Honda CR500R review - greatest two-stroke ever?︱Cross Training Enduro
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- Опубликовано: 21 июл 2024
- www.crosstrainingenduro.com The iconic Honda CR500R! The most famous big bore two stroke and arguably the best. I finally got to see one in the flesh in Canada although I approached it very carefully for this Honda CR500R review. Need hard enduro training? Work through our video lists. The owner actually has adapted this CR500 for woods riding. And I was thankful. On these tighter tracks I was just short-shifting and keeping the revs below 4000rpm to try and avoid all the resulting wheelspin. So how does this modified Honda CR500 compare? First? It doesn't foul spark plugs, even lugging at low revs all day. More about that later in this Honda CR500 review. First? A quick bit of history. The first CR500 was an instant hit in 1984. Hard enduro techniques are covered in our training vids. What did you think? Keen to hear your thoughts. And a skidplate has been fitted for any mistakes on log crossings. Doh! I was dubious about the results. Years ago I did some trail riding on the CR500R's main competitor, the Kawasaki KX500. What a beast. There was no open tracks to open the throttle. Our dirt riding tips are great for developing your hard enduro skills. If you want extreme enduro training see our playlists of enduro skills to learn. It was only US $2600. Honda claimed 59hp. Maximum speed was 150kmh or 93mph and Honda CR500 reviews back this up. And it only weighed 101kg dry or about 107kg with a full tank. It was an air-cooled engine but the following year liquid cooling was introduced. After that there were almost no changes for the following 16 years. In 1995 The Showa suspension was changed to Kayaba after complaints about the Showa suspension. The engine as gradually detuned to make it more user-friendly for less experienced riders according to Honda CR500R reviews. The smoother broad power delivery makes a huge difference. There's no uncontrollable wheelspin if you dial in a fraction too much throttle. It's very forgiving but will launch on straights or hill climbs if you give it a handful. Try our training vids for working on your extreme enduro techniques. The 300 two-stroke enduro models are often called the lazy rider's motorbike. This softened 500 feels even more like that. There's plenty of torque from idle to the midrange and far less need to change gears and keep the engine on the boil. Into enduro and dirt bikes? Check out our dirt bike videos. In 2001 the final CR500R was selling for US $3900 and production ceased as the 250 two strokes were a lot lighter and putting out similar maximum horsepower. Why were there so few changes? Enthusiasts argue the Honda CR500 was ahead of its time and didn't need to change. In the hands of an experienced rider it is certainly still competitive against modern motocross motorbikes. But the reality is you can only use so much horsepower before the rest is wasted in wheelspin. And the more nimble 250s were simply more competitive assuming equal rider skill. And of course the 450 four strokes evolved into equally powerful but much friendlier power delivery. Extreme enduro training vids are our focus. Check out this dyno chart. As expected, the CR500 puts out far more horsepower until 7000rpm. But too much power at low revs can be very intimidating for less skilled riders. And the effective rev range for racing only spans 3000rpm. If you are enduro riding get into our enduro training vids. In contrast, the 450s have usable power from 5000rpm to at least 11000rpm. That's twice the rev range and a much more linear power delivery too. Our owner has modified this CR500 for woods riding. The engine had been ported and the cylinder head was reshaped for a smoother broader power delivery. The suspension was revalved to make it much softer and suitable for woods riding. A Motoz Arena gummy rear knobby has been fitted get more traction in slick conditions but also last a long time. And the weight? It's about the same as a 300 two-stroke enduro although it doesn't turn as quickly. I suspect this is due to the rotational mass theory. I must admit it gets me very interested in trying that 500cc conversion kit for KTM 300s. Or hoping the European brands bring out a 350 to 400 two-stroke model. Have you ever ridden or owned a big-bore two stroke?
