The Honda CRF250X - Maintenance And Reliability

by Jackson
(Auckland)

It has been said in dirt bike books that the CRF250X was not as reliable as it could have been, and I believe that any one who has owned a CRF250X will tell you that it is because the valves fitted to the CRF250X created some serious reliability problems.

And because of this the Honda CRF250X was unfairly treated. The reason for the valve problem was because the titanium valve surface is very thin and tends to wear out quickly. This tends to reduce the clearances, making the bike difficult to start. This can happen after 15 or 20 hours of use. Luckily the problem can be fixed by fitting stainless steel valves instead of using the stock ones. This can turn a very unreliable bike into a solid, long-lasting bike.

I recommend that if you are keen on getting a Honda CRF250X and you have $300 for the valve kit plus another $280 for labour, then go ahead and get one. But if you don't, then you will probably be better off getting another bike.

If you tend to have the money for a valve fitting plus the price of the CRF250X - newly bought - which costs about $6,699.00 - 2009 model, then this would be a good bike.

It is said that the bike can do up to 100 hours riding (with the valve fitting) before piston and rings replacement are needed. But I'm not suggesting that the bike should be pushed that far between the rebuilds.

I hope this helps.

- Thanks for sharing Jackson. I didn't know that. Yea the whole thing of "how long will a piston and rings last" is a variable one depending on how the bike has been looked after, fuel and oil (two stroke) quality, how the bike has been ridden etc. But you're right.. it's always better to play it safe than push the piston to it's limits.

Hayden -