Honda CRF 250L: a suitable bike for Africa touring?

[larrysimpson]

I was going to ship my BMW R100GS to South Africa and then head north from there. I found the shipping and crating costs from Canada very high and and shipping to South Africa also necessitates the danged carnet. So now I am looking at buying (and later selling) a suitable bike in South Africa to use for 3 or 4 months on a big loop around southern, eastern, and southwestern Africa. I am thinking of going smaller and the new Honda CRF 250L dual purpose bike has caught my eye, and affordable at only $5K in Canada. Great on gas too! Reviews are good so far but haven't seen any long-distance reviews yet. Some after-market stuff is starting to emerge to cover off back-racks, panniers, seat, etc. Maybe stiffer shock too.

Any thoughts on this?

Regards,

Larry

[docsherlock]

I think that would be a great bike for what you intend. Would certainly be on my shortlist.

Don't overlook second hand KLRs or XT660Zs if buying in South Africa though.

However, I doubt you will get one as cheap as $5000 CAD there....

[markharf]

A quick check of specs and prices of the on and off-road versions of this bike show a 100 lb difference in weight and a $US 2000 difference in price. What is it that makes the dual sport a hundred pounds heavier but two grand cheaper? Seems like I'd want an answer to this question before committing to a long trip.

Mark

[Fantastic Mister Fox]

The first thing to note is that the crf250x and crf250l are not the same bike. The CRF250L is actually more like a CBR250R with different body work and tuned slightly differently.

I would suggest that although the CRF250L looks like the answer to the lightweight low powered adventure bike, but light weight it is not.

[docsherlock]

Light weight is not always an advantage e.g. in very windy conditions. The CRF250L has had excellent reviews from owner-riders and I'd certainly consider one if I was downsizing from my XT660Z. YMMV.

[Petrus]

We bought two CRFL's for a RTW trip.
At this moment sorting out the racks and suspension.

It's heavyer and cheaper because the frame and subframe are not aluminium but steel (wich I prefer). The faqt that its made in Thailand helps a lot too.

[larrysimpson]

Just a note to say thanks for the useful comments. The CRF L is right up there should I finally decide to go with a smaller bike. In the end, once I am shopping around in South Africa, I may have to choose within the same price range between a 5 year old BMW 650GS or an XT600/660 on the one hand and a new CRF L on the other hand. Trade-offs for sure.

Regards,
Larry