japanese bikes

ifiddles

ifiddles

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found a bunch of 1988 honda 250's imported by dealers from japan...anyone buy one before or have any experience with an imported bike such as these...selling for $2000-2500 (which i think is high for this year but maybe i'm wrong)...apparently they are an inline 4 cylinder, with DOHC, 4 stroke and put out 45 hp...any thoughts?

btw...they are safetied...
 
If it's a VT250 then they only make around 32hp. This is the 4 stroke I believe.

But the NSR250R, which makes 45hp, is a 2 stroke. From what I know, 2 stroke is a pain to take care of, taking apart possible every winter, just to be sure that there is no scarring or excessive wear on the motor. In the end, 2-stroke is a lot harder to take care of. If you can get an NSR250R and are will to do the maintenance on it, for 2000-2500, I'd grab one... One of the greatest bikes ever in my books.
 
CBR250R?

If it is one, I hear they're small and light and a little uncomfortable, but pretty quick and with good handling.
 
1988 honda had the CBR250R, I think in 1990 they brought out the CBR250RR (dual disc, gul swingarm and a few other mods). They are actually really nice bikes for their age and came out in some fantastic colour schemes. They are 30hp and were VERY popular in Australia cause of our tierd licensing.

The NSRs were closer to the 60hp mark and yeah 2 strokes. Ive done 40-50k on a 2 stroke with absolutely no issues at all. 80-90% of that was around the redline in the twisties and track.

Do you know what model it was you saw?
 
the one bike was a 1988 cbr250r hurricane...another was a 1988 cbr250r...another was a yamaha fzr250 and the last one was a honda bros 400...

i was the one looking at a 2007 ninja 250 in london that carbon 600 so kindly looked at for me but have since found out a few things about the bike and seller that made me think twice...

my other option is to buy the cbr125 that i had last year when i first got my license as i seem to miss it for some strange reason...
 
Those are sweet looking bikes! I think once I have more experience I will
look at getting an older bike!
As for the 125 I already miss mine a lil and I haven't sold it yet!! LoL
 
well mimico, i did sell mine last year and i do miss it...i love the vulcan mind you, but i miss the "sport" look and feel and it's lightweight and nimbleness...yeah, i know they suck on the highway, but to be honest, i'm deathly afraid of going on the highway right now...

i'll probably keep the vulcan and use it when i go riding with the bf (which is weekends only) and use the 250 or 125 during the week and for commuting...thank god for 2 car garages!!! LOL
 
Ya the highway made me decide to get rid of mine! LoL I'm hoping the new bike
will be better!
Must be nice to even have a garage!
 
ifiddles said:
the one bike was a 1988 cbr250r hurricane...another was a 1988 cbr250r...another was a yamaha fzr250 and the last one was a honda bros 400...

i was the one looking at a 2007 ninja 250 in london that carbon 600 so kindly looked at for me but have since found out a few things about the bike and seller that made me think twice...

my other option is to buy the cbr125 that i had last year when i first got my license as i seem to miss it for some strange reason...
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All cool bikes and wont disappoint. Wonder if they had the zxr250, That was my favorite Japanese 250 back then. Kinda looks like the mini offspring of a zxr750 and a zx9r.

If the shop is actually importing bikes maybe they have or can get the RFV400 (rc35). Would be a great bike to learn on as the v4 is very smooth and puts out about 60hp.

Any of these bikes will be ok for Hwy riding imo, they actually have specific cheap entry level 250 and 400 race classes in Australia.
 
One of the bikes that really had my interest is the Honda VTR250. Unfortunately
when I contacted some exporters the bike wasn't allowed in Canada. I love the naked bike look
And it's a shame it's so rare in the smaller displacement bikes. Suzuki has one coming out but no plans
for NA at the moment.
 
so they look cool, have 4 cylinders, are lightweight and fast...but how do i check out the engine, transmission, gears, clutch and other mechanical stuff in this weather without going for a test ride...especially since they're from 1988...that's 24 years old...are parts still available for these things?...
 
hi fiddles... these bikes are really cool bikes, however should you need replacements parts it's going to be pricey if the parts aren't similar to CBR600 or other honda models that were sold here.

The trick with old bikes like this (I have a 1989 FZR400) is you need to find bike with similar maintenance parts, like sprockets for example are swappable from some models and manufacturers to others. However something will be exceedingly difficult to find like replacement fairings or tanks or headlights, and this may actually require you to adapt some from another bike if you can't get your hands on the correct ones.

If you aren't very mechanically inclined I would not be buying a 24 year old bike that was never sold here.
 
Freestyle72 said:
hi fiddles... these bikes are really cool bikes, however should you need replacements parts it's going to be pricey if the parts aren't similar to CBR600 or other honda models that were sold here.

The trick with old bikes like this (I have a 1989 FZR400) is you need to find bike with similar maintenance parts, like sprockets for example are swappable from some models and manufacturers to others. However something will be exceedingly difficult to find like replacement fairings or tanks or headlights, and this may actually require you to adapt some from another bike if you can't get your hands on the correct ones.

If you aren't very mechanically inclined I would not be buying a 24 year old bike that was never sold here.
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that was kind of my thoughts too...oh well, keep searching!!!
 
If you aren't very mechanically inclined I would not be buying a 24 year old bike that was never sold here.[/QUOTE]

You have to think about the costs you will be paying to keep any old bike on the road, especially if you are not able to do the work yourself. It would not take long to make that $2500 used bike cost you the same or more than a new 250. Cheap financing on the new stuff makes it even more viable.
Used is not always bad, maybe just confine yourself to bikes that are a little newer and make sure it was a popular model. More parts available, new and used and more shops are familiar with them for repairs. Might even find another owner on here that could help out....we all like talkin bikes.
Keep your eyes open, the winter can make it difficult to fully check out a bike but sometimes you can find a really good deal as well. If you find another bike closer to home it will be even easier to find someone on here that would be willing to check it out for you.
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