Riding from Auckland to Wellington on a 250?

[High_Voltage]

Hey i was wondering if its ok for me to ride my zxr to welly. just coz it revs around 9k when im @ 100
so will it be sweet for it to do that (probably between 100-130kph) for 7-8hrs be any good for the motor?

[The Baron]

Just do it......If its not red line it's not a problem.. 250 are great machines and can do a lot more than you might first think.

What a great ride that would be.

[Henk]

Go, bits of your body are likely to suffer more than the motor.

[nothingflash]

Yeah - your bike has probably started a thread on here asking the same question about the poor rider...

[rebel]

I did it one weekend on my old CBR250, finished work sat 2pm, had a 21st down in Welly. Jumped on the CBR and and got there in just under 6 hrs with 4 fuel stops. She pretty much didn't drop below 12000rpm between Auckland and Turangi. Had to tone it down for the revenue raisers down SH1 south of Turangi. It didn't miss a beat over the 1300km. I was most Impressed. Couldn't say the same about my back and arse though.

[High_Voltage]

Sweet as ill just get the cam chain rattle sussed wait for a fine weekend and ill be off. i can almost hear the wanui hill screaming my name haha. I still think ill take longer than the 5 hr trip in a mates commy we did from hamilton. haha (doing the speed limit of course cough cough)

[hospitalfood]

when i was a bit younger i used to do it every few months on a MVX 250. old honda tripple 2 stroke.

you and the bike will be fine

[gijoe1313]

Yep, just make sure you do all the usual checks and everything is tickety-boo before you set off. I've done Wellington and back many times on my lil'ol'hornet (250) ... and its gone around the clock now!

Chew fiddies are surprising lil'beasties! :msn-wink:

[chef]

yeah i know a guy who did it on a zxr 250 1994 or something looks like a old dunga but he said it made it perfectly. i was kinda in shock when he told me at first

[EJK]

Unless your bike's got a mechanical problem, have peace of mind! It will be fine :)

[Str8 Jacket]

I know of people that have done the same trip on the following bikes; KR150, GN250, FXR150 and a Jade 250. You'll be right. Get a perm!

[YellowDog]

Because of the learner rating, I think a lot of us assume that a 250 is too small a sized bike for a long journey, but I would say that it is more of a comfort thing.

If the bike is reliable and you can keep well below the red line.

Go for it!

[James Deuce]

I used to commute from Auckland to Wellington on an RG250.

I never, ever, once, not once stopped to think that it was too small and wouldn't make it. I spent 3 months riding backwards and forwards from Auckland to Wellington and I had a ball doing it.

Youff of today.

[nosebleed]

when i was a bit younger i used to do it every few months on a MVX 250. old honda tripple 2 stroke.

you and the bike will be fine

See now thats the adventurer spirit, setting out for Welly on an MVX.
Only committed as far as Taupo on mine.

[DarkLord]

I did 820 k's on my Hyosung about this time last year. Palmerston North via Wanganui to Stratford, then to Taumarunui via Forgotten World highway, then on to Hamilton and back up to the North Shore. It was amazing. I was a bit sore afterwards but the bike handled it brilliantly although my front brake pads did need replacing shortly afterwards. :)

[slimjim]

mate..i rode outa rotorua down-welly ferry-south island with backpack, and tent, etc strapped on ..seven week holiday on bike :2thumbsup ..not tell ya model :whistle: however it was a 175 twin.. me was 16 ..just do it, oil-water-gas---smiling :2thumbsup

[DunerzNick]

I am planning on riding Dunedin to Hawkes Bay (via west coast S.I) on my 250 once I am done with exams down here.
Will give it a service before I set out and spread it over a few days. Can't wait to see the West Coast, never been there and here its amazing.

[High_Voltage]

Mint ive been to hamy and back with no worries on it (xcept running outa petrol on the end of the offramp going back up the bombays haha).
Thinking of it an uncles mate did it in an r1 and it already chewed through a set of tyres so my 250 has its advantages

[SMOKEU]

The bike will be fine. My CBR250 will happily sit at 180kmh all day long if I want it to. So will your ZXR

[davebullet]

Two suggestions:
1. Get some ear plugs... the sustained wind / bike noise at 100kph+ is not good for your hearing with the long term exposure
2. Put good oil in her

[Stickchick]

I rode my Scorpio down to Welly. Nothing wrong with riding a small bike long distances. It can be tiring if your not used to it though. Looking forward to doing it again in Jan/Feb. :wari:

[george formby]

Go for it. the biggest problem is comfort. Back in blighty a few decades ago, a mate road his 125 2 stroke trailie from the north of Scotland down to Wales in one hit. No problem at all. It seized on the way back though & he replaced the barrel etc at the side of the motorway in the rain & completed the trip. Legend!

