So, after my ride to work this morning (which includes two short stretches of dirt), I've formed a preliminary opinion of the Rally. I'm contextualizing a little in my head with how it compares to my existing Tornado.
Quality: It's pretty good in some areas and not so great in others. I find the switches feel cheap. Handlebars are obviously out of the budget parts bin. Indicators and lights are very nice quality. I love the fact that the indicators stay illuminated when riding. It's assists with safety in a big way. I'll get to the rear shock below (it's not good). Panels seem ok but will need some protection because their shiny good looks are going to dull up pretty quick on an adventure ride.
Ergonomics: I'm 1.83m tall. I find the seat to peg ratio cramped compared to the Tornado. Not uncomfortable but a little more cramped than I would like. I would have preferred lower pegs but to be fair, I feel like this on almost every bike I own. I tilted my handlebars forward by about 50mm (as far as they will go without causing an issue with the windscreen on full lock). It feels comfortable when seated but still a bit cramped when standing. I'll sort this out with aftermarket bars and risers. For my height, the windscreen is great. I didn't experience any buffeting which used to be an issue on the Tenere. I know Zanie is uncomfortable at speed, most likely because she's just a little shorter and the wind doesn't catch her entire head. The foot pegs are a nice size, similar to a dirt bikes size footpeg. I took the strap off the seat. My seating position has me sitting on the strap which is just irritating. I like the seat ergonomics. Nice and narrow where it needs to be an wide enough where you sit. Generally speaking, the ergo's are pretty good, probably ideal for someone who is between 1.6 and 1.74m tall.
Ride feel: The bike is very well balanced and is super easy to ride. Of course I can feel a massive difference in nimbleness between this and my little Tornado. The Tornado feels more like a dirt bike and the extra weight is felt significantly on this bike. Surprisingly, the extra weight doesn't translate into added stability but I think that's because of the crap rear suspension to be honest. The brakes are superb!! I tested the ABS in my garden. They work well and being able to turn it off with a button is fantastic. No complicated menu's and nonsense. Again, well done Honda. Speaking of balance, I tested some walking pace 180 degree standup turns which is quite a good indicator on a bikes ergo's and balance and this bike passed with flying colours. This explains the good handling offroad. The front suspension is rigid enough yet super plush. Surprisingly, it also doesn't dive too much on the road which is well done to Honda. Now this brings me to the rear shock. Honda, seriously, what were you thinking.
It's as bad as the X-Challenge air shock. Undersprung (which can be forgiven) but the damping is almost non existent. Don't lean forward (or even stay nuetral) going over speed humps, the back end comes up and kicks you in the arse. This shock is the single worst thing on this bike. Puts a real damper on the package (excuse the pun). Overall however, I'd say the suspension package on the Tornado is better.
Engine:
Surprisingly, it's quite a bit more vibey than my 250 Tornado. I have a pipe on my Tornado so the torque on the Tornado is good in the mid range and maybe a little less so on the top end of the rev range. The Rally isn't strong in the mid range and only starts making good power from about 6500rpm. Having said this, the Rally does have more power than the Tornado and as SideTrack mentioned before, maintains 110km/h + surprisingly well. It's also more consistent power than the Tornado which due to the carburetor and lack of water cooling, performs differently depending on the weather.
Ease of maintenance:
Honda's I've worked on in the past have been a pain in the ass. Completely unlike KTM's which dismantle with two spanners and five bolts. Here, I'm pleasantly surprised with the Rally. The seat and side panels come off with just two allan key sizes and only about four or five bolts. Very nice and simple. If I remember back to my Transalps, they were terrible. The early 650 Africa Twin was great too, indicative of the simplicity of the era. It looks like Honda are trying to move towards their roots again and that's a good thing. When I took the rear shock out to increase pre-load, the top bolt's nut is a bit difficult to but doable.
I'll post a comprehensive report as I own it longer and have done some offroad riding.
Topic: CRF250 Rally/DS (Read 54857 times)
