Honda Nx250
HONDA NX250
CYCLE WORLD TEST
New road, same destination
IF A MOTORCYCLIST HAD BEEN SHOT INTO SPACE IN THE
mid-Seventies and just returned to Earth about now. he'd be in for a few surprises. What happened to two-stroke streetbikes? What happened to Triumph. Bultaco and OSSA? And most of all, what happened to dual-purpose bikes?
Chances are he wouldn't be happy with the answers to the first questions. But as for the last one, there’s a very good answer. Dual-purpose bikes are still around, and they're better than ever—just look at the Honda NX250. The only difference is that they’re now called “dualsports” bikes, at least if you take Honda’s word for it. Why? That has to do more with corporate image-making decisions in Honda’s boardroom than with actual changes in the product. On the motorcycle itself, differences are purely styistic. Dual-purpose bikes used to be do-everything bikes with dirt styling. Dual-sports bikes are do-everything bikes with street styling.
With the NX250, that’s obvious at a glance. It doesn't have a numberplate; it has a fairing. It doesn't just have a fuel tank and sideplates; it has bodywork. But underneath, the NX starts with the same formula that made dual-purpose bikes so popular throughout the Seventies, and then improves on the concept.
The engine in the NX actually is more responsive than any single-cylinder 250 four-stroke Honda has ever made, dirt or street. It has excellent low-end torque—no surprise there—but it also revs. In fact, the little Honda actually has respectable top-end power. Nothing along the lines of its bigger brother, the NX650, mind you. but good top-end power all the same. And it should have a good motor—the NX250 has all the right technical credentials. It’s the first liquid-cooled four-stroke Single motorcycle Honda has made. It has double overhead cams and four valves. It even has an electric starter.
That last feature helps the NX in an area in which dualpurpose bikes have always been handicapped in the past. The machine isn’t intimidating to the beginner. Quite the opposite, the NX is one of the most user-friendly motorcycles made today. A first-time buyer is going to have a hard time relating to a machine that tortures him every time he tries to start it. But the NX is as easy to start as a compact disc player. Likewise, the NX’s low seat height makes it a midget among its peers, providing less-experienced riders with all kinds of confidence. Honda brought the bike closer to the ground by using a 16-inch rear wheel and a 19-inch front. This results in less ground clearance, but that’s rarely a problem on the road. There are times, though, when trail-side obstacles might brush the rider's feet right off the pegs. This is compounded by the fact that the machine has grossly soft suspension. Both the 37mm fork and Pro-Link rear shock are underdamped, undersprung and underdesigned.
On the street, this results in a gushy ride. The front end
actually will bottom under hard braking. In the dirt, both ends are constantly hitting bottom. Even very light riders will overload the suspension on anything but the most casual ride. There are no adjustments for spring preload or damping on either end, and and while Progressive Suspension ([6 l 9] 948-4012) offers a replacement set of front springs, we know of no companies that offer a replacement spring for the rear.
That’s a real shame, too. This motorcycle is like an unsigned Rembrandt—still wonderful, but its one flaw is crippling. Still, the good list on the NX is a long one. The machine is quiet, powerful, reasonably light and easy to ride. Even the drum rear brake and the multi-purpose tires that come stock on the NX are excellent. So, even with its one flaw, the NX250 is one of the most versatile bikes ever offered.
Even if it isn’t called a dual-purpose bike anymore, we still know what it is. And it’s a good one. S
HONDA
NX250
$2998