[Zuki lover]

How many days you looking to take to get there :rofl:

[Danae]

I rode down from Kerikeri on my FXR. Only problem will be if you get tired etc.

[Ms Piggy]

Hey i was wondering if its ok for me to ride my zxr to welly. just coz it revs around 9k when im @ 100
so will it be sweet for it to do that (probably between 100-130kph) for 7-8hrs be any good for the motor?

You'll be sweet as mate! Lots of us have ridden those sorts of distances and further. Have fun and don't rush. Make sure you take enough warm clothing.

Is there a particular reason you need to ride it in 1 day?


Go, bits of your body are likely to suffer more than the motor.
This is definitely true. If you can try going on some reasonably long rides before you go if you're gonna do it in 1 day that will give you an idea of how your body may react - the old numb fingers, cramps in the calves and a sore back are some of the ways your body might react.

[High_Voltage]

Is there a particular reason you need to ride it in 1 day?


Got a Girl down there haha

[Laxi]

might be time for a user name change :rofl:

[Ms Piggy]

Got a Girl down there haha

:love: Nuf said.

[Ender EnZed]

660km from Lower Hutt to Napier and back was the furthest I ever did in one day on my Spada 250. It was fine.

Just leave early enough you know you aren't going to be riding into the cold, dark night if that's not your thing and don't relax into a "making progress" mentality along the way. By this I mean riding faster to get there sooner: it's easy to do if you're not used to a long journey ahead of you and can lead to big tickets or much worse.

[marigami]

Well my ex BF did a journey long nearly 800 km from Normandy to the center of France with only his first previous old 125 (Honda SR) in one day, and there wher quite a lot of mountain roads to go by.
And it was his very first long journey with his first bike.
No problems at all and he did enjoy it and the bike was just...perfect.
And he gained respet from other bikers with more powerful bikes.

We did the same kind of journey with his then 500 CB and my Zephyr but even if it was quicker (and safer?) it was less fun.
So I do think it is perfectly good and safe with a 250 which are good bikes (happy you in NZ to still have 250 anyway)
By the way I am new on this forum and I did introduce myself.
I am from France and I'll be glad to discuss about bikes in NZ and France (or Europe by the way).

[DarkLord]

Long 250 journeys are fun but they are very frustrating when sitting at 100kmph. There's not much power left when you are doing those kind of speeds so passing cars can be a mission.

I can't wait till I can afford the SV650 I'm saving for..... it will be far less frustrating for that exact reason on long trips.

[dblancer]

I did a ride once up to Wanaka and back from Dunedin with my Dad and his VStrom.

Most notable things were, making plenty of stops was good. The bum and the wrist gets pretty achey after a few hours.

On the GPX its about 8000rpm at 100km, so flicking between 8K-14K most of the time during passing and the like.

I averaged about 4.7 litres per 100km too which was pretty good

[slofox]

Waaaaay back in 1975, I rode my Benelli 250 from Christchurch to Maungaturoto (that's in Norfland in case ya din't know). One overnight stop. Neither the bike nor myself broke...

[cheesemethod]

Planning on doing this on a GN250 soon. Should be a bit of a laugh. IMO keeping you mind in the game for that long is just as important as your body.

[High_Voltage]

Haha if you can do it in a gn250 ill have no prob on my zxr250 man cant wait till i get it back from the shop and then a sunny weekend comes around

[StoneY]

Ok, true story

My Mum at age 40ish brought her first real motorbike, a GN250 (had a scooter before) at what was then Action Suzuki in Porirua (many moons ago, 82,83?)