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Hahaha.. The CR500 nearly killed me back in the day.. In 1994 I raced MX on a stock 1992 CR500 for one season. I was a C-class (open ccm) rider and reasoned that the extra power would compensate for my lack of skills and fitness.. And for the first 7 seconds of each race it proved true - it was quick out of the gates... BUT, the handlebar vibration was so vicious that it was actually painfull to ride the beast, the clutch was a grabby on/off mechanism and the Showa suspension never felt good. I cost me quite a few rear fenders because the beast tired me very fast, meaning, that mid race uncontrolled 5th gear wheelies were common. The on/off nature of the powerband is hard to explain to people who have not tried a 500 without an exhaust valve, because the engine actually sounds quite lazy, but that is off course just to lure the simpleminded to try and ride the damn thing. I allways offered others riders to try it out - they never stayed out more than one or two rounds before letting me have the CR back 😅. Mid season the throttle stuck wide open over a jump and I woke up in hospital - spent the second half of the 1994 season recovering and exchanged the CR500 for a more user friendly CR250. Happy days it was 😛😂
Definitely a beast! Glad you survived...
KX 500 in the sand is like riding a jet-ski with huge roost; great fun.
In 2001 you could buy a CR 500, then add flywheel weights, add more cylinder gaskets ( lower the comp. ratio ) monkey with the carb and so on to get the monster trail friendly. Or you could do what I did and buy a 2001 KTM EX-C 380. It is lighter, has an adjustable power valve, MUCH better suspension and easier to kick start. I had that bike for 15 years and should of kept it. Many of my friends had CR500's and we rode together in many different conditions. Wheelspin is a big problem with large 2-strokes. Great video, as usual, thanks !
My brother had the 380 years ago and regrets not keeping it
The 380s are great, I have the MXC and I love it
79 XR-500- wrong bike. 82 XR-200r-great learner bike. 83 CR-480- death by bike. 84 IT-490-super thumper 2 stroke. Raced enduros and HS for a couple years often reaching out for more go, brutally reliable. Still have 2 strong runners, 1 set up as DS and 4 or 5 parts bikes. Everything for sale.
Great video! Big bores are so much fun, and not nearly as hard to ride as people think. I have one of the BRC500's and love it. The electric start, powervalve, and counter-balancer put it head-and-shoulders above any other big bore I have ever owned or ridden. It so cool that BRC, Tomasin, and Panthera are all dedicated to keeping big 2-strokes alive.
Love to convert one if I had bundles of cash lying around lol
I once owned a Suzuki RM 370. 1976 I think? Scary bike! Explosive power, skinny, flexible forks, it was WAY too fast for the chassis. As you can imagine, kickstarting that machine was an adventure. Better have good boots on and a good knee. Sounded great. Flooded/ fouled plugs constantly. Good fun, although it did kill me multiple times.
Big bore 2 strokes are awesome, unnecessary , and super cool.
Side note, I saw that bike going down the street after I sold it on- rider was wearing flip flops- how he started it I’ll never know!
The Chinese should do 500cc two-strokes. No one else makes them now, so their only competition would be 20 year old bikes or expensive custom builds.
I'm very surprised a boutique brand hasn't gotten a 500 to market. It would probably catapult the company main stream.
I have a KTM 550 that's been ported and polished because 62 rwhp wasn't enough 😮😂. On top of that I made it street legal in California. I haven't rode it in over 4 years as I'm 72 years old and just don't ride anymore.
Damn! Much trouble getting it plated?
I know that bike!!
Great, now I'm going to spend most of my day looking through Facebook marketplace for old thrashed out hondas.
😂 Sorry!
I love my 97 CR500. Just wish I rode it more.
I miss my 97, im a moron for selling it!
Damn... what a beautiful bike.
😍
Had a PE400 and the last of the RG500 road bikes. Great fun, mate had a KX420 which was quick and cousin had the Kwaka K750 2 stroke. Great memories.
Hey matey, tis me again. hope you are keeping well. Glad to see you are keeping well. Thanks for keeping us up to date with amazing entertainment as always. Ride safe.
t. your penpal.
The CR500 was the big boy in my young riderhood. Just picked up a '24 WR450F, for giggles I compared the specs. The wide ratio, kickstand, headlight, fan, o-ring chain bike is only ~10lbs heavier and rated the same HP as the '86 500.
Yep I rode CR 480 and CR 500s when i was younger. Loved them then. We used them for woods riding and hill climbing. Still love them but ride smaller bikes now!
