Maico 250 Mega 2

MAICO 250 MEGA 2

if You Want Torque and Excellent Handling, See Your Dealer And Say "Mega 2, Please"

Maico's deserved reputation for controllable power and precise handling has mostly been the result of that company's open class motocrossers. Maico's 250 motocrosser has always had the same good handling manners but until last year, they had a reputation for being somewhat slow and pipey. Last year's 250 was faster and proved competitive at most levels of competition but the lack of a reed valve meant the 250 Maico's powerband wasn't as wide as that of the competition. For '81 Maico has done away with that complaint; the newest 250 Maico Mega 2 is equipped with an intake-mounted reed.

CYCLE WORLD TEST

A six-petal reed cage is placed between the 38mm Bing carburetor and Mahle piston. Fiber reeds are standard. The reed stops are perforated so fuel flow isn't blocked and the unit is held in place by six screws. The unit looks identical to the one used by Flonda except for the use of fiber reeds instead of metal. Many of the parts will interchange but we'll go into that later. Porting of the new cylinder is revised and the outside is more rounded. The square look is gone, replaced by a Yamaha YZ250 look.

The other big change to the '81 Maico engine is the primary drive. It's still chain but not a double row chain. The new engine uses two single row chains.

Using two single row chains doesn't sound as if it would have a strength advantage but it does. The chain has the same

size rollers and pins but the pins are less than half the length the double row chain used. Shorter pins the same diameter mean substantial strength is gained. It's much harder to bend a short pin. If the pins don't bend, the side plates don't break, and chain life is extended.

The clutch is the same as that on the 490, so there's little need for worry about clutch slippage. Thin steel plates are sandwiched between Sintell bronze plates, and 18 concave washer clutch springs apply the needed pressure. Other parts are also shared with Maico's 400 and 490 engines. The transmission shafts and gears are identical, and the magnesium center cases are the same except for steel inserts to make the crank cavity smaller. Three transmission shafts are used. Using three shafts puts the countershaft sprocket closer to the swing arm pivot so rear suspension movement doesn't have as much effect on chain tension. Of course the cases could have been shortened to obtain the same results, but that would mean the engine would be more rearward and handling would suffer due to a lighter front end.

Maico's 250, 400 and 490 also share the same chassis. The frame is chrome-moly steel with a built-up backbone of stamped parts welded together. It's a strong triangulated design with the acute end at the rear. This basic unit was introduced last year but some of the really hard riding pros had problems with the backbone cracking just behind the steering head or bending on the sides where the rear frame tubes connect. Both places have extra plate this year. The rest of the frame tubing is very similar to the '80 model: double downtubes curl under the engine and terminate at the rear of the backbone. Seat rail tubing and upper shock mount tubes add triangulation in the critical center section of the frame. The engine bolts to the frame in four places. The rear of the engine is held firmly in place by making the large swing arm bolt do double duty. Thus unnecessary rear bracketry is eliminated and strength is increased.

Maico has shunned the use of aluminum swing arms and still uses a curved chrome-moly steel arm that's strongly gusseted.

The '81 arm is about 1.5 in. longer than last year's and is responsible for the increased wheelbase, now 58.5 in.

Corte and Cosso piggyback reservoir shocks are used. This year they are rebuildable and tuneable. A several page manual comes with each new bike and explains rebuilding and tuning procedures. Dual shock springs are standard and many spring preload grooves are furnished. Changing preload requires spring removal, the norm these days.

Up front, forks with 12.2 in. of travel and 42mm stanchion tubes ensure flexfree racing. The units have been shortened 2 in. in overall length this year. The shortening has lowered the front of the machine and made the bike feel more conventional. Maico accomplished this by shortening the top part of the fork casting (the area around the seal) and shortening the stanchion tubes' engagement. The result is a fork that's substantially shorter so the front of the bike doesn't ride so high.

Wheels, hubs and spokes look the same but worthwhile changes have taken place. The rear spokes are substantially larger and no longer break. Rear sprocket bolt size has been increased from 7mm to 8mm, which cures an isolated breakage problem. The rear brake backing plate is new. The plate slides into a locating pin something like Yamaha ITs have used for a couple of years. The front hub is similar looking but stronger. Front spoke size remains the same. Both rims are lipless aluminum and gold anodized. Metzeler tires are standard equipment. The banjo bolt rear wheel adjusters are longer for '81 and allow 2 in. of rear wheel adjustment.

Other small changes are not readily apparent. The rear brake pedal is redesigned for better leverage although it still doesn't have a slip-proof top. The front brake cable has a stiffener around it so it won't flex into the front spokes as easily. The Magura throttle that turned a little too hard before has been redesigned for better mechanical advantage; the airbox has a steeper bottom so water can escape quicker; the seat is flatter; the rear fender is wider and longer so it can be more securely mounted to the frame and footpeg mounts and footpegs are stronger.

All these things are impressive. But, the best thing about any Maico is riding one. The new Bing carburetor has a tickler and choke lever. The combination makes cold starting a one kick affair. Adding to the> ease is the left side kick lever that has good leverage and spins the engine several times per kick. Warm-up is quick and low gear is engaged without any clunk or jerk.

