Honda CR250M

The Honda CR250M Elsinore was a two-stroke motorcycle first manufactured by Honda in March 1973; it had 29 horsepower and weighed 229 pounds.[1][2] It was designed by Soichiro Miyakoshi, and prototype testing began in Japan in 1971 and on California motocross tracks in 1972.[3] The CR250M was Honda's first two-stroke production race bike, the first competition dirt bike that Honda built from scratch instead of adapting a street bike,[4] and the first production motocrosser.[5] A chome-moly frame, aluminum bodywork and plastic fenders contributed to its light weight,[2] even after restyling when initial tests showed the frame to be too fragile, potentially bending after less than an hour of riding.[6]

The Elsinore was named after the offroad race in Lake Elsinore, California,[7] the best-known off-road race of the late 1960s and early 1970s.[2] The popularity of the CR250M and its derivatives soared after Gary Jones rode a stock machine to win the 1973 AMA 250 national motocross series.[2]

In 1974 the CR250M was followed by its smaller version, the Honda CR125M,[4] and the first US Honda factory that opened in 1979 in Marysville, Ohio built CR250Ms.[8]

Specifications

Bore and Stroke: 70x64.4 mm

Engine: 247.8cc

Transmission: 5-speed

Wheelbase:56.5in

Ground Clearance: 7in

Capacity: 1.5gal

Weight: 213lb (dry)

Top Speed: 75mph[9]

Model codes

The 357 was released as a Honda CR250M in the years 1973 and 1974, and the 381 was released as a CR250M1 in 1975 and as a CR250M'76 in 1976.

References

  1. Ryan, Ray; Bill Forsyth; Jeremy Holland (2003). "1973 Honda Elsinore CR250M: A Star is Born". Motocross racers: 30 years of legendary dirt bikes. MBI Publishing Company. p. 159. ISBN 0-7603-1239-7.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Frank, Aaron (2003). "The King of Motorcycles, Take Two". Honda Motorcycles. MBI Publishing Company. p. 192. ISBN 0-7603-1077-7.
  3. Siegal, Margie. "King of the Hill: 1974 Honda CR125M Elsinore". Motorcycle Classics November/December 2012. Motorcycle Classics. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  4. 1 2 "1974 Honda CR125M Elsinore". American Motorcyclist. September 1997. Retrieved 2009-11-08.
  5. "First test on production Benelli Tornado". Motorcycle News. 4 March 2003. Retrieved 2009-11-08.
  6. Walker, Mick. Honda Production Motorcycles 1946-1980. The Crowood Press. p. 196. ISBN 1 86126 820 3.
  7. Frank, Aaron (2003). Honda Motorcycles. MotorBooks International. p. 95. ISBN 0-7603-1077-7.
  8. Associated Press (10 June 2009). "A Look at Honda in the US Over the Last 50 Years". ABC News. Retrieved 2009-11-08.
  9. Walker, Mick. Honda Production Motorcycles 1946-1980.
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