Yamaha YBR250 to an adventure/tour bike

Hi Modron, i'm guessing you didn't exactly get the answers you were looking for. My advice for your situation would be to get the YBR250 and leave the suspension stock. I would call the YBR more of an 'all purpose bike' than a street bike in the modern sense of the term. Its suspension and ground clearance will get you through pretty much anything china has to throw at you, even if you've to go a bit slower than on a dirt bike.

You're scared to get stranded in the middle of nowhere and rightly so. You probably don't have to weeks to spend in a workshop learning how to rebuild an engine, you'd rather spend that time riding. The X5 and other new bikes look like they might have potential, but until their reliability is proven the best bike for you is still the YBR250.

Here's a thread about the Yamaha's closest rival which contains some good info for you.
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ll=1#post48627



Don't be put off thinking only off road looking bikes can go off road. I did 200km of dirt on an old CB400SS with the wife yesterday and had loads of fun.

https://xs32sq.bay.livefilestore.com...460.jpg?psid=1

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Originally Posted by felix

Hi Modron, i'm guessing you didn't exactly get the answers you were looking for. My advice for your situation would be to get the YBR250 and leave the suspension stock. I would call the YBR more of an 'all purpose bike' than a street bike in the modern sense of the term. Its suspension and ground clearance will get you through pretty much anything china has to throw at you, even if you've to go a bit slower than on a dirt bike.

You're scared to get stranded in the middle of nowhere and rightly so. You probably don't have to weeks to spend in a workshop learning how to rebuild an engine, you'd rather spend that time riding. The X5 and other new bikes look like they might have potential, but until their reliability is proven the best bike for you is still the YBR250.

Here's a thread about the Yamaha's closest rival which contains some good info for you.
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ll=1#post48627



Don't be put off thinking only off road looking bikes can go off road. I did 200km of dirt on an old CB400SS with the wife yesterday and had loads of fun.

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+1 to Felix's wise counsel. The Suzuki and Yamaha are excellent all-round motorcycles that have racked up hundreds of thousands of kilometers under the joyful butts of innumerable Chinese and expat riders. They are among the very best motorcycles available in China, and well supported technically pretty much anywhere in the country -- including all the good bits out west.

I suspect that these bikes will hold their resale value, especially if they are reasonably well maintained.

cheers!

In China you drive with a china bike in the same way as in India you drive with Royal Enfield. In U.S.A. you drive with a HD.

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Originally Posted by modron

How hard is it going to be to find the right forks (where to find them...any suggestions?) Im guessing the biggest problem will be with fitting the brakes, if i want to keep original wheels which i do cos of the cost
do you think that its worth doing or i should just drop it?

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Where the heck do you think you're going to get a V-Strom in China?

Stick with the YBR250, spend some cash on good tires + touring accessories and then get on with it. Make sure you're 100% legal with license, registration etc. Share some adventures with us on the forum.

Cheers!
ChinaV

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Originally Posted by ChinaV

Where the heck do you think you're going to get a V-Strom in China?

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We have 3-4 parallel motorbike importers in Shanghai region and for the right amount of $$$'s they can and will import any bike with the appropriate import documents (fully legal import for legal rego).

Had a meeting out at Minhang District in Shanghai today and the meeting place was located on one of the Shanghai import vehicle streets, was very surprised to see 12+ Ford F350 Super Duty and Toyota Tundra being delivered to a car dealer today, massive pick up trucks, some of them dually trucks, exactly what's needed for Shanghai traffic.....

felix and euphonius, i really wanted some reassurance so thanks for that!!! I think Ill go with the YBR (once i sort out my license issues) simply cos ill be calmer to have a Japanese bike. X5 seems like a perfect bike for what i want but its impossible to buy where i live. I asked in all the dealers in my small/huge Chinese city and they never heard about the Shineray brand haha they just sell Japanese or local zhejiang bikes, which are plenty btw..... If i order X5 i might not be able to register it without guanxi. And there are still the brand new model problems.....

ChinaV - misunderstanding. I didnt say i want to get V-Strom, just said that i was looking at it and compared it to street bikes. V-Strom is too big for my liking



thanks for answers!

I have 2 month holiday booked for May and June ;) should be fun!!!! just need the license first....hah

I would also hesitate a little on the Shineray X5 400 dual purpose (dually) / adventure (ADV) bike since it is new to the market and an unproven design, plus Shineray had a prototype doing different motorcycle shows for several years but it is only now making it to the market. That could be an innocent sign and might be suggestive of Shineray really doing good R&D, but TIC and one can never be sure. The proof as is often said "is in the pudding".

As for the YBR250 I would advise that you might like to find the dual purpose model of the YBR which has higher mud guards and an overall more "off-road" stance to it, though I cannot vouch for what other differences the dually model might have over the standard road model. I have only seen the YBR dually in 150cc configuration, but I'd guess there is likely a 250cc model. I'm not sure that the dually model I've seen shares the same model name of YBR? I will swing by my local Yamaha dealer today and have another look to see if they have any in stock. The ones I have seen there in the past have been 150cc.

Anyone else?

I totally agree with the above comments, as an owner of both the YBR125 and YBR250 bikes, as well as a few others. A YBR250 is a great all-around bike for China. Tremendous value-for-money, and you might be able to find a near-new one at a good price, as many YBR owners are selling them to switch over to the GWs (people want the latest and greatest fancy thing).

As ChinaV notes, your best investment might be improved tires (over stock) with a more aggressive tread pattern. A YBR can be fixed pretty much anywhere, as there is a large network of dealers, and most mechanics have familiarity with the YBR series. And there are also many after-market add-ons (e.g., racks, bags, hand guards, etc) for the YBR series.

There is an "ADV-style" model of the YBR 125, called the YBR125-G. It is essentially a YBR125 with knobby-style tires, higher mudguards, a kickstart, a rear rack, and a slightly different set of handlebars. I tried one for a few months, and although the "G" is nice, if you can afford the extra 10K rmb for the YBR250, I would go with the YBR250. It is superior in many ways (including EFI). The "G" seems to be more of a fun machine for the odd day in the dirt.

I also own the Jialing JH600, and it is a great bike for China but it is also more expensive. In the under 400cc market, the YBR250 still reigns, in my view, as the best bike for China.

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Originally Posted by Lao Jia Hou

There is an "ADV-style" model of the YBR 125, called the YBR125-G. It is essentially a YBR125 with knobby-style tires, higher mudguards, a kickstart, a rear rack, and a slightly different set of handlebars.

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Where have I seen that before???

http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ull=1#post7848

Cheers!
ChinaV

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Originally Posted by ChinaV

Where have I seen that before???
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ull=1#post7848
Cheers! ChinaV

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very-very common bike on the big island (Hainan), seen them all over the place and looked at them in a Sanya shop but again = small size (not talking about the engine here), might get one for our son later on.....