I finally got the chance to rent the CRF250L in Phuket for 750/day. When I got on I remembered the "feel" of my XR650L, slim bike, high seating position, the handle bar wide and just right, not too high or too low. I felt "at home" right away. When I swung my leg over the bike it felt tall, I can understand if a beginner feels intimidated and thinks about a lowering kit, but could put both feet flat on the ground. I'm 178 cm. But once underway I had no problems, I enjoyed the "size" of the bike. The 650 is really tall, I could only put one foot on the ground on the tip-toe, had to lean the bike at a red light, but it never really bothered me.
I went up through Kathu direction Thalang and airport, the bike pulled nicely through the traffic, never felt slow or sluggish. Of course it's no Ninja, and the smooth little single reminds you of that, but I was quicker that cars, busses and smaller bikes. In fact I guess with a bigger bike you'd get stuck more often. Thalang was a mess, long line of stop and go, I had to get onto the sidewalk for a few car length then down a high curb - try that on a Ninja! I opened it up north of Thalang and it took a while to see 120 on the digital speedo. I had to wring the engine out to red line through the gears but that's the fun part. I noticed a loud noise coming from the cams, it sounded intermittently like a coffee grinder, a really obnoxious sound I could clearly hear in my full-face helmet. The bike had only 6,000 km on the clock so I wonder if all those little singles sound like that? Disappointing! Also no rev-counter, often I thought I was in 3rd but was in 4th, guess you get used to guess the revs after some time but how come the CBR150R has one and is half the price?
Went towards Nai Yang beach and here the CRF started to be more fun. Going 60 in curvy areas and open up to 90 on straights is what the bike is made for. Then going south to Nai Harn through the twisty mountain roads, up and down, throwing the bike left to right, accelerating and slowing down, brought a smile to my face. I could go in 3rd through slow turns and open it up on straights, the engine delivered, no need to shift. It even runs 50 in 6th gear, no complaints!
Went into a sandy area in 1st and the fan came on right away. I wonder how hot it'll get if you really worked it!
Average was 3,5L/100km, that's great, not much more than my carbed Nouvo 135!
I thought compared to the VTR250 I owned years ago it would be significantly less powerful since the VTR is supposed to have 25 hp and the CRF about 5 less. But just from the seat-of-the-pants feeling I'd say the CRF has 10% less power, I was surprised. It felt powerful at any revs. Of course I am used to the Nouvo by now, if you ride a bigger bike you may feel it's not enough. The AX-1 I had a long time ago definitely felt weak even though the engine was in good shape. Numbers can be deceiving, I think I could live with the stock power for quite a while.
Smaller wheels and street rubber would make this bike the perfect around town bike. You could take it to work every day and even do weekend trips.
I just got back from a 5-day 1,200km round-trip on my little Nouvo 135. The CRF250M would be a big step up and I'm sure it'll keep me happy for many years!