2012 CRF450R
That’s right, 2012 models are starting to roll out. Yesterday, Honda announced revised motocross race bikes, including the 2012 CRF450R, CRF250R and CRF150R.
The big 450 gets stiffer fork tubes and front axle collars, along with stiffer fork springs and revised suspension settings, both front and rear. The rear suspension also receives a revised linkage. New footpegs are both wider and longer to provide a larger platform for greater comfort, and new Dunlop MX 51 tires are featured.
2012 CRF250R
The CRF250R is also revised for 2012. It features a new cylinder head, camshaft and 46 mm throttle body for a claimed increase in low and midrange torque. It also gets the larger footpegs and revised suspension settings. Finally, the front axle collars are more rigid on the 250, as well.
Finally, the little brothers, CRF150RB – Expert and CRF150R, each received a revised cylinder head, camshaft and carburetor for a claimed improvement in power, torque and drivability. These bikes also get revised suspension settings both front and rear for 2012.
For additional details and specifications, visit Honda’s web site.
Some of these revised off-road weapons cost as much WMD’s!
the primary reason 4stroke made the innitial impact they did was the electric power delivery, whining from the track monkeys who swore the 4s was slower ( lap times by said genious were almost always faster on the “electric” 4s).
“it doesn’t feel as fast” whining prompted the oem’s to engineer the massive advantage of the innitial few years of everyones 450’s (electric freight train power delivery) out of the engine’s in favor of 2stroke hit and narrow power bands thus eliminating the advantages.
I’ll take my hammered 03 crf450 over any of the new offerings for blasting around the east idaho mountains, what most of the country calls “mountains” we call kiddy hills, that said nothing compares to the first few years of 450’s regardless of red or blue for tractoring around the mountains. ported piped 2s 500’s running on race fuel can’t climb with high hour (1500+) 03crf450r with an e series pipe, not a boast, simple fact…
Having dealt with sleds for years, the new “clean” 2s hotrods are just as expensive to maintain as a 4s, with substantialy lower service life.
For the tool thinking dirtbikes need to be massively differant to be worthy of the revised moniquer, 1st look up the deffinition of revised, 2nd as allready stated a dirtbike is a scalpel precision designed and refined over many decades to excell at it’s intented purpose, theres a reason they are shaped that way and look a certain way, it’s what works best…
did you just compare your 450 with a ported 500 2 stroke? i didn;t think so, no one could be that dumb
Yes in fact I did just compare my hammered crf450r with a ported 500 2stroke for climbing mountains…
Maybe this seems unbelievable to a sea level track monkey, come to east Idaho
where the parking lot is at 5500′ and you spend all day riding 6000′-9500′ elevations.
It’s no secret that thumpers hook up better, don’t bog down anywhere near as much as a 2s and don’t suffer anywhere near the power loss at higher elevations. 4strokes needing little to no run & upshifting mid climb vs the 2stroke’s monster runs(not always an option) and constant downshifting = advantage 4stroke.
The big dogs in the mountains are thumpers.
There is alreay technology (its been around a while) that makes exhaust emissions 2 stokes cleaner than 4 strokes. Pressure from US regulatory committess pushed for 4 strokes and pushed out 2 strokes. The manufacturers were only too happy to go along with that, they made a lot of money of the new technology. Now they can reintroduce the 2 stokes and make some a bunch more money.
I still have my 02 CR250. It’s just fine for me. Better bike than I am rider…
I’m hearing lots of rumors that Honda will bring back at least one 2 stroke motocross bike for 2012. Down by 80% displacment, no development in 7 years and they’re STILL competitive. Pretty much everyone has realized that 4 strokes are the engineering solution (heavier, costlier, less reliable) that nobody asked for
It(2 smokes) should have never gone away. EFI and today’s powerful ECUs would have done wonders to clean them up enough to come down to 4strokes emissions levels (maybe even street legal)…ahhh, day dreaming is a bliss…lmfao.
KTM is still playing the 2 stroke game and I haven’t seen a new 250SX at the track in years. Riders have voted with their purchases, apparently they are asking for 4 strokes.
nice car!
wow that looks exactly like every CRF from recent memory. zzzzzz
Yea, pretty much ho hum, just like the little updated Goldwing.
I think with dirt bikes, designers are specially “challenged”(limited) as to how different they can make them from each other and from year to year basis. After all, here’s a great sample of form follows “almost all” of function. Dirt bikes are more like dedicated tools (scalpel) than rather muti use street bikes (machete).
Yeah not much changed here.
So, they just fix some details and a major flaw (the pegs) and call that “revision”. Seems like the recession is still on for at least Honda.
With all the talk of Adventure Bikes these days, I wonder how much work it would be for Honda to put some dual purpose tires, a lighting package (I could live with the kick start to save a few pounds), a fly screen, luggage mount points and a larger tank on this and you’d have an adventure bike that could actually be ridden off road, dare I say even on a single track. I’d take this over a 1200 cc 600 lb “SUV” that would never make it on anything other than a hard packed gravel road, and that could get dicey. I might even be able to live with the thought of dropping it and having to pick it up. Hmmm, kind of like an Enduro of about 30 years ago. Or did I just describe a Hypermotard?
The thing is that Honda doesn’t have a water-cooled single in 450-650cc size. all they have the racing units which most people would not want in their commuter or dual purpose trail bike having to change oil every 500 clicks ….
All they have is air-cooled units developed ages ago … I myself don’t understand this hole in lineup they purposely have not tried to cover for a decade.
Your plan is Noble, BUT…have u seen the maintenance intervals on these high strung Thumpers ? To say the least, not street practical at all.
There is a huge gap between a racing four stroke and a street legal fourstroke thanks to emissions. I have a wr250x, which is a great bike, however… There is a flapper to choke off the air inlet, and a valve to close off the exhaust pipe. Programmers are available at $400. Weight is 300 lbs (100 of which is the muffler).
It would take a ton of work to get a crf250r past emissions.
Those 2 things u mentioned as “evil”(JMHO), are there to improve driveabilityon the street (key word:STREET) and nothing else (unless) the diaphragm actuated door on the air box closes again at high rpm(very unlikely), then it really becomes a restriction.
Most probably easely disabled like people used to do it on the Honda RC51.
Same goes for the EXUP Valve, wich im sure can be totally disabled(fixed wide open)and bypassed without spending a truck load of money.
Also done a lot on bikes like the Suzuki M109R.
If the bike “needs” a “programer” after doing this, well…u are stuck(fudged) and gotta fork those dolars over like it or not.
P.S: I have always liked your fly weight supermoto since it came out. EFI was what really caught my attention at a time the OLD DR-Z400 SM it’s still carburated. THE SHAME…SUZUKI.
My apologies to the other readers for the Tread HiJack.
Nice bikes!