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CW PROJECT BIKE

YAMAHA WR250R

CONQUERING THE WORLD (OR PORTIONS OF IT) 250CC AT A TIME

Mark Hoyer

A 250 is not everyone's idea of an adventure bike, but the simplicity, lightness, and agility of a small bike will get you to more places with less work than any of the big guns. You must commit to the 60-to 65-mph cruise and "lack" of luxury. What you get back is going places no BMW R1200GS dares to tread and ability to right your fallen motorcycle with much lower hernia risk.

The $6,690 Yamaha WR250R is a great platform, with a capable chassis and lots of snap from its revvy motor. But it needs mods for high-performance distance travel. Our goal was to build a bike that could, for example, be ridden from LA to Moab and then be stripped and re-geared at a campsite for real enduro-style exploring. Total cost for all mods is high, but this is meant as a guide to show benefits of each change so readers can make their own decision on what’s important to them. There are plenty of optional mods and places to save money.

The important thing is to build your bike and go ride it!

WHEELS I TIRES BRAKES

Stock wheels are typically pretty soft, and the ones on our testbike were dinged in short order after some aggressive testing. For this build, we chose ultra-strong, enduro-race-ready D.I.D Dirt Star ST-X rims ($199 front, $229 rear; black only) with Bulldog spokes and splined nipples ($100 per wheel) all from Dubya USA (dubya.com, $60 labor per wheel). To control costs, we laced the new parts to the stock hubs. But to really control costs, don’t ding the Stockers in the first place. Still, the rim upgrade removes any suspicion of trouble, ever. Plus, black looks cool, and for a significant upgrade in strength (15 percent, D.I.D says), they hardly weigh more than stock: The built front wheel was 7 ounces heavier, and the rear was 5 ounces heavier.

Pirelli Scorpion Rally front tire ($125) worked great with an MT 43 Trials rear ($126). Both have been long wearing and are a good compromise for dual use. If you ride in a lot of mud, a true knobby at the rear is a better choice. I also fitted at Scorpion Rally rear ($145) and ran a set of MT 21 DOT knobbies ($278). A combination of SBS racing brake pads (RSI 694 front, $42; SI 790 rear, $34) working on good-quality stock discs provided a major performance upgrade for very low cost.

LUGGAGE

The best hard-core saddlebag and tank-bag solution we’ve found is from Giant Loop. Coyote 39-liter saddlebags (giantloopmoto.com, $360) attach securely without using heavy metal racks and come with heat shields to protect from the hot muffler. Capacity is huge, and three waterproof liner bags are included. Diablo Pro tank bag adds 4 liters up front ($210) and has a clear map pocket with a power cord inlet for devices. Zippered base has a fuel-cap cutout, meaning the bag can flip out of the way for easy refueling. There are cheaper solutions to carrying stuff, but these American-made pieces have been over mountains and across deserts with no issues.

SUSPENSION

The WR250R has good core components that are, most importantly, rebuildable. But stock damping and springing are inadequate for larger riders or to carry any extra load. Go Race Suspension (go-race.com) is a Christiansburg, Virginia, full-service tuning shop that has built a worldwide reputation for WR250R expertise. Owner Travis Jones increased the fork spring rate to o.48kg/mm and revalves using new components to his spec. At the rear, a 500-pound-inch spring replaced the 440-pound-inch stocker with compression and rebound also heavily massaged. We spec’d a tune that would be adequate when the bike was loaded with gear and full fuel but were aiming for best performance when stripped. Handling and ride quality are phenomenally improved; it rides like a completely different motorcycle. Cost is $1,140 if springs are needed, $900 without. If you make one change to your WR250R, make it this one.

RANGE I POWER

The stock fuel tank is 2 gallons, which isn’t enough range for real adventure (even at an easy 65 mpg). A 4.7-gallon IMS fuel tank (imsproducts.com, $400) can deliver about 300 miles. Because fuel is carried low in the shrouds, the full-tank weight increase doesn’t have a big ill effect on handling or give an overly top-heavy feeling. When fuel level is lower, weight is actually carried lower than with a stock tank, which is a good thing. Bottom line is that I never worry about range. A Uni Filter air filter (unifilter.com, $35) works in a modified airbox (opened-up inlet), which boosts overall power and engine response (with other mods). A Shorai lithium-iron battery weighs 1.4 pounds and has double the amp-hour rating of the stock, 4.6-pound lead-acid battery.

