da Matteo_79 » lun nov 08, 2021 9:58 am
tratto da MXA appena uscito. Non ho impaginato per non perdere tempo….
Q: FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS THE 2022 HONDA CRF250 BETTER THAN THE 2021 CRF250?
A: The CRF250 offers a laundry list of changes for 2022, but it is not all new as you have been led to believe. Honda is using the same engine as in previous years; however, numerous changes have been made to improve performance. Overall, the CRF250 is lighter, and the power characteristics have gone from a top-end-only engine to a low-to-mid engine. So, the majority of the CRF250 is light years better than the 2021 CRF250; however, HRC didn’t get everything right.
Q: HOW FAST IS THE HONDA CRF250 ON THE DYNO?
A: On paper, the 2022 CRF250 offers less peak horsepower and torque than its predecessor. This sounds worse than it really is. Peak power is important, but it isn’t the end all,
be-all of stats. The 2022 CRF250
comes in at 41.32 peak horsepower
at 11,830 rpm and 20.07 peak torque.
It still ranks in the same order as last
year; third to last in peak horsepower
and second to last in torque.
What has improved significantly
on paper is the power from 5600 to
8200 rpm. It went from being last in
this power rpm range to being first in
its class! Impressive to say the least.
After 8200 rpm, the power curve
becomes more linear and there is a
mysterious power dip at 9600 rpm,
but the engine regains its composure
and comes on strong again from
11,000 rpm to peak.
To make it simple, Honda beefed
up the low-end throttle response
and power output. This changed
the CRF250 from a high-rpm engine
to a low-to-mid engine. This drastic
change was for the better, since the
previous high-rpm layout was a loser
on the dyno.
Q: HOW FAST IS THE
CRF250 ON THE DIRT DYNO?
A: Smooth as butter. Honda finally
turned its four-year slump around
with the 2022 engine. Given that
Honda tried to play the high-rpm game
against the high-revving KTM 250SXF,
Husqvarna FC250 and Kawasaki
KX250 for the last couple years to
no avail, Honda’s engineers decided
to mimic the YZ250F’s low-to-mid
powerband. The CRF250 sounds like
a YZ250F on the track and has a very
similar dyno curve, but does it excel in
the dirt? Yes. The CRF250’s low-end
power is silky smooth through the corners,
unlike the herky-jerky sensation
Honda shedof the YZ250F. The power transition
from the crack of the throttle into the
low end doesn’t miss a beat. It exits
corners with authority, and there is no
need to abuse the clutch.
On the dyno, the power starts to
taper off as it transitions from the midrange
to the top end, but on the track it
doesn’t feel as though it falls off significantly.
It pulls long and hard until the
rev limiter kicks in. Even then, it is up
to you to decide when to shift (or if you
want to shift). The shift points and gearing
suit the power delivery to a tee. If
we wanted to be picky, we wish Honda
had extended third gear by a touch;
however, map 3 band-aided it for us.
The decision to clone the Yamaha
YZ250F’s powerband makes the
CRF250 engine a fierce competitor
against the pack of high-revving
wolves it faces. Now, instead of being
the tail-gun Charlie of the screamers,
it is the best low-to-mid bike on the
track, but not by much. When you
completely reconfigure your powerband,
you give to get. Honda got
Yamaha-style low-to-mid power but
gave up top-end power. The CRF250
is 3 ponies off the best of the high
revvers. Plus, the Husky FC250 and
KTM 250SXF still offer solid low-tomid
punch and then hit the afterburners
as the rpm climb. The CRF250 is a
great engine, but it’s not perfect.
Q: DID THE CRF250 GO ON
A DIET?
A: For 2022, the CRF250 went
on a strict diet, losing 8 pounds. It
shed the obnoxious dual pipes and
mufflers and trimmed weight in the
chassis and engine. This weight reduction
brings the CRF250 down to the
weight of the Husky FC250, which is
third in its class following the GasGas
MC 250F at 217 pounds and the
250SXF at 218 pounds. It is now tied
with the Husky at 219 pounds. This is
a big improvement, as the lightness
can be felt on the track. Kudos to
Honda for finally realizing that weight
does make a difference.
Q: ARE THE SHOWA
SUSPENSION COMPONENTS AS
GOOD AS LAST YEAR’S?
A: No. The 2021 CRF250’s suspension
was great for the smaller target
demographic of the 250 class. The
2021 CRF250 suspension was simple
to set up for virtually any rider and
was confidence inspiring on the track.
It had a great initial setting. We admit
that the 2021 CRF250 forks weren’t
perfect for all riders. They were on
the soft side for Pro riders and would
dive coming into corners on occasion;
however, no fork is perfect for all sizes
and skill levels. In 2021, Honda got the
suspension formula right for about 90
percent of the CRF250 demographic
but threw all of that out the window
in 2022. Honda’s R&D department
listened to the wrong test riders and
complied with the wishes of Pro riders
who complained that the 2021
Showa forks were too soft, so they
stiffened them—by a lot. We had
hoped the 2022 Honda CRF250 would
take another page out of Yamaha’s
playbook and refine what was already
a good setting for their forks; instead,
they threw the baby out with the
bathwater.
The Showa forks are the worst part
of the 2022 Honda CRF250. The forks
make the CRF250 extremely hard to
set up. We did everything we could in
an effort to make the forks feel plush,
but we couldn’t do it. We were told
that the shock spring was too soft,
which made the rear ride too low,
which in turn took weight off the
forks. It is true that the 2022 shock
spring is softer than last year. We
tried to help the forks by stiffening
up the rear end, but that didn’t have
much effect on the forks, and it only
succeeded in making the shock worse.The forks initially ride high in their
stroke, and the front end wants to
dance around coming into corners.
