This Channel is all about dual sport and adventure motorcycles and home of ADV NEWS. I cover everything from the latest dual sport and adventure bike news, motorbike reviews, tips and how to videos. I also ride off road as much as possible on my crazy off road rides and adventure trips.
I got into RU-vid originally just to record my off road rides on my BMW F700GS. I then realized I needed a lighter dual sport and picker up a WR250R and have never looked back!
With the new KTM 390's coming.... and the market shifting twards that magic 400ish displacement I think they either need to target that or stay out of it entirely.
I love my WR250R don't know if I will ever sell it ya don't need really anymore power in the bush well yes a 300-350 option would go well , its just that highway speed where the power is needed. I've got a old 1200 GSA some old YZF 1000's and its nice to take the bigger displacement bike for a ride but the most fun is the WR on the dirt or the twisty hard top roads 🙂🤙
I'm done waiting for a WR350R, WR450R, 390 Enduro R or any other new lightweight 400-500cc dual sport from the major manufacturers. As far as I'm concerned there's two lightweight unicorns already available for long distance adventure rides if you make enough mods. Just bite the bullet and get either 1) a drz400E and install the ACT wide ratio gearbox, EFI kit, and make major changes to the ergos to suit your taste. Suitable choice in Oz. Or 2) a DR350 and install a 9.5:1 CR 440 big bore kit, EFI kit, factory oil cooler to increase oil change intervals from 5k km to about 7k/8k km, and change ergos as well. More suitable in the states since we don't have many drz400e. Each of these are < 310lbs wet and each have a strong enough rear sub frame for pannier racks and luggage. Will take some work to get either of those going but when the new dual sports come out sometime in the next 10 years they probably won’t be as light as these bikes. Might as well put in the work on one of these now and get it done. One advantage of the DR350 over the DRZ is that it has a lower CG and less weight on the front end. I've always found the DRZ ergos, steering and handling to be a bit off. DR350 might solve that. Much prefer the geometry of a DR650...
I feel this 'half-engine' solution could easily be done again. Like, take that great parallel twin from Tenere, cut it in half figuratively speaking, and here's your 350 single for a lighter ATV bike.
The Orange bikes are designed to make you visit dealers often. I do hope the new design includes new oil pump pinion. Its a gamble to get lost out in the open with one of those. Air cooled Honda got me but I do hope they bring one out for the big boys not just for learners permits. Thank you for video, deserts down there must be amazing to ride.
If your adventures are close to civilization it really doesnt matter but if you tend to get lost, carbs the way to go. I recently had the choice of the two, theres no comparison. Its obvious the 300 has been built to sell to European learners permit.
suzuki v strom 250, simple engine, no radiator just oil cooler, less worried for maintenance i knew its the smallest capacity, but since ewan mc greggor every body think they need 1200cc bike for adventure lol there is man from south africa riding with his wife from south africa to egypt using 200cc carb chinese bike (9600 miles) lol i dont says we should do that, but vstrom 250 should do whatever that carb 200cc chinese bike lol
I would LOVE to see Yamaha bring the WR250r back as a 350cc model. The WR was a little too MX in terms of the seat ergonomics for my liking, but otherwise it was an awesome bike. I still say the 350's of the 1980's and 1990's were the best all around dual-sport/enduro-type bikes ever made and considering how well they sold in their day it amazes me not one of the Big 4 has ventured back into that mid-size niche` of the market in the last 15-20 years. Closest thing we have is the DRZ 400S which itself hasn't gotten any real update since it's introduction in 2000 as a more modern replacement for the DR350's which were dropped the following year. It also still baffles me to no end why Honda never released a dual-sport electric start version of the XR400r (a XR400L) after they added the e-start to the engine for use in the EX400 quad in 1999. Major missed opportunity there on Honda's part. The XR line of bikes was still hugely popular at that time for Honda and the only dual-sport offering they had at that time was the XR650L (the XR250L had been dropped in 1996 in the U.S. market), so a street legal version of the XR400r with e-start would have filled a HUGE gap in their line-up, would have been notably cheaper than it's nearest competitor - the DRZ 400S, and it needed little to no resources for R&D to bring it to market. Personally I'd like to see someone - anyone - bring back something similar to the dual-sports of the 1980's and 90's with modern engines featuring fuel injection and electric start, and better fully adjustable suspensions. Keep the rider ergo's more relaxed like a DR or KLR rather than the skinny rock-hard MX-style seats most of the smaller dual-sports now feature. Also no more nose bleed seat heights on everything; bring them back down to a more manageable 30-32" height rather than the 33"+ height most of the dual-sports have today. Something that's not just a "dirtbike with mirrors and turn signals," but something that's also still comfortable to ride on the pavement as well while still offering good off-road performance for trail riding. Let's be honest and face facts, the vast majority of dual-sport owners aren't out there attacking gnarly single track trails littered with obstacles worthy of a hard enduro course. The vast majority just want something simple and fun that's bulletproof reliable for tooling around on managed trail systems, forestry roads, snowmobile trails, etc. They don't need 13" of suspension travel or 12"+ of ground clearance, nor do they need 40+ horsepower or suspension suitable for desert or hard enduro racing. The only bikes currently on the market in the U.S. that come close to fitting this description (IMO) would be the Suzuki DR 400S and the Yamaha XT250 - the latter being on the smaller side in terms of displacement. Something similar to the XT250 in a 350-450 displacement is what we really need, and preferably - if possible with emissions - keep it air-cooled for simplicity and as a cost saving measure to leave more money available for a little better (adjustable) suspension. How about a proper update for the Suzuki DRZ400S? Or how about a larger 350-400cc version of the old Kawasaki KLR250 Super Sherpa How about bringing back the old Yamaha XT350 or upping it to a XT400? And finally Honda...oh Honda! If they can waste time/money on things like the Rune and the Fury, then by God they should be able to find some time and resources to make a proper 350-400cc big brother to the new XR150L for Christ's sake. I don't think that's asking too much of the Big 4, but apparently it is since not one of them has brought something like that to market in nearly 20 years now. *stepping off my soap box* 😁
In Europe we got the Fantic with Yamaha WR motor and frane and so on. There is a export treaty i think its not available in the US. Abaut Australia i dont know.