The stock exhaust system weighs 11 pounds, the FMF Q4 silencer ($360) and PowerBomb header ($200) just 6.5. The FMF setup also boosts bottom-end power substantially and provides about a 1.5-hp increase at its 26-hp peak. To ensure proper fuel delivery, a Dynojet Power Commander V EFI/ ignition tuner (powercommander.com, $400) and an Exhaust Servo Removal Module ($65, needed to prevent an error code in the absence of the stock EXUP valve) are used. Engine response is fantastic. I’ll never be able to do a crossed-upwheelie, wheel-spinning corner exit like I might on a KTM 500 EXC, but the WR has had plenty of power to take me up every steep climb and rocky uphill, even at io,ooo-foot elevation. And it’s always easy to handle with a dry weight (without gas or luggage) of 290 pounds.

PROTECTION

The flimsy plastic stock skid plate is pretty much only good for keeping some of the dust off the engine. Any big hit could spell the end for vulnerable parts. This aluminum skid plate by Flatland Racing (flatlandracing.com, $95) is nicely made and has a very clean and quick installation using four screws in the stock frame tabs. A drain-plug cutout makes oil changes easy. Only downside is that, being metal, it reflects engine noise.

I used thin rubber sheet to help damp the sound. The next solution was a Moose Racing Pro Skidplate (mooseracing.com, $159.95). The material is HDPE: high-density polyethylene or, basically, plastic. It took some bending to get the mounting holes to align properly, but the Moose plate is significantly lighter than the aluminum piece and reflects less engine noise. Plus, I have beaten the plate with no ill effects other than a few gouges.

GEARING

The stock gearing is 13/43, which is too tall for technical offroad work (just ask my first clutch). A 120-link D.I.D 520 VX2 chain was cut to 112 links (didchain.com, $124) and run with a 48-tooth Renthal Ultralight rear sprocket (renthal.com,

$70). This combo is great off road and gives an all-day 60-mph cruise. For highway use, an Ultralight 14-tooth front sprocket ($33) is easily packed and swapped on the road; 14/48 is barely shorter than stock and gives 70-mph cruise. With the shortgearing setup, I haven’t met a hill the WR won’t climb.

ERGONOMICS

Job one was replacing the stock steel handlebar. It bent easily and was too low and narrow. A Renthal RC High (renthal.com, $80) was much wider, higher, and stronger, for better comfort and steering feel. Cycra Probend hand guards (cycraracing. com, $134) block wind, rocks, and tree branches, as well as protect levers in a crash. The Garmin zumo 390LM GPS (garmin.com, $600) has great flexibility for mapping roads and trails, is Bluetooth compatible, and highly weather resistant. The best adventure mirrors ever are made by Doubletake (doubletakemirror.com, $48 per side). RAM mounts give ultimate flexibility (easy to flip in or remove), and new mirror glass can be glued in place in the unlikely event you break it.

I tolerated the stock seat for quite a while before trying a Seat Concepts “tall” saddle (seatconcepts.com). Price for a cover and foam is $160, but I opted for a complete seat assembly with new (indistinguishable-from-stock) injection-molded base for $255. It’s narrow at the front to allow aggressive stand-up riding but wider at the rear to let you to sit down, slide back, and find comfortable support after a long day bashing around. The i-inch-taller height also worked great for me and my 34inch inseam and 6-foot-2 frame. It’s like a different motorcycle, and I am happy to ride it all day on the highway and/or trail.

ACee Bailey’s clear windscreen (ceebaileys.com, $90) was an excellent addition, and it’s easily removable with wing nuts under the number plate. The screen’s main benefit will come in cold weather and rain but does make a nice windbreak even at the typical 60-mph highway cruise. I probably should have popped for the headlight guard ($20), since my bike’s lens was shattered by a rock trail riding, but I was following the bike in front of me too closely. Next time I will pass him...