RD250 - so much more than a hair dryer (Yamaha Motorcycles in General)

Member Name: Motley

Product:	Yamaha Motorcycles in General
Date:	11/11/00 (1606 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, I wasn't afraid to dent it and it was my first.

Disadvantages: Unreliable, expensive to maintain and difficult to find parts for.

Like the vast majority of riders, I passed my test on my driving school's crappy little 125. It was 6 years old and after God knows how many lunatics learning to ride, wasn't up to much good.

When I passed my test I bought a Yamaha RD250. It was 22 years old and I paid £250 for it. It was in fairly good nick and it was love at first sight. All my friends had told me not to buy anything too expensive whilst I was still finding my feet and not to buy anything that was so heavy that I couldn't pick it up. I followed this advice and chose the RD250.

I never had anything but problems. It wasn't the bike's fault, it was just circumstances. It hadn't had much tender loving care in its most recent years, very few bike shops stock parts for it and the parts (when you find them) are either very expensive or second hand and possibly nearly as bad as what you are trying to replace.

I think if you are into the whole bike thing and are happy and knowledgeable enought to do most of your own repair and maintenance work on your bike, then an RD250 is a good choice. If you want something easy to maintain and reliable, do not buy an old bike. They're a nightmare.

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