Price Yamaha WR250R

Yamaha WR250R Design

Since its introduction in 2008, Yamaha’s street-legal WR250R has continued to impress with its competent alloy chassis, potent but low-maintenance 250cc DOHC thumper engine, long-travel suspension, and reasonably light weight.

Our 298-lb California model weighs just one pound more than the 49-state version, and with its lights, turn signals and license plate, made riding to the trails and then hitting it a fairly do-able proposition.

Three years later, the design is holding tough, with basically just graphic changes. Yamaha says the bike can trace its lineage to YZF motocrossers and more aggressive enduro bikes, and we came away convinced this was not just marketing hype.

The WR250R’s fuel-injected, 4-valve-per-cylinder mill churns out respectable go-power, even with relatively lean, EPA-satisfying tuning and three-chamber muffler. When cold especially, it displayed a slight off-idle stumble at times, but this is something that could be tuned out.

On the open road, with a 200-lb rider geared up and acting like a sail, it will still pull just shy of 90 mph into mild headwinds, and up to around 95 mph or so when tucked in, which is enough power even if traveling via interstate highways.

Yamaha WR250R Engine

We dyno’d the same-engined 250X model last year, and its oversquare, 11.8:1 compression ratio powerplant returned 27.7 hp and 16.95 ft-lbs torque. Combined with its wide-ratio six-speed transmission this is enough to stay ahead of traffic around town. It will easily wheelie in first, and second gear with a little clutch slip.

As an all-arounder, this bike is terrific. Under mixed use, it returned close to its estimated average 71 mpg, and only slowly sipped from its 1.9-gallon fuel tank (2.0 gallons for 49-state models). We would have liked a tachometer to see how close it was to its 11,500-rpm redline.

But the sophisticated engine and chassis are solid performers, and will take you darn near anywhere any vehicle is capable of going. For $6,490, it offers a lot of utility and fun in a manageable package, with potential to be modified if desired, to offer even more.