Hi All,

Any experience or thoughts on WR450 F as an overlanding tool?
Wanted to buy WR250R for overlanding purposes but seems underpowered.

450 F looks better though seems very expensive.

And its tank is only 7,5 L !

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"where the traveller goes, nobody knows ! "

The 450F is a very different beast from the 250R. It is an uncompromising competition machine. A lot more powerful, but also requiring significantly more maintenance.
Also, unlike the 250R it does not have a rear subframe of any significance.

A 450F could be turned into an adventure travel bike, but imho there are better options.

Unfortunately Yamaha never made an R version of the 450 like they did with the 250F and 250R.

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Belgium to Nordkapp via Iran | Discover Overland | Destination World

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uFBAn6ET5Y

I've ridden the WR450F quite a bit in Baja and in the California Desert. These were friends bikes I swapped with. On the highway sections in Baja the WR450 gearing was WAY too low for moderate highway speeds. Over 50 mph it started feeling over revved.

Off road the thing was WONDERFUL! Such a treat after getting off my XR250R.
The Honda is a great bike but NOT in same class as the modern WR450F. A real race bike.

That said, as mentioned above, the WR250R will be a FAR better long range travel bike. In fact I hope to buy a WR250R later this year.

The WR450F is a very reliable bike, more maintenance than the WR250R but less than just about any KTM ... and can go years without problems. But as a travel bike? NO! Don't do it!

As mentioned above, no rear sub frame (so no way to easily carry luggage and gear. Low gearing not good on paved roads.

Here in USA used WR450F's are cheap but usually well used. They are not road legal here in US, but some get plates for them and set them up as dual sports.


The WR25R is surprisingly FAST! Goes good on highway (I tested it) and
i read it's quite good off road ... and can be loaded for travel with gear and a lot of support from large community of owners.

My wr250r tops out at 139km/h on gps with stock gearing, with me leaning over the handlebars (im 2 meters tall) When given +2 teeth on the rear sprocket, I can clutch up wheelies in 3rd gear, and still cruise effortlessly on anything but the interstate.

Not my definition of underpowered.

The air intake is opened up, and theres a different exhaustsystem on it, thats it for power mods. The stock exhaust can be modded for juuuust about the same gains)

You will, however, notice the lack of torque, compared to a bigger bike, but that goes almost without saying. I have both my Xt600, and a wr250r, have many times considered to throw a better seat and larger fueltank on the wr, and use it for multiday/week-long trips. The bike is plenty capable.

I use mine mostly for daytrips and regular enduro, helping as a trackmarshal in our nation championship, but also a few weekendtrips.

A 450f would also be a great choice, if you can live with the few downsides. Luggage can be sorted out, gearing can be chanced, but youre still looking at a bike which needs oilchanges meassured in hours, not thousands of kilometers. I've only tried a450f once, but it was set up like a YZ, so very unridable in gnarly terrain, the suspentionsetup from the owner was also terrible, so not the best experience. He changed it back to Wr configuration, and changed the suspention-settings, and said it was like riding a new bike. Would have loved to tried it againm but unfortunatly he sold it. So please give us your input, it you end up buying one. That goes for either bike. =)

If a person were to want a bigger cc bike for travel but in that class of bikes there is also the Suzuki RMZ450X Suzuki Cycles - Product Lines - Cycles - Products - RMX450Z - 2017 - RMX450Z .
Don't know how the gearing is sorted on the bike but I really like it in the quad and it's been dead reliable . Since I can't plate them I'm not sure how other features will work for travel if better than the Yamaha .
Neither the Yamaha or Suzi 450 will go as far between maintenance items but they're not as bad like many think . The one thing I never cared for on the WR250 is the weight for the small'ish cc , I was shocked when I hopped on one the first time , but it does handle it ok. I'd never use one for long distatance road travel , hard to get used the rpm's it needs to run at , nothing like the big bore thumpers.

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'86 XT600/3TB motor,,, '88 XT600, ,,'92 XT600e,,, '08 Husky TE510,,, '05 DRZ463,,, '95 KLX650 ,,,'96 KLX650

Wr250r is one of the lightest in its class, compare it to klx250s and crf250l. The suspension and handling is way better stock aswell. (have tried both of the 2 others) The others are cheaper tho', but if youre worried about the horsepower of the wr, dont even consider the others, unless you plan for a bigbore job.

126kg dry isnt so bad at all. If you want, theres about 10kg to save without going totally crazy. (exhaust, battery, beeing the main parts) But you could travel for a long time with the money involved in this.

Not bad for a bike with 42.000km intervals for checking the valves, with the ability to ride proper singletrack, stunt, and travel all over the world, all in one bike.

Thers people riding all over the world on ktm exc's, so its durable and so is others, but I would personally choose something else, and not worry too much about the maintenance when in remote areas.

WR250R Forum Is a great source for anything wr250r / x related.

I have a XT600 E (2003).

As an overlanding bike the problems with XT are:

* Heavy
* Fuel efficiency is bad so I need often refueling and fuel expense is high.

A modern EFI 400-450 would be better but I need similar specs with WR with more HP.

__________________
"where the traveller goes, nobody knows ! "

The WR450F is a full on competition bike.

I rented one years ago in Spain. It was an absolute beast. Hard to keep hold of.

Not a travel bike at all unless your trips are short and extreme. And they're very expensive too.


I've never ridden the WR250R. But I'm thinking about buying one. I want a light bike for technical British Trails. Something light to get my skills and confidence up as I barely ride any off-road. The six speed motor and long service schedule is a real benefit I'm sure.

I've also been looking at a WR250F. Again, as an 'F' is a full on Enduro bike. It won't be much use as a travel bike but off-road it will be more manageable that a WR450.

Worth noting that the WR250R and WR250F are completely different chassis and motors.

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Excatly. I've had my WR450 for a few years now, not for travelling, my Terra is a lot better suited for that. But for trail riding. And after all this time I still haven't quite gelled with the brutishness of the bike. I'm just not that talented I guess.

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Belgium to Nordkapp via Iran | Discover Overland | Destination World

I really dont think you'll get much better milage on a 450f. A google search should help to sort out the actual mpg.
The xt600 isnt bad mpg wise, for a big bike, when set up right.

The wr250r sips along, getting much better economy. I cant force mine under 20km/L, even geared down, riding soft sand at speed. You still need a bigger tank tho'

wr450f is probably as good as ktm 500 exc for adventure application but require some modifications. Some guys did very long trips on ktm 500 exc without any problems. Extra maintenance is not that bad despite of common beliefs.

I've owned the WR250 and 450F, actually I've still got an '07 250. Great offroad bikes but you'd need to change the seat, tank and gearing to make them more suitable for long distance. That said the 250 I suspect would be a bit gutless on the open road with luggage and full tank and the 450 is a full-on race motor anyway, I wouldn't like to tour on it. And both have a sump holding just over a litre which means the oil is worked harder and any oil use risks running out sooner. Remember these are basically both enduro (race) machines.

The "R" was introduced in 2008.

wr250r has 6000km oil changes, and first valvecheck is at 42.000km.
Hp/weight ratio is about the same as a xt600, but with modern geometry and way better suspention, and 30kg lighter than an E-start xt600.

It seems several have put over 100.000km on them.

Its COMPLETELY different than a 250f, different,frame, engine, suspention and plastic. Just about the only thing they share is the "250"part.