Mike de Wet saves time and money having fun around Jo'burg on the new Honda CRF250L.
Let’s get down to business here. Time is money, right? Now bear with me for a while as I ramble out a few facts. Jo’burg has the world’s fifth most congested roads with 3.8 million drivers commuting daily and 2.9 million getting stuck in traffic for 45mins or more. On average 342 000 appointments are being cancelled because of this. Feel free to regurgitate these facts whenever the conversation takes a lull.
By my math this little Honda CRF250L has saved me over seven hours in travel time this week alone. Most of my meetings have been straight after or just before rush hour in the most insanely congested areas of Jo’burg. That fact is already ticking so many business boxes. I can leave later for the meetings and get back to the office way sooner (and to the pub) as well. Ok let’s be honest here, every bike / scooter can commute and save you money… but can they hit the off-road environment with the same prowess?
There’s no doubt the little Honda is a very efficient commuter and off-road the CRF250L was also a lot of fun but not without some limitations. As long as you know what you are buying you are going to have a blast.
The CRF250L has an all new and exceptionally frugal liquid-cooled, DOHC, fuel injected engine that it shares with the CBR250R street bike. The motor has excellent throttle response but only produced mild power, but our altitude always has that effect and it’s only a ‘tiny’ 250. Traction though is near perfect because you can wring the throttle as hard you like and all you do is move forward (albeit briskly), no mess, no fuss.
The single-cylinder motor is smooth and has very little vibration but you do have to rev the little pecker to get to triple digits. Keep an eye on the speedo though because this bike might not be a powerhouse but it is faster than Judge Dredd allows. The CRF’s entertaining road manners are helped by the super slick six-speed transmission and a light clutch action. Every traffic light becomes a national motocross start gate. Yes, your imagination can run away with you here and rightfully so with this factory replica ‘proper’ CRF colour scheme.
The suspension is slightly hard yet plush but a good compromise and suitable for most riding situations. I went from the road to a motocross track and the bike was unnervingly good. I was expecting either a road bias or an off-road bias, but instead got an amazing blend of both worlds. A quick note here is that the suspension is not really adjustable but it is an entry-level commuter and production costs have to be kept low. However, while the low seat height and tight turning radius make it easy to ride, the weight was more apparent when taking the bike off-road. On the road it was light and nimble, but when I went off-road I could feel the bike was not a true light weight like a real CRF is, but it does carry all the street paraphernalia like indicators and lights, so what can one expect. The tyres performed a lot better on-road than I ever expected and felt adequate off-road. If I was given one area to modify this bike it would be the wheels. I would buy motard tyres for the street and proper pukka off-road tyres for the weekend. But then again that’s a costly exercise so why bother, just ride it anywhere and enjoy the thrill.
The chassis is solid and neutral and never gave any indication of instability. On the road it felt very stable and off-road it felt like it could handle anything bar the most extreme. The disc brakes front and rear are really good for an entry-level bike as well. I tried braking as hard as I could; the front suspension held up well and the bike stopped immediately. In fact so mundane was the process that I gave up trying to scare myself because I knew that when called upon this Honda would just step up and do its bit.
The ergonomics are really good too and I feel this is where Honda gets it right every time. It’s like they have a team of 60 engineers with white coats, thick glasses, clipboards, tape measures and micrometers to measure everything’s relationship to the rider. The handlebars, grips, seat, foot pegs, mirrors, levers and dials are so spot on you don’t even think about adjusting them. I really appreciate the obsessive compulsive effort these guys put in, but I don’t think I’ll invite them round for light chat around the fire with some cold ones.
I also cherished the styling, it’s pure unadulterated 2013 CRF450R, Honda’s flagship motocross bike. From the colour of the plastics to the shape of the shrouds and tank, this bike oozes off-road street cred and I was always proud to be aboard it just for that reason alone. I’m sure Honda will sell loads just because of the way it looks, don’t you?
To conclude, the CRF250L is an amazing well-rounded sophisticated trail bike. At a mere R42 000.00 Honda’s CRF250L entry-level dual-purpose bike is great value, you most certainly get a lot of bike for your buck. You get a two year unlimited mileage warranty as well for peace of mind. Service intervals are every 12 000kms so it will not be expensive to maintain and, with a miserly 3.8 litres per 100kms, it’s cheap on fuel too. While this bike won’t come close to beating a CRF250X in the dirt it is a great bike for someone looking for inexpensive transportation and a bit of off-road fun on the weekend. What more could one possibly ask for?
