Yep, so i finally went for the wr250r because of less weight, better chassis and suspension instead of the drz 400... the bike goes nice, gearing is a little long for mostly fire roads and off road, so my first mod will be the gears...

But from what i saw and read here, the airbox is crazy resctictive and the exhaust also.. so they will go, and in the programmer will go, and off the uselless parts after those mods.. i'm wondering , what can i get with those, wich to go with, and can i get to 33 hp from 24hp stock? In don't want a big bore kit ore open up the motor, for resale and reliability.

I'm leaning on the ultimate mod for top of airbox, Q4 with quiet core muffler and power bomb, but still hesitating on programmer, i will want a full adjustable because i'll probably put it on a muffler gas analyser and adjust right on...

Thanks for inputs..

rash

don't expect worlds of difference with the airbox and exhaust mods. They make maybe a little more difference than on any other bike. with a yoshi and powercommander and airbox mods mine would still get beat by a stock drz400. the problem most people have with the wrr is you have to rev it like a 2 stroke to get the power you want.

most of the real world dyno's show the stock wrr at about 24 hp,, exhaust/programmer/airbox about 27-28 and big bore/exhaust/programmer about 31-32

for the money leaving it stock is as good as anything,, if you have to mod it its hard to stop because it gets noticably more fun with exhaust/programmer,, and at least as much more with the big bore. now your talking about a 7500 dollar bike,, good luck

Something for nothing ain't gonna happen in this world .

I modded my WR250R... FMF Powercore 4, FMF Powerbomb Header, FMF Power Programmer (fuel injection programmer).
The thing was kind of a turd before that I agree with hart on that

But the mods DID wake this thing up more than I ever imagined. I have owned both the DRZ400E and now my WR250R and they are both GREAT bikes but hands down I have more fun on my little 250 that I ever did on that pig of a 400. ( I have also owned many more bikes before the DRZ also like the DR350S, YZ400, KTM420 etc)

Sure the DRZ400 has more power down low but the WR250R can handle having its neck wrung and wound out like crazy all day and never miss a hiccup.

The valve maintenance interval is insanely high at something like 26,000 miles and of course who can complain about the fuel injection??

I love that I never have to pull my carb all apart just to rejet and that I can tune her on the fly at the touch of a button using the FMF programmer.

I have more about my modded my WR250R and a comparison to the DRZ400S posted towards the end of this page:
http://www.solidfull.com/yamaha/

I am about 6'2" 200 LBS by the way...

I know this thread is over but guys I am riding a 250cc chinese 4 stroke bike with around 16HP. Would the Wr250R be good enough for me? or should I go for the WR450F?

I think that depends on whether you want an engine with 25 horsepower max. or one with 42 horsepower max.
Either one has got to be better if you want to move up.

My opinion on the 26,000 mile valve clearance checks and the "maintenance free" aspect of the bike:

I'd maintain a WR-250R like any other dirt bike if you ride one off-road regularly.
I'd check the valve clearances at least once a year, and sure as heck wouldn't go 3,000 miles between oil changes, or six months between servicing the air filter.
I'd also grease those chassis bearings regularly, too.
The chart in the Owner's Manual sure turns a lot of guys on, but it's misleading because it's a maintenence schedule for a bike that basically stays on the street.

Edited by YZEtc, 13 June 2012 - 03:00 PM.

 YZEtc, on 13 June 2012 - 03:12 AM, said:

With mods say the FMF powercommander and a FMF pipe make it atleast 30HP? have you ridden one? a wr450f or wr250r? the 250r's kicker is that it's FI'ed which really doesn't bother me that much that a WR250F has carbs but I just want to make sure I am making the right decision, WR250R or WR450F? will i be able to handle 42 hp jumping from 16?

Yes, I owned a 2008 WR-250R for a bit over a year with lots of street and off-road riding totaling about 7,300 miles, if I recall.
I owned a 2009 WR-250F for a bit over two years and a little over 2,000 off-road miles.
I now own a 2009 Honda CRF-450X and ride that every weekend on my local state forest trail loop.

If you want to play it safe and not jump up the ladder too much all at once (a good idea), go for one of the 250cc bikes.

If you want the best off-road performer between the two, go with the WR-250F.
Period.

The WR-250R is the better choice if you see a large percentage of street riding, as in going back and forth to work, going sight seeing, sport riding on the street, etc., just as if you were on a street bike.
This is mainly due to the bike having much taller gearing with the transmission gears and final drive.
It's also smoother running (less vibration from the engine), which can bother some people.

