best year for cr250?

[JohnF]

i want an aluminum frame bike

ive read the crank case induction and electronic pv really made the bike a terd. any pros/cons on different years and which one is the best?

thanks

 

[JohnF]

i hear 2001 is the best followed by 2005...

 

[250girl]

I had my friend's 2001 cr250 for a few weeks.Really light,handles great,starts on the first kick and really fun to ride.But,It has been rebuilt twice since he got it,not a good sign in my opinion.My friend says that the first breakdown was due to improper mechanicing by the previous owner,the second time it siezed going down the road in 5th gear because someone else had mixed the gas for it,and did not put in enough oil :coocoo:

But I think it is a great bike and might even purchase it in the spring.As long as the gas is mixed right(I'll make sure I mix it myself)and I don't let any knuckleheads mess with it,It is a really reliable bike.I think 2001 is a good year for the cr's.

 

[tcuda499]

my two buddies have an 01, 03 and I have an 04. Different skill levels but close. I havn't ridin with the 01 but I whoop on the 03. I hear the 01's are good. the 05's and newer have a TPS and Haven't heard much good or bad about them. Good luck

 

[steve.emma]

ive read the crank case induction and electronic pv really made the bike a terd.

you heard wrong. :|
the 02' on bikes are great machines that handle very well. its true that in STOCK form the 02' can have soft bottom end power. but then it only takes a few simple bolt on mods to fix this, and how many mx bikes stay completely stock anyway? honda make great bikes,my advice is ride one and see what you think rather than worry about what rumours you hear.

 

[BLACKeR]

hey john, good to see you over here. :) i have the 01 cr. its been a fantastic bike so far. if your only real concern is for an aluminum frame the 04+ YZ's are aluminum, and although i dont know the specific years the RM, and KX's im maybe went aluminum around the same time. the 04+ yz250's are awesome bikes.

 

[mx547]

here's what you get when you ride a slow '02:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v704/Jay547/Ss850178.jpg

 

[RebelBanshee]

I dont think you will find a green or yellow two stroke with an aluminum frame.

The '00 and '01 CRs are really nice.

I wouldnt make an aluminum frame a limiting factor, there are alot of nice bikes with steel frames.

 

[mmz77]

here's what you get when you ride a slow '02:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v704/Jay547/Ss850178.jpg

Nice!!!

 

[Rice#67]

There's a dyno graph in the archives section with an 02 CR250 against an 01 YZ250 both with aftermarket pipes. The 02 CR actually made more bottom power than the YZ. I'd buy the 02 CR... isn't that the first year of the 3rd gen aluminum frame? Which is the best frame honda made? Actually I think 2001 is the 1st year... 97-99 are a little too rigid and make for a rough ride. 2000 is better and I believe is the 2nd gen. 2001+ is when they perfected it. And on top of that 2001 and 2002 are a green sticker in california which is a super + for me...

 

[JohnF]

thanks for all the replys

i just really like the way the aluminum frame honda looks lol, you cant deny thats not a good looking bike. ive pretty much made up my mind on that. i just need to find what year i want now.

so Rice you say 2001 was the first year for the 2nd gen frame?

i understand that once you start modding then you will gain power but wouldnt you want the best platform to start with? i do plan on a pipe, fresh piston, and some porting, probably a week or so after i get it.

 

[Rice#67]

I believe 2001 is the 1st year for the 3rd gen frame. Anybody correct me if I'm wrong... But I'm pretty sure. 2000 is the only year they made the 2nd gen, still a good frame though.

I'll look in one of my 2001 Dirtbike magazine issues and tell you how the 01 turned out. I still have one that they did the 250 shootout. I'm kinda curious myself anyways...

 

[JohnF]

thanks that would be cool

theres an '01 i just herd about forsale but i havent seen it yet. from what i understand its in great shape and he will take 1200 for it. i would like to sell the bike i have now first though

anyone interested in a nice '86 trx250r?

 

[Rice#67]

This is straight out of the Dirtbike magazine shootout... 01 CR250 Unexceptional lowend power, good midrange, and actually has the best topend at 44.6hp. The CR has about 3-4 horsepower less at 5500rpm than the YZ, RM, and KTM. They praise the handling and suspension. They ranked it 2nd place overall behind the YZ despite the "peaky" motor. The only bike in the shootout that had less lowend power was the husky 250, and it only made 38hp peak.