I have a WR250R, it's a good bike, would be a great bike if they had shaved 50 pounds off it. I wish they would make a street legal version of the YZ450WR.
I was certain i wanted the Rally... but now i think I've flipped completely. I do not want to ride on serious roads like, EVER. i plan pretty much on just putting the bike in my truck and driving to wherever I'm going to ride so that I can pretty much avoid paved roads and traffic entirely. guess the L is what I should be looking at after all, and can put a larger tank on there later on if I feel like I'm going on long enough adventures to warrant it.
Right you are! Yamaha definitely needs to reintroduce the WR in 300-350! The WR250R was the best dual sport out there! Really bad move to not only take it off the market but at the same time Honda & Kawasaki introduce their 300s. Yamaha is no longer relevant unless you find a used WR in good condition. However, as technology changes, Yamaha could totally introduce a cutting edge WR300-350R and blow the other two out the water. I mean it’s a no brainer! What is Yamaha waiting on? They’re losing customers & revenue! Come on Yamaha!!! Great video!🤙🏽 You’re saying what we’re all thinking!🤓
I feel Yamaha should come out with 350 and 450 WR-R and about $2k difference between the two bikes. If I had to have one I chose the 450. The Honda 450 is good on the HWY and trails (once you chip the ECU) Skip the lower CC's unless you are making it sub $6k.
Wr500r is what we need. Long maintenence intervals, relatively low HP for a 500cc but far more hp than a drz400, large oil capacity, under seat fuel tank, super rigid pannier rack system, and a center stand.
Seat height was too limiting for many people. They sell buckets of xt250's all over the world because of the approachable seat height. Personally I think that the most you could hope for would be a 300 ish version of the xt. Reality though may be more like, sell xt250's until nobody can sell internal combustion motorcycles anymore.
Great video, and I couldn’t agree more. Having decent skills both on and off road, and the proud owner of a 23 1290R I consider my 1290 nothing more than a sport touring bike that’s dirt road compatible lol. It’s just a toy. No bags, no rear pegs, just blasting on gravel roads!!! I’m 65
I just spent 7 days straight riding the wr250r with my enduro riding mates, its such a versatile bike, could it do with more power yes but can you use more power most of the time offroad NO. Id like to see a 300-350 rally version, Honda got it right except for the suspension.
I would like to see 12 new Dual-Sports from Japan. The CRF450L came out 5 years ago. Where is Yamaha's, Kawasaki's and Suzuki's? l think the market is dead.
Good video, I believe 400 is a good balance between torque and lightness. Keeping the platform as close to the original would be the goal here. Of course 400cc and ABS will add weight and change the character immensely. Tweak the shock rebound but otherwise leave it the same. The sub frame could use a bit of a tweak to guard against fatigue.
From business perspective, updating WR250 would not make any sense. It is a very small niche market since only very tall people can ride it. Their road bikes or adv (such as Tenere) have larger audience, bigger market. That is where the money is.
I've had mine for 5 years. When it gets tired, I plan on rebuilding with cylinder works and a 2mm stroker crank, making it a 283. The downfalls are lack of freeway power, and the rear shock. I'd put money down on a WR350R.
We may see one, from a distance. Sure there will be a modular product produced for the up and coming 3rd world countries. That's where the market and money is gir these size motorcycles. The market is almost dead in USA. There are all kinds and sizes of adv bikes sitting at deslerships. When we wanted them we couldn't have them. Buyers have moved on.
Where is the tubeless tires?? where is the 12 V or USB outlet? where is the adjustnment to the suspension, where is the adjusment for the wind screnn? etc lol! Only good thing on this bike is the engine. no back ligt on the buttons, the TFT screen looks like it is from 2020. It's a cash grab so peoples must purchase accesories to overprised prisces!
Basically the dual sport is the middle of the road, out of the 3 different types of bikes here. I was brought up on Enduro riding. In fact I had my 1st bike for off roading when I was 12 years old. Which meant 5 years riding before I got to go on the roads. Which I found boring, which is easy to understand after all I'd know for 5 solid years was riding off road. I also hated the weight of the street legal bikes & still do. Maybe if I didn't have 5 intense years of riding off road to start. I'd more than likely have different opinions. I haven't got a bike at the minute. But I'm totally clueless what type of bike to buy. As I mentioned my biggest dislike of modern bikes is the Weight. I'm pretty sure a GS 1250 is as smooth as butter on long journey's. Most likely a great bike to own. Even if I had the money you wouldn't see me going anywhere near something like that. I'd prefer to take a much less comfortable ride on the road as long as it was great off road. Bring mainly a Yamaha owner & loving every bike I've had from Yamaha. I'd say my perfect bike would be a Tenere if it weighed half the weight 🙄 I know it's me not the bike that's how I haven't got a clue what to buy.