Second dirt bike was an it490 2-stroke, what a bike for wheelies. I got one summer out of it before I totaled the front end around a tree. It was so rough on the hands to ride. I dabbled around with the jetting because of fouling plugs, I almost had it dialed in till I wrecked it. It was painful but I didn't break any bones. Then I bought a Husky 610 and fell in love.
100, the ITbikes were fantastic and fun to ride
Owned and raced an 84 cr, bike was a beast, loved it, if you didn't respect it, it would put you into the ground.. I even did woods riding with it.. love the big bore 2 strokes
25 years ago I rode a 86Cr500, Ohlins rear shock, cartridge emulators up front, brand new engine from crank outwards, 14oz crank weights, Boysen reeds, FMF silencer, and geared from 14/45 stock to 15/42, and a lot of carb tuning at first, but once correct never again replaced a plug. Yeah, a little long in 1st but passing everything out there in 4th, then shifting to 5th surprised a whole world of folks. Bought a separate rear wheel for a paddle tire and stock gearing, freaking monster on the dunes. Sold it when I turned 50, only bigger mistake I ever made was my 2nd marriage.
Yeah that sounded like a keeper for sure, Pete.
I used to race an '89 KTM 500 which was the first time a bike had more horsepower then the CR500. It was great! It replaced a '87 Husky 430 XC where the KTM was night and day better than the Husky. More power, better brakes, an engine that was quick reving but still had good to awesome power everywhere. The Husky ran like a tractor so it was awesome at low RPM's but was severely lacking on top. The biggest issue with the Husky was reliability since it was it's last year in Sweden (It was being sold to Cagiva and the factory workers did not care about the brand anymore which lead to a lot of issues).
Have a KX500 converted to a snowbike where you can never have too much power. Head cut by Adam Millar for squish and compression raised. Ported for max power. Pulls so hard from the bottom it's insane.
😍 Lean mean and green!
This is my white CR500 in the video and it has also had the MRE treatment. Told him to set it up as he’d like it since I know we both ride them in the woods mostly
I really like my KX500 for ice racing. I have the suspension halfway between a Supermoto and Flat track bike. Eric Gorr porting and A lectron that meters great and also a rekluse that lets me lock the rear while going sideways into the corners make it user friendly. Long live 500s
Sounds great!
CR500 was too aggressive for my ability, but did race a KX500 in the desert offroads - what a beast and very rideable which made it a great bike 👍
So glad to finally see an enduro review of the cr 500 gotta do a Kx 500 and Ktm 380 next
86,87,09 CR500’s, 99 KX500. I have pushed mine to the limits riding mountains by Calgary. My 09 is setup for enduro. Rekluse auto, left hand rear brake, larger tank, extra tank, fan kit, coolant catch can. I can go anywhere my 300 can go.
Sounds great!
Great video skipper ,when i was a wee teen got to ride the cr480,maico 400 cr250 and a good few others,great memories!!
The best!
Have a ridding buddy who's been on a CR500 AF since 2001. Bought new from Service Honda. He added an 18 inch rear, lowered the gearing, Steathly flywheel weight, skid plate, and Rekluse clutch. Keep it off the pipe and it works very well in the really tight single track. When the trails open up, hang on! It rips! Ridden it many times and love that bike! I too dream of having a BRC converted 500 just for the convenience of E-start. I have many vids on my channel of him riding that big bore beast in the tight stuff.
Riding big twostrokes are a special experience and everybody should get one. Got a 300 Beta, small compared to the old times but its ok
I had a 89 cr 500 when i was 15 i spent most of my time looking like super man holding on to the bars
I have ridden a few CR500s and loved the power. No matter what gear you are in or how fast you are going, a simple blip of the throttle and the front end lifts right off the ground. It was more like a single speed bike. Put it in 3rd and leave it there! A bit too much for me in the woods though. One of my friends is 6' 5" and around 350 lbs and he was very effective on the 500 in the woods. It looked like he was riding a minibike!
I had a 2001 380SX, man i loved that thing.
So much power and great rider triangle for a taller person.
