be a good bike, and would be the better choice only if you plan to do mostly road riding. However if most of your riding will be off road I believe the XR250 would be ideal. The 500 will feel like a pig in the woods.

 

[2 strokes for life]

TC21, did you not see where he lives? In cali he would be lucky to get the Xr250 street legal.

The XR250 would be much lighter in tight trails.

 

[TC21]

TC21, did you not see where he lives? In cali he would be lucky to get the Xr250 street legal.

The XR250 would be much lighter in tight trails.

DO YOU NOT SEE WHAT I'M SAYING???!!

I never said anything about an xr250. I am talking about a kdx200. They can be dual sported and great for trails.

 

[2 strokes for life]

In CA? Are you dumb? You must be lower in the gene pool or something. 2 strokes are only allowed to run 6 mounths out of the year in CA (for the most part) so how would it be a street legal bike?

 

[Moparman1539]

In CA? Are you dumb? You must be lower in the gene pool or something. 2 strokes are only allowed to run 6 mounths out of the year in CA (for the most part) so how would it be a street legal bike?

i dont know about the road thing, but it has all the nescissities to go street.

And if its older than a 2002 then its an automatic Green sticker (unless it changed) If the KDX was 2002 or newer it would get red stickerd and you could only ride it 6 months out of the year.

like my 83 Kx250 would be green sticker.. and its nowhere near eco-friendley

here is the green red sticker thing
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/vr/ohvredgreen.htm

 

[Rickrune]

OK, I plan on doing mostly trail riding and only street riding to get to the trails, so the 250 sounds ideal. Any reason to not get an older bike?

 

[TC21]

a 250 4 stroke won't have enough power. Get a 125 or a kdx 200.

Also, 2 strokes for life, read the red green sticker thing. It might get your brain clicking.

 

[zoommx]

a 250 4 stroke won't have enough power. Get a 125 or a kdx 200.

Definetaly do some research if you really want a bike you can license in Cal. I've read A LOT of posts of frustration getting street legal there. Seems like if the title says "offroad" there isn't much chance of getting a plate, so consider that before you run out and get a KDX.

That being said, for a grand and OFFROAD only I'd recommend the KDX, an old Yamaha 2 stroke WR250, Suzuki RMX250, or KTM EXC250/300/380/360.

Roger#491