Honda 250r!

[AlbinoDuck]

what year of the 250r would be the best to buy and the most accessible. personally i love the plastics on the 1985 250r its all red and looks great. What years have what colors? any other things i should be considering looking for? im in the process of selling my 1985 200x to get a 250r and want to know the best year.
Thanks

[TatTooL23]

1st gens ('81-'82) r air cooled, all red motor frame and plastic black seat. Lowest horsepower but can really be made to run with carb and exhaust. Not the best suspension though for jumping. Also they r a bit skinnier in stock form.

2nd gens ('83-'84) r also air cooled. They r red frame and red plastic. Better suspension and the thinner front tire. Real good runners. A little more sporty look, sleeker with tank shrouds.

3rd gens ('85-'85) liquid cooled red plastic red frame blue seat and fork guards. Great suspension and handling. Really the best of the best in the 3 wheeler realm if u ask me. Nice big tank shrouds, really strong look. The '86 had a flat slide carb so it was actually a bit more power.

Lots of parts really for any but more so for the 3rd gens.

[AlbinoDuck]

thanks so much man, i really appreciate it! im gonna keep my out for a 1985 and try and sell my 200x haha

[Xpress]

If you find an 86 250R, pounce on it. Best out of all 6 of the 250R trikes. Cosmetically, they are almost exactly the same...

[Nevkilahonda3]

The nice thing about the 81-84s is you can get them cheaper then the 85-86s.I'm guessing you could sell your 200x and most likely have enough money for an 81-84(at least in WI an 85 200x is about the same price). If you go for the 85-86 your gonna need more money but no matter which year you choose your going to get a really fast and fun trike.

[AlbinoDuck]

yeah good point...i think a 83-84 is what would be the cheapest and look the best in my opinion

[mohadib]

83-84 look the best?! More for you I guess :s

[stevensj13]

Does anyone know if the skinny front tire would fit a 1982 250r? Would I need to/be able to swap a hub too?

[Nubbinz]

the 86 model has a 6 speed trans I thought and no other year did? not sure on that but the 83-84 are the cheapest, liquid cooled are better so they are worth more, and there arent too many 1st gen and theres a big collector fan base so those are slightly more costly than the 2nd gen, I believe. I would say 2nd gen if your looking to spend 1000-1500 and last gen if you can part with 2000 maybe as much as 2500

[D-dub]

the 86 model has a 6 speed trans I thought and no other year did? not sure on that
Both 85' and 86' models had 6 speed trans. I personally like the 85' model year the best!!!...I like the polished top triple clamp,and the low seat with 250R on it....I also think the 85 headlight looks more aggressive. The 86 did have the better carb, rear brake setup and maybe engine color in my opinion.

[RIDE-RED 250r]

Both 85' and 86' models had 6 speed trans. I personally like the 85' model year the best!!!...I like the polished top triple clamp,and the low seat with 250R on it....I also think the 85 headlight looks more aggressive. The 86 did have the better carb, rear brake setup and maybe engine color in my opinion.


Im with you on that. Definitely like the look of the '85 seat and headlight better. I think I like the looks of the black motor a little better too....

As to the question of the flat vs round slide carb, I dont think the 86 had more hp due only to the flatslide carb. I seem to remember reading somewhere that the flatslide carb smoothed out the power a little compared to the '85 and that was about it.. Correct me if Im wrong though...

[250rmanfmf]

for the price you cant beat a 83-84 250r. For about $1,000 you can get a nice one. No need to upgrade it because its great the way it is. The 85-86 is really the king of all 250rs but to get a basic nice bike will run you $1200-1700 and with so many big bores and aftermarket HP goodies you will start spending lots of money and soon will have lots of money into it (trust me I know!!!) if you want something just to ride right away and not have to upgrade or redo and not spend a fortune, get a 83-84. If you want something you can fix up and mod and get more and more hp then get a 85-86.

On the carb note flat slide carbs are better but dont think they raise hp that much many throttle response. Besides why worry about the flat vs round on 85-86 when you can buy an upgraded 38 flat for both :)

[250rmanfmf]

Does anyone know if the skinny front tire would fit a 1982 250r? Would I need to/be able to swap a hub too?

Yes, but you have to swap to a 83-84 triples and the whole setup. But it does swap and is a great upgrade for the 81-82 r.

[Scratt]

I find you can get a good deal on any years of the bikes if you wait for the right deal and pounce on it. I put a want ad for a 85-86 250r with a lot of people sending me quotes around $2000-2500 which is about the right price where I am at then I kept waiting till i got one for $800 which cosmetically it didn't look to good but had a good motor so $300 for fenders and repaint the gas tank and I got a good cheap '85 250r.