Only it was very easy to stall it at very low speeds, i bought a KDX200 instead and its a lot easier to ride and practice low speed stuff on.
Don't think it was a mistake, but i do miss that bike.
My brother had one years ago and loved it.
I owned a late 80s KX500 for several years. Rode a lot of motocross (practice tracks) and some woods. Mine never had issues with fouling plugs and I def lugged it around in a tall gear to keep the power manageable and tractable. I've since ridden a handful of modern 450s from Kawasaki, Honda and Husqvarna and found them all to feel quite heavy between my knees. The KX5 had an awkward seating/tank layout consumerate with 80's style ergnomics, but the bike did feel relatively light especially compared to modern 4-stroke 450's (including my KTM 500 EXC)
In the 90s, cr, rm, kx, were used for enduro races in the Nordic countries and Europe. Also big 550 - 650cm3 four-stroke husabergs, husqvarnas and ktm they were driven in enduro competitions. Big two strokes didn't have any special reputation then. Only later have they developed a somehow mythical reputation as particularly "scary" vehicles, although in reality they are quite low-powered and slow for a motorcycle.
Rode SW Alberta with a ISDE veteran....oh early 2000s when he was rippin the CR500.
Racehorse Creek area didnt seem to bother him too much on the 500....tight nasty singletrack.
Crazy how rider skill is a huge factor😂😂
I have a Husqvarna WR430 and it is an awsome woods bike. Can chug it around with no worries of fouling plugs and it rips when you are on the pipe
You guys should try the maico 700 2 stroke. They still make them new, pretty sure it is just the ATK 700 rebranded.
The ATK was a re-branded Maico then screwed up by ATK.
@@jimtitt3571 Was is screwed up by Maico, or did the internal sabotage inside Maico and screw it up? Lot of weird stuff happened with Maico.
@@coltonowens2742 I meant ATK screwed up, ending up trying selling re-badged Hyusongs in Harley dealers and so on. Making the Maico's was a sideline for the manufacturers whose primary business was selling the engines for sidecar mx, that's still how they operate.
@@jimtitt3571 Sorry dude I made a typo, met to say ATK and not Maico in my first sentence.
I find it a shame Maico isn't a major brand these days. My Dad rode several of them back in the day and thought highly of the bikes, even with all the shenanigan's going on at the time. Sounds like ATK did some braindead shit to.
Still have my 2001 KX500. I've never ridden a CR500 but can say there are several mods that can make both bikes more manageable in tight woods. If your fouling plugs your jetting is off. I've never fouled a plug and mine starts on the 3rd kick.
Got a 2001 CRE500, rekluse clutch, PWK airstriker carb. Great low maintenance, reliable old girl.
Can use rekluse & rear brake for traction control and hill descent assist, no computer, it doesn't even need a battery. Great engine, handles even better in a 2004 CR125 frame
It's a dirt bike man, should have kick start and powerband 😜
Right on! Love to try one in the smaller frame...
A Maico 700 2t would be so fun on the beach with paddle tires
i loved my 500 trail riding. but my god the vibrations were absolute hell on the joints in your fingers after a 3-4 hour ride i couldn’t hardly use my hands
Add this bike to the [ long ] list of bikes that I've owned, and now deeply regret selling. It was a bit stupid to ride, wail away flat out or nothing happening. I moved it on for IT465 and 490's followed by the inevitable selection of big XR's. There's no shortage of the 500 engines jammed into modern[ish] chassis' getting around. Wouldn't mind trying one of those.
Nothing beats a 2t sound though.
Bitd I used to go to a Brisbane Honda dealership for parts and would often walk past a road registered cr500(af?) on display. Imagine that as a daily rider! My nads weren't big enough lol.
the retail was about $5000 in 2001, but some may have gotten them for less as left-overs. ktm has had 500 and 550 2 strokes in the past
I built a cr500afx out of a cr250f. Was an unreal bike gobs of power actually a hell of a lot torque as well. The thing was a bit hard to ride in the snot but I didn’t pipe it for that and i put a lightweight flywheel as well. I did definitely need an electric starter as it was an absolute bastard to kick on the side of a mountain. It handled unreal.
