Today’s Yamaha TZR250 has a couple interesting things going for it. In addition to the unusual, reversed-cylinder configuration of this Japanese market 3MA, it’s also available in this interesting black/grey/red color scheme: almost all the 3MAs we’ve featured on this site have been white with red speed-block graphics. Earlier TZR250s from 1986-1988 used a conventional…
I once saw Penn & Teller perform and, after their last illusion was complete, the pair appeared onstage, illuminated by a single, overhead spot. They were both casually smoking cigarettes and Penn [obviously] talked a bit about how they both like to indulge in a cigarette after a show. However, he acknowledged that smoking is really…
With a dry weight of under 300lbs and a responsive engine that rewards the skilled rider, Honda’s NSR250R MC21 is especially desirable here in the USA where two-stroke sportbikes died with the Yamaha RZ350 in the mid-1980s. They’ve cropped up pretty regularly recently, but are still difficult to find in good condition, as they were…
This Japanese-market Yamaha RZV500R is a bit of a double-edged sword: one one hand, the bike came with a lightweight aluminum frame instead of the steel frame found on bikes destined for other markets. But, on the other hand, power output was restricted, down from 88hp to 64. From a pure performance perspective, the ideal…
Although the very last MC28 version of the NSR250R is often considered the most desirable of the line today, with high-tech electronics, handling, and gorgeous good looks, obviously owes its existence and success to the original Honda NSR250R MC16. These are becoming a bit less the unicorns they’ve been here in the USA up until…
The earlier MVX250F entry into the two-stroke class was criticized for being too bland, but they corrected that error with this, Honda’s NS250R MC11. The bike made serious power and handled extremely well, but wasn’t good for much other than racetrack antics and perfectly smooth roads. Like its descendants, the NS250R was packed full of…
Look, just to be clear: if you’re in California, you’re not getting this bike. The seller is most emphatic on that point. See below. It’s not that it’s completely impossible to find or to title a grey-market import Suzuki RGV250Γ in California, it’s just that you’re not getting this particular bike: apparently the seller tried but didn’t…
Many of the coveted bikes in the quarter-liter two-stroke race-replica class were never officially sold outside Japan. They were certainly seen in countries where “parallel-imports” or “grey-market” bikes were commonly sold, but 250cc sportbikes were intended primarily to meet the needs and requirements of that market. And that means buzzy little animals like this Honda…