Yamaha WR250R Mega Thread

The Wolfman racks that came on my bike have had plenty of hits and taken them in stride. I'd love to loose the weight since I almost never run the bags but I like the protection for the exhaust the racks give so they've stayed on the bike.

Good to hear about those rotopax. Ya know, I didn't even think about what parts a rack would actually protect - I just assumed everything that breaks would be pricey to replace.

Old Crow - I already have a skid plate & handguards. Do most of you put on radiator guards - I'm not sure if I read some people having heating issues? Living in the SW desert, the roads/trails can get a bit rocky, but also pretty darn hot.

longboardr - If ya ever decide to lose the extra weight, let me know. Those wolfman racks look nice & probably would be the way I'd go if I get racks.

Dang that is more than I was Hoping the fuel pumps would be. Thanks for the info.

I have an 08 with original fuel pump but just bought the iMS 4.7 so I was thinking about getting a spare pump....reconsidering now.

No, I did not assume that. Considering your experience with the bike, you no doubt know more than I do. I had more knowledge of the bike than the person asking about its reliability, so while clearly stating that I did not own it, I gave him the results of my research. Thank you for insulting me because I have a strong desire to own a WR250R that you are fortunate enough to have; I like many others here, live to escape the boring confines of societal expectation and the WR is my idea of how I would like to escape. I may be "12" for strongly desiring a motorcycle, but I am not "12" for name-calling and insulting others. Even your manner of using "schweet" screams of elitist dismissal as me being some kind of idiot- I have much to learn, WR's to buy, and I am by no means a genius, but calling me an idiot is ridiculous especially when you dont know a damn thing about me.

Utter toolbags? D-bag premium? Why, because I dont own a WR250R? Because I offered information on a motorcycle Ive read quite a bit about while also qualifying the fact that I didnt own it but am instead in the process of looking at one? The guy wanted to know how reliable it was, and incidentally I gave him the same answer as all your experience gave- the bike is a brick and runs forever. How many engines have you rebuilt? How many times have you rebuilt a classic car from scratch, or delved into an aircraft's electrical system? Does this knowledge that I have worked hard to gain mean anything compared to your 33000 miles of saddle time? Im no WR expert, but I know a good design when I see one.

Sand in my vagina? K&N filters do not have the filtration characteristics of OEM filters or TwinAir filters, and this has been discussed in many forums. I was admittedly upset with your elitism and complete willingness to cast me off as some moron because I didnt have magical saddle time, but I certainly did not call you a bunch of names like "utter moron", "utter toolbag", and "d-bag". What, are you 12?

Ill bow out here guys. I guess my problem is that I cannot stand people who treat others like trash for no reason. Then, I go on some moral crusade trying to defend myself and others which then becomes a pissing match for the guy who likes to insult. Sorry to pollute your thread and enjoy your bikes

One of these days when I can find one in stock or for-sale used, ill be back..

It's your money, so easy for me to say, but if I had an 08 with the OEM fuel pump and a new tank about to install, I think I would install a new pump, and save the original one as a spare.

I did that exact thing. When I put the IMS 3.1 tank on my '08 I figured it would be a good time to change the fuel pump, just in case.

I also added a new fuel pump when I installed my 4.7 IMS tank. I did not like spending the $200+, but decided it was worth the money to not be stuck out on the trail unexpectedly...

Eh, I'm stingy as hell, so I wouldn't spend the extra $200 on a new pump unless I was planning on a huge ride in the near future. The fuel pump failures generally start out intermittent, so it shouldn't strand you, if you're within a reasonable distance from home.

If you got the new big gas tank to do the TAT or Alaska or CDR or something, then spend the extra $200 for the peace of mind.

Sorry to post again w/o an R2... Yet.

K&N? Do some serious research as they are kinda OK for street but not dusty conditions and yes I have used them on Guzzis & a Ducati.

Fuel pump issues have been noted on other bikes that use the same internal 30mm pump motor. The outer white plastic housings may differ but the black motor is the same.

The issue can be found at the WR250R/X forum. The impeller drags when hot, that's why a cool down starts it working again or slapping the tank.

Read the top of Rick's parts page... http://www.rickramsey.net/WR250R1011.htm

The 25yo in me wants a 690 Enduro. The 60+ geezer that I am knows the R2 is enough. (I'm an old mechanic gear-head BTW)

You need to use a wet type filter if you ride off road IMO. No matter what the bike is unless you live somewhere that there is no dust and you don't ride gravel.

"Fuel pump issues have been noted on other bikes that use the same internal 30mm pump motor. The outer white plastic housings may differ but the black motor is the same."

