Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126556
Impression: 1982 Honda XR250R Honda produces pure pleasure playbike By Dale Brown Photos by Mark Kariya We're not sure who Honda was aiming at with their four-stroke XR250R. The suspension and details are up to National enduro calibre. But the engine, wonderfully tractable and surprisingly peppy for a 250cc quadrastroke, may fall short in the acceleration requirements for top riders dashing from check to XR250R is an attractive machine. lAbove) The two greatest features of the bike are the tractable 249cc four-stroke engine and Pro-Link suspension. (Below) Forks worked well; double leading shoe brake is strong. (Top) The At the other end, suspension is supplied by air assisted forks of lJ7mm diameter. Fork action and damping rates were spot-on, and only minimal flex was experienced, despite the lack of beef (by modern day standards) in the stanchion tubes. check under near impossible conditions and speed averages that make enduro riders racers, pure and simple. What Honda has come up with is the best bike we've ridden to date for sheer fun, recreational, mess-aroundwith-your buddies, off-road play riding. Everyone who rode it had a ball. Honda introduced Pro-Link suspension to the XR line in 1981. For 1982, there are only minor changes. The most significant change, however, is in the Showa shock utilized by the ProLink system. In 1981 there was a problem with 'the shock's damping system overheating. That has been rectified for 1982 with a remote reservoir and a new valving system, utilizing washers in a similar manner as Ohlins shocks, an industry standard, and used in Honda's works MXers. Rebound damping is four-way adjustable via a ring on the shock body, and for '82, the rates have been stiffened slightly. In actual application, the Pro-Link works superbly. Big stuff, medium size stuff, and the little surface irregularities all got soaked up in a Cadillacplush ride. We left the rebound setting on the number two position, as deliVered from Honda, and never felt compelled to change it. The reservoir does its job, and after riding for awhile, it was hot to the touch. Suspension travel at either end is 10 inches. That's plenty enough for the vast majority of riders likely to buy this machine. As it was seat height it was well up there at lJ7.2 inches. With a wheelbase of 55.9 inches the bike has good straight line stability. But with the long travel, and a claimed dry weight of 262.4 pounds, much of which is carried high on the bike due to the four-stroke configuration, the bike gets a little ponderous in tight, low speed situations. But to Honda's credit, no rider had a clue that he was dealing with nearly lJOO pounds of mass with a full tank of gas, and the weight came as a shock to some who didn't read the stats until after putting a hundred miles or so on the machine. The 249cc OHC four-valve 'engine is a play rider's delight. It's heavily oversquare with a bore of 74mm and a stroke of 57 .8mm, reducing the height ,of the powerplant considerably. Honda's Pentroof'!' combustion chamber in utilized, and like the bike's big brother the XR500R, dual exhaust ports and head pipes are employed. Air and gas are mixed in a lJO.5mm Keihin piston valve carburetor, which also has a fourposition choke. Specifications Engine •.•••...••.•...•.••.• 24Ic:c OHC four-atrok., four valve lingle Bore and Stroke •.• , . • • • . . . • . • . . . . . . . . . • . • • . • • . . .. 74mm x 57.8n1m Cornpreaalon RatIo 10:1 Carburetor '. .•.•..... , 3O.5mm piaton vaIv. Ignhion Capec:ltor discharge Starter••.•.••••••.• Kick starter, with autOmatic compreulon r.I•••• Trel1lllniealon•.••.....••.••......•.•.•......•.•••••.•.•• SIx-speed Rnal DrIve .•..•........•............... , . 1530 '0'-ring aeaIed chain Length. • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . 86 In. Width . . . . . . • . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . • . • . • . . . .. 33.5 In. Height...................•..........................••..•• 48.6 In. WheelbaM 5&.9 In. Height. • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 'S1.2. In. Ground CI..renee . . . . . • . . . . . • • . . . . . • . . . . . . • . . • . • • • . • • • • . •• 12.6 In. seat Fuel Capacity '. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 2.4 gal. Whe.Is Spoked Tires: Front I , • 3.00-21 enduro knobby Rear 5.10-17 .nduro knobby Suspanslon: , Front .. , Alr·essisted I..dlng axl.forks, 10 In. travel Rear. . . . . . . . . . . . .. Pro-Link™ with adjustabl. damping and r.mote r.servolr, 10 In. BrekH: Front. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. Double I..dlng shoe drum R. .r D-rw,RDry Weight.........•......................•........• 282.4 pounds Color......................•.............•.................•. Reel Suggested retail price ••••••••••••. 1848 r S4 • ••••••••••••••••••••••••• II I 4 -1 ".