Firestyle Magazine Issue 3 - Spring 2016 | Page 46

MOTORING

Honda CRF 250L Motorcycle
At long last a motorcycle
manufacturer has appreciated
that there are an awful lot of riders
who want to have fun and are not
enamoured by the power surging,
race replica motorcycles that
seem to be the norm. Honda with
the introduction of the CRF 250 L
have reintroduced the fun aspect
in to motor cycling with this single
cylinder 250cc motorcycle, writes
Bob Hickman.
Honda over the years have honed
the off-road marketplace and their
racing pedigree goes before it, I
remember many years ago the
sheer enjoyment that light weight
trail bikes, especially Yamaha
with their 175cc, could give to the
motorcyclist. They were brilliant for
commuting but then if you had
the opportunity to venture off-road
and go down a few green lanes a
whole new world was there to be
examined.
Honda with the CRF 250 have
reintroduced this element, it is a
motorcycle that blends true off-road
performance with style and the
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opportunity to have a street legal
commuter machine as well, so you
really can have your cake and eat.
he bike is powered by a free revving
249cc single cylinder DOHC 4-valve
engine. This liquid cooled engine
produces a reasonable power
output and has a torque factor
that whilst not overly excitable
enables the engine to rev and
as most motorcyclists appreciate
that is where performance on a
motorcycle comes from. It is fuel
injected so has reasonably good
fuel economy and certainly you
should be looking for at least 60 or
70 mpg from this machine if you are
going to be using it for commuting
purposes. One of the big features
of fuel injection is the smooth power
delivery,
The quality of the 250 L shines
through and the steel oval section
twin spar frame is a work of art. It
has 43 mm upside down Showa
forks at the front and these are
complemented at the back with a
single Showa shock absorber and
Honda’s proven pro-link suspension.

This enables the machine to glide
over ruts and bumps and certainly
enables it to not be feared by
potholes should you be using this
bike for commuting. What it does
give is a rear end section that is
capable of moving with the terrain
and finding grip thanks to the
pseudo off-road tyres that are fitted.
To ensure that the performance
can be adequately reined in when
required Honda have equipped
the bike with a single 256 mm
front disc and at the rear a smaller
220mm disc. The front one has the
benefit of a twin piston operated
system, whilst the rear one has a
single piston option. The wheel rims
are aluminium and have spokes for
rigidity, and this also helps to reduce
the unsprung weight.
The seat height is high and those
vertically challenged or with short
legs will find it to be a problem but
once on the machine the long
travel suspension just swallows out
undulations, bumps and whatever
you may encounter if you venture
off-road.