Inmate "Austin Jake" has done some r&d on using a 30mm pump sold by California Cycleworks to fit in the stock holder of a Husky [ I think ] He has about 10k miles on the pump at this time without problems. The Cal Cycle pump may just be built to a higher spec. than other oem pumps, .. who knows. Cal Cycle has a reputation to preserve. I will install one if I get any more crap-out behavior from mine; I replaced it proactivly with a new one, and it stopped me on the trail anyway.

And for gad sake, if you covet a chicken sandwich but have never eaten one before, do not presume to mislead others with your suspicion of its quality and flavor, as you are merely speculating!

Most people who off road these bikes have both radiator guard and skid plate. GET the radiator guard. I bent my radiator during my first crash with this bike. It didn't have a hole and it doesn't leak but it was a wake up call about just how exposed the radiator itself is. Crush protection is the main function, with rock protection a secondary benefit. Most overheating issues i've heard of with the WRR are related to a malfunctioning fan (incorrect re-install specifically). But the radiator is simply too expensive to gamble with... i needed a slap on the wrist to learn this but you can learn from my mistake. It should be upgrade #1. When you re-install the fan just make sure the blades turn and everything's hooked up properly and you're good.

Hey I am one of the "dudes" you guys saw at the bar near moffet tunnel. :) Did not realize this was one of those epic journeys. Too bad about the freaking cop crap. We are very fortunate to be able to ride in this terrain on day trips, but now the snow has covered everything up.
Friday we head to the pawnee national grasslands for some sand and canyon riding in NE Colorado.
Cheers!
Bob

I had to buy one a couple months ago. $406 from Arizona Yamaha in Phoenix (Cave Creek Rd). I was able to get the old one working, so the new one is a very expensive spare. I keep the bike in Phoenix to visit, and I usually have about 10 days to explore. So I took the pump anyways.

>" I did not like spending the $200+, but decided it was worth the money to not be stuck out on the trail unexpectedly... "

Ditto. Ordered same. Got the pump 1 day before I went to Baja.
I was unsure about installing a new pump before going on the ride...
so I packed the new pump around 1800 miles in Baja.

Put it on the bike when I got back, interesting, it sounded a bit
different than the 2008 pump, which has since become a spare on
the shelf.

All this talk about fuel pumps has me wondering, was this truly just an issue with the early models ('08's)? Did they actually change the fuel pump design in later years, or is it the same fuel pump in all years?

It seems more prevalent with the 08's but some have reported issues with 09's and with replacement pumps as well.

My guess is that the only thing that has changed is either the supplier (oem) or the quality control forced on the supplier but not the design itself. The pump is used on several different manufacturer's models and random but infrequent failure is a common theme.

I am not convinced the pump has been improved. I proactively installed a new "improved" pump in mine and it failed after 4000 miles. I reinstalled my "suspect" early 2008 pump and it is working fine at the moment.

I experienced some overheating on my WR250R this past summer right after I installed the Flatlands plate. Granted I was loaded for touring, it was hot and I was in Utah. The overheating light would come on while at speed, but slowing down it would go off. I suspected that it was restricting the airflow a bit too much in those conditions.

I replaced the coolant with Engine Ice, and have not gotten the light to come on again (5 or 6 rides since then). If it does, next step is to remove some more material from the guard to allow some more air movement. The light never came on for me when I was moving slow, even with high RPM's on more technical stuff.

Has anyone installed a 290 cc kit and had the crank balanced? Seems to me this would require adding weight to the crank to off set the heavier piston.

I got to ride a 290 cc kitted bike. It was geared lower than my stock gearing. It was difficult to feel any difference in power due to the lower gearing. I think the stock gearing is just right for any place I ride,

What I did feel was low frequency vibration in the pegs and some in the bars. When I got back on my stock bike, I noticed was how silky smooth the ride is. I like silky smooth!

I don't have to tell you, the faithful, how capable the little bike that could is. My lust for power has been in the back of my mind. I got incentive to follow up after a 50 mi. sprint via slab. It's not normal to long haul slab the little bike, but this is real life. At the end of a long day your looking for the short line back home. The long day read 253 miles on my ODO. The GPS read 230, 250 sounds better! Down shift to 5th and WFO in a heavy cross wind. In my road racers crouch, I had problems passing motorhomes going close to the posted 70 MPH speed limit. The wind gusts would drop my speed 2 to 4 MPH. The kitted WR just walked away. DAMN!

A larger displacement big brother, from Yamaha, would cause my cheap ass to run out and buy a new one ASAP.Hurry up Yamaha before I'm to old to care. I really don't want to get rid of the WR. I like the silky smooth do anything except slab in heavy winds little bike. In the mean time, I started looking for another bike with some cc's. A few extra FT LBS of torque sure wouldn't hurt.