 YZEtc, on 13 June 2012 - 03:41 AM, said:

Yeah thats the thing, I will be 90% dirt and 10% street later on. I am looking at this over the WR250F for the sheer fact of the FI both have e-start and both are road legal in Australia.

 YZEtc, on 13 June 2012 - 03:12 AM, said:

The Dyno results I have seen posted on Thumpertalk for a WR250R with exhaust and fuel injection programmer says 31 HP.
My WR250R doesn't pull on the low end like my DRZ400 did but it has a nice 6 speed transmission and far less vibration on the road at highway speeds.



I think you will be happy with either bike but without knowing you or ever having rode with you it would be hard to say if you will be comfortable handling a 450.
My DRZ400E felt clumsy on the tight gnarly rocky single track trails but was AWESOME in the mud, snow, and wider gravel roads. The WR250R is lighter and more agile than my 400 was, I can manipulate the bike around rocks and tight trails with ease plus it feels more comfortable leaning into corner but that is of course just one man's opinion. I have never rode a WR450F but the used WR250F I test rode was a blast, very light and responsive but unfortunately not available with a license plate here in California. :-(


If you mainly go offroad and don't do much pavement riding I would go with an F model for sure, especially if you are lucky enough to be able to buy one straight from Yamaha with a license plate. If they made a street legal WR__F here in California I would most likely have gotten that back in 2008 when I bought my new bike but I do enjoy the way the R will stand up to a lot of road miles with very little maintenance.


The 3 WR250Rs I have seen tore down so far before their 26,000 mile valve maintenance interval were perfectly in spec but I rev this thing like crazy so I will probably check mine at about 10,000 miles (I am currently at around 8500). I agree 26,000 miles is just way too far to go without checking but it certainly inspires confidence that the little beast was designed to last. I grease my bearings and stuff every 2000 miles and the air filter and oil need to be done about once a month here because our trails are REALLY dusty in the summer. Some of the heavily used trails here look like brown fluffy snow by the end of summer because there is 6 inches of dirt powder on top.

 SomeGuyFromCali, on 13 June 2012 - 08:27 AM, said:

Yeah te DRz400 is heavy and bulky for a trail bike but for the road its fine. I'm guessing if you did more dirt riding you would actually buy the WRxxxF over the R?

You only bought the R because you ride on the road or because of some other reason? again I wont be riding on the road (maybe just to get my license for later) primarily dirt riding. So would a 450 be the better thing? when we went riding last there were two blocks with 500cc KTM's and they were riding fine (I think they were pre 2006).

 chriscasha, on 14 June 2012 - 03:38 PM, said:

I bought the R because I like not having to pack everything in the truck and haul the bike just to get to the trails (although my wife-to-be rides a couch so we usually end up taking the truck anyhow if I ride with her) AND I commute to work on my R during the dry season also. It is totally different here and there are hardly any F models that are permitted to be street legal. You practically have to know a magician to get one through the system or purchase one that was dual sported before they passed all the stupid laws. I mean come on California, if you want to reduce smog, legalize making more bikes dual sports for crying out loud. Right next door in Arizona you can license plate ANYTHING, I mean you can put a plate on a side by side Rhino if you want.

I do mostly dirt riding for fun but you have to ride the pavement anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour to get to many of the trails here plus I also commute on my R to work during the week. After all, the WR250R (with it's fancy smancy fuel injected motor) does get over 50 mile per gallon which is far better than the Honda CRV I commute in during the rainy season. $4.15 a gallon for the Regular octane blend here, much more for the Premium, like $4.50 per gallon. I saw your youtube video of you ripping around the ranch. Doin pretty good on that chinese knock off! Looks like you are moving pretty good on the flats- if you haven't already, you should grab a shovel and build yourself some little table tops.

You are luck enough to live in australia and can pickup a brand spanking new street legal WR250F or WR450F straight from Yamaha!

About the only reason I would go with the R in your shoes is if you REALLY wanted the fuel injection and not having to check your valves as often.
My girl's YFZ450 couch is supposed to have her valves checked every six months although it has never once been out of spec once since we got it in 2008.

 SomeGuyFromCali, on 14 June 2012 - 06:21 PM, said:

Ohk I will, when I ride at Lithgow it isn't even terrain so don't worry bout that. Also the WR450F is road legal haha but I wont ride it on the road. it looks like I am going with the WR450F, is there anything I should look at with a used one?