vtr250 vs gt250r

[Turtlerider]

Yes another vs topic. I know these are two quite different bikes one being faired and one being naked but what are your guys opinions as they are both priced pritty similar? Thanks in advance guys

[MVnut]

Honda VTR250 is the only choice, forget the Hyosung

[Chisanga]

I love my VTR 250 and I am glad I didn't buy a Hyo-Bag

The VTR costs a bit more but it is the best new 250 on the market. In my humble opinion.

Just wait until McJim weighs in

[crazybigal]

have you not read all the horror stories about the gt? whoflungdung!
Never heard a bad word about the vtr. we have had ours for 2 years, im too lazy to sell it.

[N4CR]

ridden both

vtr by far hyobag can go get lost as far as i'm concerned. give em a few years though...

[xwhatsit]

I haven't touched either, but just based on specs... the VTR makes a fair bit more horsepower than the GT, and weighs quite a bit less, too. In addition, it's a Honda, which has a fair bit of history and time making bikes, compared to Hyosung which is slightly more fresh.

Plus, the VTR is a naked bike, which is what you want if it's your first bike -- no expensive fairings to break when you overbalance wheeling it out of your garage.

[Fatjim]

I'd go the VTR any day. For a 250 naked they do look rather good. And the motor is pretty strong too.

[Fub@r]

In addition, it's a Honda, which has a fair bit of history and time making bikes, compared to Hyosung which is slightly more fresh.

Just because NZ didn't see a Hyosung till 2003 (thereabouts) doesn't mean they weren't elsewhere in the world

Hyosung is one of the largest and most respected companies in South Korea, and was founded in 1952. Hyosung Motors & Machinery was established in 1978 as a motorcycle manufacturer. In 1979 a technical tie up was established with Suzuki Motor Corp of Japan for producing Suzuki models for some Asian markets. Hyosung established its own R&D centre in 1986 to develop models under the Hyosung brand for export to global markets under the banner "Made by Hyosung, ridden by the World". Around 12 per cent of staff are engaged in R&D to keep pace with aggressive development of new models suitable for export markets. Hyosung produces some models that carry a Japanese brand name that are exported worldwide, and components produced by Hyosung can be found on several other brands of motorcycles.

[xwhatsit]

Just because NZ didn't see a Hyosung till 2003 (thereabouts) doesn't mean they weren't elsewhere in the world

I'm aware of their history, when I first came back to NZ I was surprised to see them here on the roads, so did some further reading. You'll note that as per my post, Honda has been making motorcycles in their own right much earlier than 1978.

As an aside, length of history means little in terms of engineering prowess anyway. Look at Royal Enfield for an extreme example (sorry Mr Brian :P). But Honda certainly have a better reputation and much more infrastructure in terms of dealerships and support in case something goes wrong. There's also resale to think of, it is a 250 after all -- I'm going to keep my 250 even after I upgrade, but most don't.

[LardEmbargo]

we have had ours for 2 years, im too lazy to sell it.

dood! save yourself all that trouble, I'll take it off your hands :)

easily the nicest 250 I've joyridden (cough) I mean road-tested so far. Although the hyobag kind of disqualified itself cos I've only got stumpy legs and it felt sort of too top heavy for me.

[EroSamnin]

I have a Hyobag. Looks nice, cheap, goes reasonably hardish (luckilly, I don't weigh a whole lot) and I don't feel like I'm riding a scooter. VTR's look so small. Haven't seen one in a shop round here to sit on for a actual test though.

As for horror stories, my rear shock crapped out. I have only heard of that happening twice including mine. They replaced it under warranty so now it kicks arse again.

[McJim]

I chose the VTR. It ain't faired so I put a little one on it. People that have Hyosungs seem to swear by them as follows:

"Fuck the handlebar snapped"
"Fuck the suspension crapped out"
"Fuck the oem tyres let go in a corner"
"Fuck the clutch cable snapped"

But having said that they do look nice. I nearly got one. As a learner I have had a couple of gentle bins (once by being hit by a car and once for being a stupid noob in a rainstorm) on each occasion I was pretty much able to bend everything back to shape.

And the VTR comes with proper Nissin brakes instead of noname brakes.

Test ride one of each if you can. Decide for yourself.

[crazybigal]

i second all that!
if anything the we vtr is over braked in the front!
no dodgy electrical problems.

and if howflungdung have been making bikes and motors for suzuki for so long, why cant they get it right?
I know the guy who had the first howflungdung 650 cruiser and it spent more time getting fixed than on the road, in the end he gave it back and got his $$ back. nuf said about those bikes!!

I chose the VTR. It ain't faired so I put a little one on it. People that have Hyosungs seem to swear by them as follows:

"Fuck the handlebar snapped"
"Fuck the suspension crapped out"
"Fuck the oem tyres let go in a corner"
"Fuck the clutch cable snapped"

But having said that they do look nice. I nearly got one. As a learner I have had a couple of gentle bins (once by being hit by a car and once for being a stupid noob in a rainstorm) on each occasion I was pretty much able to bend everything back to shape.

And the VTR comes with proper Nissin brakes instead of noname brakes.

Test ride one of each if you can. Decide for yourself.

[Blairos]

I would recommend the VTR without any hesitation, it was an awesome learner bike, and reliable too...

[rwh]

On Saturday, I test rode the VTR and the Kawasaki GPX250R.

They were both short rides, and I'm a newbie, but I preferred the GPX. It felt like it had slightly more power. It's faired, so there's less wind but more risk of damage. It also had one more gear, I think, but I don't know how much difference that makes. I was expecting to be disappointed by the sound, having enjoyed my VT through the tunnels, but the GPX sounded great in a slightly different way.

Just my thoughts - I'm interested to hear others too.

Richard