😍
Barry,
I recently rode a 22 KTM with a BRC 500 kit and TBI conversion. I was really impressed with the power. Just as easy to ride as a 300 except with more power. Very linear.
Love to get one for the hell of it if money wasn't an issue!
That Gas Gas 500 that Kaplin built was awesome
They called it the widowmaker IIRC. 50th comment signing in. Don't break both your arms at the same time. Mind you, back in the day the XT500 would break guys' legs if they didn't properly kickstart the bloody thing.
When men were real men lol
Hey you were riding in my backyard (batch), why didnt you call me ;)
I have a 97 cr500, if your used to something like a counterbalanced 300, you will think, how the hell does anyone ride one of these? They are a hard bike to ride, you must respect the bike, especially the throttle, dont sit back, keep your head over the bars.
Master one of these and you are the man!
There was a time dealers had to almost give them away, early 2000's. Now $10k isnt too uncommon of a price. Hilsborogh has one in a crate, and has turned down some HUGE coin for it!
Nice backyard! We had some local guys sell one in a crate a few years back for something like US20,000.
The level of vibration on a CR500 is hard to describe - couple that with the vicious powerband and tired arms - you have a perfect cocktail of death 😅
i raced a yamaha it465 in the 80,s and a husky 360 8 spd[dual range..short shift and ride the mid range...cheers
I rode with a guy that put a CR500 engine into a CRF more modern frame. The bike was great, he could pass anything but a fuel station!
😂
That scooter is dialed in! So is the owner
Thank you sir 😜
I rode a stock CR500 recently... it was a handful. An aggressive detune would be a nice change. That said, I still prefer a KTM 250 over the 300.
As said before, familiar with a KDX200 in the enduro realm, I was surprised passing enduro-spec 250's both 2t and 4t in my fun runs but wasn't sure if that was due to my 6 gears and sprockets or rider talent *hehe hehe, my memory is fuzzy but I once also rode a suzuki RMX250 and that thing fucking went, it was just wild, the torque of it I guess - I was a young boy at the time but I feel like the newer bikes are more powerful, but less barbaric in a sense and less "scary". IDK.
1981 Yamaha IT465. BEst 2 stroke trail riding engine I rode, unstoppable down low. Yet I think my modified 2018 EXCF500 is better overall.
we used to put a heavy fly wheel or weights on 500s for woods
I put i light one on mine ha ha ha
Bucket list bike. Gotta ride this bike before I die. Still elusive, last time I saw one of those live was in 1996. There was one at the classifieds a couple years back that the owner asked 10.000€ for. Come on man...
Yeah that's a bit rich. A few years ago a local guy sold one for about that but it was still in the original box and sold to the highest bidder.
It 465 loved it smooth torquey power.
had a yz490 with a IT425 motor in it years ago and man was that a beast 😁 only used 1st gear when in really tight steep stuff as it was low geared but would do 170klm (clocked on a 550 road trail ) befour leaving the 550 behind in the dust 🤣👍 BUT man did it take some time to pull up with the old drum brakes 😮😧 yerp air cooled and drum brakes 🤣🤣
Animals! Yeah I rode an IT425 as a teenager and scared the bejesus out of myself lol.
Had a 1989 cr 500 road legal lights from baja designs flywheel weight gnarly pipe good bike until I snapped the back shock on a jump how the hell I stayed on the bike I'll never know happy day's 30 years ago
Also keen to see you with the KTM 300 conversion to 500
If was made of money I'd be very tempted!
So cool sir
I rode a CR 500 once. Power didn't seem like that much, I thought the choke must've been pulled, or maybe it's because I was riding in loose terrain and it just spun. Was kinda wide and low, not hard to stall
I remember riding one at a MX track in the early 90s, I could feel every stroke of the piston through the bars that it was like riding a jackhammer! I was so much faster on my 89 RM250, as the handling was far better and it strangely even felt faster in a straight line; not a fan of the 500!!
Maico 490 . Mental . Wasn’t mine thank f . I could almost keep up on my cr125 . It was fun to ride but could f you up in flash .