I would say that this is probably one of the bad years and not the 02. The dyno chart in the archives shows the 02 CR making more lowend than the 01 YZ250... with both of them having aftermarket pipes... I find that hard to believe that a pipe would make that much of a difference...
The 02 CR250 blows away the YZ...
Here's the link... http://dirtrider.net/forums3/showthread.php?t=97637&page=1

 

[tcuda499]

i believe an 01 and 02 are both gen 2 frames. I could be wronge though, but pretty sure.

 

[RocketRaccoon]

The 3rd generation frame came out in 2002. In 2003 they made lots of changes to the engine to try to improve bottom and mid while keeping top end pretty much the same. I love the bike, but since they stopped making them...my next bike will be a KTM.

 

[JohnF]

wow i wasnt expecting the 2002 to make better low end than the '01, ive herd alot of the opposite. so 02 was the first year for electronic pv and case induction reeds?

and it looks like '02 was the first year for the 3rd gen frame...

http://www.allthingsmoto.com/forums/f-14/cr250-model-year-changes-1998-2005-a-23507/

 

[87CR250R]

I think the curves got mixed up for the 02 CR vs 01 YZ. I've ridden both bikes and if the curves were switched, it would exactly reflect what I have felt. The 02 CR just doesn't pull off the bottom. The CR knocks and moans while the YZ has a very broad and linear powerband. Of course, the CR rips on top.

 

[Rice#67]

I think the curves got mixed up for the 02 CR vs 01 YZ. I've ridden both bikes and if the curves were switched, it would exactly reflect what I have felt. The 02 CR just doesn't pull off the bottom. The CR knocks and moans while the YZ has a very broad and linear powerband. Of course, the CR rips on top.

That's what I thought too but he says the YZ is the red line... I know my 01 YZ250 has killer bottom, it's bone stock with a pro-circuit pipe.

And I guess I was right the first time... 97-99 1st gen... 2000-2001 2nd gen...2002 3rd gen.

 

[Rice#67]

wow i wasnt expecting the 2002 to make better low end than the '01, ive herd alot of the opposite. so 02 was the first year for electronic pv and case induction reeds?

and it looks like '02 was the first year for the 3rd gen frame...

http://www.allthingsmoto.com/forums/f-14/cr250-model-year-changes-1998-2005-a-23507/

Going over those specs on that forum, I know there are some "theories" of why the CR lost it's lowend, but if you notice 02 and up they dropped the compression from 8.7:1 to 8.5:1???? I know when you raise the compression it helps bottomend power. Maybe that is a big part of why the engines suck. I don't build 2-strokes, but I do build hotrods. And when you got a big cam in a chevy V8 they run like crap in the lowend unless you put some decent compression in them...

 

[JohnF]

ok well keep the opinions coming, ive been reading alot of mixed reviews

yes in 2 strokes compression does equal more bottom end, that could explain it. also a simple fix by shaving the head down a bit

 

[jason33]

here's what you get when you ride a slow '02:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v704/Jay547/Ss850178.jpg

:) even with the stock pipe?-lol
hondas are great bikes-

but riders win the trophies --(bikes don't win with out riders)

 

[jason33]

ok well keep the opinions coming, ive been reading alot of mixed reviews

yes in 2 strokes compression does equal more bottom end, that could explain it. also a simple fix by shaving the head down a bit

the bigger the bang= more power

more flyweight = bottom end and torq

 

[BLACKeR]

as said earlier the 01's had the second gen frame. i wouldnt let that be a hang up though, as i doubt most people could tell the difference in handling between the 2nd gen and the third gen. they changed from the keihin A/S carb in 00, to the mikuni TMX in 01. a lot of people didnt like the way the carb was set up stock. either switching the TMX to the A/S or fixing the TMX fixes the 01's bottom and problem. i know switching to the A/S made a huge difference on mine. if you read through the best 250 motors thread youll see several people recommend the 01 CR. i dont really think you can go wrong with any CR 01-07 they each have their little quirks but they all seem to be fixable. if this is your first bike, get one thats older and cheaper. youll be laying it down a lot, and you really wont be able to notice subtle differences in handling.

 

[JohnF]

ok well then i have alot to think about, 01 motor seems to have better low end stock but the 3rd gen frame would be nice but i doubt i would notice the handling difference. im not a pro mx rider, just a recreational rider i guess you could call it. my last bike was a cr500, before that was a kx250, and then some smaller bikes before those.

now since '02 was the first year for the electronic pv does that cause any maintance/reliability issues compared to the '01?