She had a pack rack fitted, placed her luggage in the new rack bag, thanked the very young Robert Holden for preparing the bike,(he worked there!) and rode it to Whangarei (that was the run in ride)

She did it in less than 12 hours including dinner in Auckalnd with my auntie

Local northland Suzuki dealer did the run in service and she came home down the east coast

So all you guys with small bikes, HTFU! Its just a longer commute, cant let my Ma show you up now can ya?
:niceone:

[Gareth123]

I rode from Christchurch to Invercargill to Picton and then back to Christchurch on a GN250. It would only really sit at 90km/h. Was so boring. Heading into Invercargill it was so windy I was stuck at about 40km/h. My arse was so sore by the end of it though. I want to do it again but I'm still running the engine in on my 145. Blew the last one up:)

[DarkLord]

I've just sold off my Hyosung GT250R and have upgraded to a 2001 Suzuki SV650S. I took the bus to Auckland, picked the bike up and rode back. I've done the ride from Auckland to Taupo many times on the Hyo, and doing it on the SV was the most I have enjoyed that ride, ever.

250cc engines just aren't really built for long distance riding like that as it's already using most of the engines power just to sit at 100kmph. The Hyo was cheap to run and reliable but I had the feeling that with the amount of extensive long distance riding I was doing on it (plus nearly redlining the damn thing just trying to pass a car) I imagine it probably wouldn't do the engine much good in the long run.

It is so much easier and fun on a bigger bike. The SV sits at 100kmph in 6th gear at about 5,500 RPM and it still has enough torque to scream past any car.

I had some good times touring on my Hyosung but I am glad they are over now.

[Juzz976]

I get up early the occasional weekend and just ride and long distance too. wind rain sun whatever doesn't matter, the old FZR250 loves it, yeh you're pulling 9k on the tacho but 250's have misleading scale plates as marketing ploys.
Last year one of my sat rides I clocked just over 1000k's with minimal stops, got a numb feeling in my right hand for a wee while but thats all.
If your 250 cant plod along in 6th doin 100k's they maybe its in need of a tune or its a hyobag.

DO IT - at least once, theres a sense of achievement at the end and you'll have more respect for your bike too. There's respect for anyone who can do big k's on a 250, not only as a rider but also as someone who has confidence in the vehicle they maintain.

[Karl08]

Gotta do it Bro! Gonna hit AKL on the Mighty GN- my furthest so far is New Plymouth and back (in middle of winter).

Enjoy it!

[lamedog]

Just did it on Tuesday for the ACC protest. Awesome turn out and great experience. Below my brief trip details.

My Bike: Honda CBR 250 RR MC22
Left Auckland at 7pm Monday night. Got to Taupo about 10.45pm. Got very cold that late at night especially with the wind chill factor.
Left Taupo about 6am Tuesday morning for trip through to Wellington. So very cold on the Desert road and had a strong cross wind with periods of rain. Stopped and took a pic of Ruapehu in the morning blue sky. Still a lot of snow on the mountain.
Anyway got down to Sanson with the SH1 group. I'm told 3000 of us in convoy. Couldn't see the start or end of the convoy. Continued through to the police college and waited to park. Awesome turnout. It was around 11:30 when we arrived. From there we went through to the caketin and parked. That short ride was slow going especially with the heat of the sun, bikes and road.
Got a 2 hour break with the walk to parliament and back. Body was still quite sore at this point.

Left for Auckland at about 2pm. Followed a couple of groups but ended up taking a wrong turn. Off to Wanganui. Turned around and decided to go up State highway 4 but turned one turn too early. Ended up going up the wrong side of the river. That road is quite a nice road. I was a little intrigued to where it might end up so continued on until it got to dirt. Turned back and got onto SH4. Wasted about 30-60 mins doing that. By now it was about 5:30pm.
Continued up SH4 to national park and up to Auckland. Didn't know the road south of the national park was soo windy which would have been great if not for my aching body. It started to rain when the roads got a bit straighter again.
Got to Te Kuiti about 9pm. By this time it was pouring down and quite dark. Skipped onto SH39, followed a couple of trucks and met a few bikers around Huntly. Safely got into Auckland before 4 or 5 detours for roadworks. Ended up getting home about midnight.

Great experience and learned a lot. Would recommend it but on a more comfortable bike (or with more time). I didn't have earplugs or a neck warmer which would have helped a lot. If you can, go with some mates, it helps with the boredom. Also the road quality north of Taupo is a lot better than that south of Taupo. I only say this because I felt every bump and it goes through your knees, hips and spine.
I stopped 9 times for fuel for the entire trip and a few more for breaks and didn't have any more padding than the stock seat (do highly recommend the more padding the better though)

So I hope you enjoy your trip.