My dad has a 98 380 and a 22 ktm 300 grandpa has a 99 380 and a 97 360 ktm all bikes are sick but still prefer the older ones
Well the big-bores are a different proposition, nothing for the casual trail rider. You want to be strong and at least pretty good and they tire you out. I raced 490 Yamaha's and 495 KTM's at pro level in European enduro's and they were a blast. We ran different set-ups for different conditions so changed the pipe, cylinder and carb size depending on what we needed, for the sand we were running around 65hp, for the difficult mud or rocky hardpack like Italy we'd be down to softer engine with around 50. Short-shift and use the clutch like a 125 is the way to ride them or on hard bumpy stuff just gas it and let the wheelspin take you over the top of the power band, that's a technique originated by Haken Carlquist for the big Yamaha, the factory bikes ran a 3 speed box but only used two, third to start and then the rest in second.
Those were the days!
@@crosstrainingenduro It was a bit of a horsepower race until some things changed. Water-cooling and powervalves appeared making 250's and mid-capacity bikes competetive, the tyre rules made using a lot of power more difficult and gradually the courses changed. When I raced you would still be faced with an acceleration test on tarmac (one I remember in Holland was along a slip road to join a motorway), a cross-country test was around a motocross track so you could be on an MXGP circuit and then the infamous road race so like one lap of the Isle of Man TT course or a 5-lapper of the F1 track at Assen and those were mass start by classes on motocross tyres. All this stuff got gradually banned and the special tests got tighter and more technical, as the small capacity bikes improved massively engine wise the power advantage of the big-bores suddenly dissapeared and that was that.
I've dreamt of the day someone puts out a modern 400 cc 2 stroke. I'm a big boy, 265 lbs before cloths safety equip and back pack.
Lets start a petition!
Kyle! Or as i call him Good Kyle
He da man!
I have an 88 that I bought new. Right after after receiving the insurance check from the three week old 700 Interceptor that i totaled 😂
add 10 ounces of flywheel and the power is way smoother , kx 500 s had more power with the power valve and a much better transmission for offroad use.
Perfect power for sand dunes running a paddle tire. Very stable at higher speeds. Not great for slower speeds or tight tracks
Agreed!
I manage quite well in the tight slow techy stuff on my 500 with a gummy tire. The tractor ability is hard to match sometimes. Granted you don’t blip the throttle 😂. Mind you I have a GasGas for the tight technical stuff that is much more suited.
The last of them in Oz were available with Adr reg ,,, where are they now ?
All blown up from being pinned on the bitumen. I remember seeing the last of these lined up at peter stevens in melbourne and noticing the lights! From memory they where around 10k which was quite expensive at the time.
I duckd in to doctor dirt of dunoon Lismore I reckon 2002 and he had 2 CR5Rs with lights I think he was asking 7somthing which was "your joking" cheap..I'm thinking it might of had a starter motor....
😗 Man that would have been a good investment. Not often you can say that about any bike.
In Australia avete spazio a sufficienza.. anche per un CR500.. ;)
👍
Well, if some is good, more must be better ? Let's hope someone produces a Maico 760 for you to report on .
😗👍
1 year on a cr500 racing mx/hare scrambles.They just couldn't corner like the 250, I thought they were pretty sucky bikes and rare to see them on track because they would get there ass whipped by smaller bikes.
Happens all the time lol. Although as always rider skill counts for a lot. But on single track smaller bikes will almost always be easier to flick through the corners.
Ι love the smell of 2 stroke in the morning.
😍
I wish I never sold mine :(
I just want a 400/500 2 stroke with 7 gears
Don't we all? And sub 100kg of course.
@@crosstrainingenduro yeah and a titanium frame all titanium bolts, carbon subframe and plastics, if it's steel just make it titanium, if it's aluminum just make it magnesium, if it's plastic make it carbon fiber, all bearings should be ceramic, easy
if you really like going fast in a strait line then the cr500 if for you but it was the worst offroad bike I ever rode. Just horrible. Thanks for bringing my painful past, I need to go to my closet and cry again.
😂