Everyone's got something to say about 250cc sportbikes, but do these little bikes really deserved to be mocked the way they are? We recently conducted a three-bike comparison test to find out. Be sure to grab a copy of the April 2013 issue to find out.
Lightweight sportbikes have long been written off by two-wheel enthusiasts as inept, underpowered playthings that are no more exciting than a Friday night spent with your in-laws. In fact, on a recently posted Facebook photo, in which we highlighted three separate 250cc test bikes and asked Sport Rider fans which they’d rather have, one follower went as far as to answer, “None, these bikes are slow and stupid. Get a scooter...much more fun.” Tell us how you really feel, Facebook “friend.”
Don’t let us give you the wrong impression: We’ll personally grab the key to a Kawasaki ZX-6R long before we grab the key to a Ninja 300. That doesn’t mean, however, that we’d describe the current crop of 250cc bikes as mind-numbing or hopeless. The Honda CBR250R, Hyosung GT250R and Kawasaki Ninja 300 are all stronger than ever in fact, and seemingly have plenty to offer in terms of performance – especially for those who are still getting comfortable outside the confines of a car’s cage. To better highlight these bikes’ capabilities and their knack for keeping a smile on your face, we recently gathered the troops and set out on a three-bike, 250cc sportbike test.
A 2013 lightweight sportbike comparison was inevitable; Honda’s CBR250R may have gone unchanged this year, but Kawasaki’s Ninja 300 is all-new and Hyosung’s GT250R features a long list of noteworthy updates, including Delphi fuel injection and KYB suspension. We threw a curveball whenever possible, and ultimately took each bike to the Streets of Willow Raceway in Rosamond, CA, plus tested separate slip-on systems on each bike. You may call these lightweight machines “slow and stupid,” but we guarantee that we had fun putting them to the test in myriad environments.
In the end, one contender proved a stronger performer in just about every category. The battle hardly ended in a first-round knockout however, as each bike put up an impressive fight. Honda’s single-cylinder CBR won all of our testers over with its comfortable ergonomics and light steering characteristics for instance, whereas the Kawasaki’s displacement advantage wooed us at anything above city-street speeds. The Hyosung’s suspension components proved better, although numerous cracks in the bike’s armor ultimately overpowered what improvements were made for 2013.
Our 250cc comparison test will be featured in the April 2013 issue, which will hit newsstands in a month’s time. Be sure to grab a copy to get a detailed look at how the bikes further stacked up, and to find out what our female test riders thought about each model. Until then, let’s all try to be a little more optimistic when it comes to little bikes. Clearly they aren’t the technology-lacking playthings they once were.