Honda CRF250

Overview

The smallest in the adventure motorcycle category from Honda, the CRF 250 takes all the right genes from the big daddy of them all, the Africa Twin. With off-road ready styling and performance, the Honda CRF 250 is being offered in two dual tone paint shades of red and black and is priced at RM 27,000.

Design

The Honda CRF 250 manages to look smart and stylish, even after the fact that adventure motorcycles prefer functionality over form. At the front, the motorcycle comes with a pair of asymmetric round LED headlamps, which though look cool, might not appeal to everyone due to its oddball layout. The tall and transparent windscreen not only makes the CRF 250 look big from the front, it also adds to the functionality at higher speeds. The LED turn indicators do add to the modern touch, whereas the high mounted front fender makes the bike look rugged.

The motorcycle exhibits its tall and sleek stance at the most from the sides. The thin looking and high mounted fuel tank comes with big and pointy fuel tank extensions, which do exaggerate the mass of the CRF 250. The bike looks athletic due to the simple but continuous side body panels till the rear, with the motorcycle getting an almost flat and long single piece seat. The vertical belly pan amalgamates into the lower end of the fuel tank extension, thus partially exposing the engine. The spoke wheels and off-road tyres not only look cool and purposeful, but they actually are purposeful too.

At the rear, the Honda CRF 250 comes with a petite LED tail lamp and pannier holders, along with LED turn indicator as well as long rear fender. The rider’s cockpit too is quite modern with the fully digital trapezoidal instrument console, which has all the essential data on display, which includes speedometer, tachometer, fuel gauge, odometer, trip meters, and clock. The switchgear, single piece handlebar and handlebar crash guards too are inspired from the bigger advnenture motorcycles from Honda.

Ride & Handling

The adventure motorcycles from Honda have gained quite a reputation for themselves for being practical and offering a superb balance of ride quality and handling. The CRF 250 is no different in serving this purpose – the 43mm inverted hydraulic telescopic forks at the front and a prolink monoshock at the rear offer plush ride quality with their slightly soft setup. However, the sleek stance of the motorcycle, as well as tall off-road spec tyres wrapped around 21-inch front wheel and 18-inch rear wheel, make the motorcycle agile and supple over all road conditions. The motorcycle comes with petal disc brake setup at both the wheels, which offer great feedback too.

Engine & Fuel Consumption

The Honda CRF 250 sources its power from the same four-stroke, single cylinder, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected, 249cc engine, which powers the Honda CB 250 as well as CBR 250R. Here too, Honda has chosen to not fiddle with the basic character of the engine, which is why it is in the same state of tune as the latter two motorcycles. Mated to a 6-speed gearbox, this engine is quite good on refinement and produces a maximum power output of 24.7PS and a peak torque output of 22.6Nm.

Braking & Safety

Despite being categorized under the big bike category from Honda, the CRF 250 misses out on many electronic riding aids. The motorcycle even lacks the crucial presence of ABS, which might be a turn-off for many riders looking for a motorcycle in the adventure category.

Verdict

The Honda CRF 250 might be small in terms of engine capacity and performance, but in terms of visual appeal and overall mechanicals, it is every bit a scaled down version of the mighty Africa Twin. The front styling might look gawky for some, but the overall sleek and tall stance of CRF 250 gives it a striking road presence. The performance and braking capability of the motorcycle are quite decent, while the excellent balance of ride quality and handling give it a very fun-to-ride character, thus making it quite welcoming to riders new to this segment.