The new reed valve engine is much stronger than past 250cc Maicos. Low and mid-range power is very impressive. We can't think of any 250 motocrosser that even comes close to making low-end power like the Maico (it's even stronger than a Can-Am). The new cylinder and reed are responsible. Power starts just above idle and builds quickly, Mid-range power is extremely healthy and the combination of

strong low and mid-range give the rider gobs of horsepower from Vs to VA throttle. As you might suspect, top end power is subdued. Extracting maximum horsepower from all throttle openings isn't possible on any 250 or smaller engine; instead the manufacturer has to make the powerband as wide as possible by tuning the engine for low and mid-range, or mid and top end power. Maico has chosen the low and mid-range route. And they have done it right.

Stock tuning will probably be the best choice for 90 percent of the motocross

tracks. Short twisty courses or mud races will give the Maico rider a definite advantage. Usable low speed power that doesn't spin the rear wheel violently is the hot setup for these tracks. West coast tracks with fast start areas or worse yet, long uphill starts like DeAnza or Saddleback, will give the starting advantage to Yamaha and Honda riders. Both have engines that're tuned for top-end power which makes them first turn kings.

We entered the 250 Maico in several pro races. All of the tracks had high speed starting areas. Mid-pack was the best start we could manage at any of the races, although our test rider made up much of the loss in the first turn. Like larger Maicos, the 250 gives the rider complete confidence in corners. By the time you get the bike into third gear, you know you'll be able to charge the first turn, pitch the bike into a full-lock two-wheel drift and have full control. Falling down never enters your mind. All lines are hot lines on a 250 Maico. And best of all, the Maico feels like an extension of the rider. It never tries to force a lean angle or style. Whatever the rider likes, the Maico likes.

But it's not all wine and roses. Like past Maicos, the brakes are so-so. The hubs are big enough to do the job, and the linings are wide enough. The problem with Maico's brakes lie in quality control. The linings don't contact the drums completely. Either the hole in the middle of the backing plate isn't centered or the brake shoe placement on the plate is slightly off or the linings aren't arced properly, or . . . anyway, the linings only make partial contact with the drums.

Alignment varies from bike to bike. Sometimes it's possible to hand file the high spots on the linings and get them to work. But, if they're off much, it's better to turn the backing plate in a lathe. The plate is jigged in a lathe, the brake shoes expanded until the outside diameter of the lining is slightly larger than the brake drum diameter, then the lathe is started and the out of roundness corrected. Of course this shortens lining life and every time the lining is replaced the backing plate has to be turned again. Larger Maico dealers are set up for the job and it usually costs from $12 to $15 per wheel. The factory is aware of the problem but so far they haven't done anything about it. Maico freaks just accept it and plan on turning the backing plates as part of the necessary set-up. After the brake shoes are worked over for proper contact, the bike is easier to stop. The rear works as well as any brakes, the front as well as most single leading shoe brakes, meaning the bike isn't going to out-stop a Honda or Yamaha with a double leading shoe. It also takes more muscle to stop a Maico. Leverage isn't as good as it is on some bikes. We did a little experimenting with front brake arms. A Yamaha YZ250H front brake arm is VA in. longer and fits right on the Maico backing plate with no modification. The bike stops easier with the simple mod. The arm on Suzuki's new RM250X looks as if it would also fit, and it's lA in. longer than the Yamaha arm. We're going to try one as soon as the part is available.

MAICO 250 MEGA 2

$2499

Suspension on the '81 250 works well. The forks don't jar the rider over square edges and bottoming seldom occurs. .Spring and damping rates are right on. The Corte and Cosso rear shocks are nearly as good as the front forks. Stock spring and damping rates are right for most racers as delivered. If an owner doesn't like the stock settings, damping is adjustable by disassembling the units and moving the clamping washers around. We didn't bother because they suit us fine as delivered. The springs did sack fairly soon, though. After five races we moved the spring preload ring down one groove and brought back the original performance.

Spokes loosened badly the first ride, especially in front. Once seated the rear spokes stopped causing problems. The fronts are on the small side and continued

loosening. We finally broke a couple of them during a race. Larger front spokes or ones of better material are needed. While we're complaining we may as well mention the slippery rear brake pedal. We fixed it by bending the tip up and filing grooves in the end. We're not all that crazy about the pipe and silencer either. The front part of the pipe hits the rider's leg when he's far forward on the bike and the rear bracket broke—the same one that's been breaking for a couple of years. And the pinch clamp at the front of the silencer doesn't pinch tight enough to grip the pipe properly. A small gusset added to the pipe bracket fixed it and sawing more slots in the front of the silencer let it tighten up. These are small problems of course, but they should be taken care of at the factory.

Most of the parts and pieces do the job right. The fenders keep most of the mud off the rider, the seat is comfortable and just the right width, bars, levers, pegs etc. are placed and shaped properly.

We decided to fool around with the power characteristics and see if we could

make the engine more competitive for fast Southern tracks. Dual stage Boyesen reeds were installed and a short rubber manifold from an '81 Honda 250CR fit right on. Internally we aligned the ports and raised the exhaust port 1 mm. These mods gave the bike a lot more top-end but a lot of the neat low-end disappeared. Fast uphill starting areas proved less a handicap but YZs and CRs still had a slight advantage. Some of our testers thought the mods improved the bike, most thought it was better stock. It would certainly be a mistake for tight tracks or trail use.

An '81 Maico 250 Mega 2 will cost you several hundred dollars more than a Japanese motocrosser. And some set-up and modification is going to be needed before the Maico is capable of stopping as quickly as the competition. Still, the Mega has many virtues; Metzeler tires, strong frame, excellent handling and cornering manners, super torque, fine shifting and good suspension.

One full-lock slide may convince you it's worth the effort.