The biggest problem for every MXA
test rider was that the forks wanted
to work for the first half of the stroke
and then they hit a wall of damping
that was jarring. We asked Showa to
lower the oil height to try to move the
hard spot further down in the stroke,
but they didn’t want to go as far as
we did. After Showa lowered the oil
height by 5cc, we took over and lowered
the oil height by 15cc. With this
change, the bike had a better balance
from front to rear, and the front end
rode lower in the stroke, which let it
turn with greater precision. Lowering
the oil height helped the CRF250
carve through the corners.
In all honesty, though, lowering the
oil height didn’t solve the harshness
issue. In stock trim, the stock Showa
forks will only work for a small percentage
of riders. The faster you are,
the better chance you have of loading
the forks hard enough to break through
the harshness, but for the majority of
our wide range of test riders, the 2022
Honda CRF250 forks were not popular.
Q: WHAT DID WE THINK
OF THE PIRELLI TIRES FRONT
AND REAR?
A: The Pirelli tires shaved 2
pounds off the 2022 CRF250 in comparison
to Dunlop MX33 rubber.
Honda magnified the weight savings
by spec’ing a super-narrow 100/90-19
Pirelli Mid-Soft on the rear. The only
legitimate reason for this seriously
under-sized rear tire was to bring
the weight down to that of the three
Austrian steeds; however, the CRF250
makes too much low-to-mid power for
such a narrow tire. The teeny-weeny
contact patch broke loose when test
riders got on the gas on the exit of corners.
We swapped out the little Pirelli
for a bigger 110/90-19 Dunlop MX33.
The bigger footprint calmed the rear
end down. We don’t blame the Pirelli
Scorpion Mid-Soft tires as much as
Honda spec’ing a tire size better suited
to a CR125 than a 41-horsepower
CRF250.
The front Pirelli tire worked well,
but we had to add 1 to 2 pounds more
air than we would normally run on a
Dunlop (approximately 14 psi) to keep
the side walls from flexing. When
we eventually switched to a Dunlop
MX33 front, we could run whatever
air pressure we wanted, and the tire
was more consistent.
Q: DID WE LIKE THE
ERGOS?
A: Loved them! Honda hit the nail
on the head again in 2022. This has
been the most comfortable bike to ride
for the last few years.
Q: HOW WERE THE THREE
DIFFERENT MAPS?
A: We liked that each of the
three maps had a unique feel. Map 1
(one flash) was the broadest map, as
well as the most popular among MXA
test riders. Map 2 (two flashes) was
a mellower map for slick conditions.
Map 3 (three flashes) had more low-tomid
punch. Some of MXA’s Pro-level
riders chose Map 3, as they felt it was
the fastest; however, it did cost some
over-rev and force the rider to shift on
the bubble.
Q: WHAT DID WE HATE?
A: The hate list:
(1) Forks. The 49mm Showa forks
feel good for the first half of their
travel but get stiffer the farther they
move. They exhibit a horrible harsh
spot in the last 4 inches of travel. We
don’t think there is a good shade-tree
fix. You will most likely have to send
them out for a re-valve ASAP.
(2) Tires. What is a 125cc rear tire
doing on a 250 four-stroke? We put
our favorite Dunlop 110/90-19 on to
fix the issue. We also switched out the
Pirelli front for an MX33.
(3) Grips. These stock grips are
bulky and hurt your hands.
(4) Side shrouds. The right-side
radiator shroud blocks access to theDECEMBER 2021 / MOTOCROSS ACTION 37
radiator gap. We have to take off the
shroud to get the cap off.
(5) Vent hose. The gas cap vent
hose is too short. When we take the
gas cap off, the hose falls off.
(6) Airbox vents. We like that the
CRF250 has a big vent in the airbox
so the engine can breathe, but the
CRF250’s upside-down air filter gets
dirty faster than any other bike.
(7) Balance. Just as with the
quirky CRF450 chassis, we got dizzy
trying to find a good fore and aft balance.
A change to the front ruins the
rear and vice versa.
Q: WHAT DID WE LIKE?
A: The like list:
(1) Engine. This is by far the best
low-to-mid engine. Test riders called it
“a faster YZ250F.”
(2) Ergos. No bike feels as comfortable
as the CRF250. Everything falls in
place like it was designed personally
for you.
(3) Maps. Each map was distinctly
different and had a purpose.
(4) Tank. The titanium tank looks
great when it isn’t covered up by plastic
cladding.
(5) Weight. The CRF250 is the first
Japanese bike to compete with the
Austrians in the weight department. It
weighs 1 pound more than the KTM
250SXF but 3 pounds more when you
change the rubber.
(6) Clutch. Even though Honda
hasn’t gone to a hydraulic system yet,
the clutch could take a beating. Just
be sure to check the lever’s freeplay
before every moto.
(7) Brakes. The brakes had great
modulation and worked well.
Q: WHAT DID WE REALLY
THINK?
A: Over the last four years,
Honda has been on the cusp of having
excellent 250 four-strokes, only
to have its sourpuss engines ruin all
the goodness. Finally, in 2022, Honda
made a CRF250 four-stroke engine
that is worthy of the rest of the
bike (save for the front forks). In our
250 shootouts, we have often said,
“The Honda CRF250 would win this
shootout if it had a KTM engine in its
superb layout‚ but it doesn’t.” Now,
Honda has an engine that honors the
Honda name. Yes, the poorly executed
forks throw off the entire handling
of the bike, but bad forks can be fixed
more easily than bad engines—and
for a lot less money. Once you push
the forks into a UPS truck and send
them to your favorite suspension
tuner, the 2022 Honda CRF250 offers
a great package.