The 1987 CR500R not only had the best look but it was the closest production bike Honda made to a factory ride. Masterpiece of a bike and a legend. Forget the 4 strokes they don't even count lol.
Great work on the video! I’ll be watching A1 tonight and am looking forward to it, but I haven’t had that same overall excitement since 4 strokes took over. We old schoolers grew up hearing brraapp and it’s just ingrained in many of us as the TRUE sound and smell of sx/mx! On that note, thank you much for documenting so many killer CRs which took me back in time.
Gray Sinclair agree 100% I miss the 2 stroke days of mx & sx. This brought back so many great memories though & even at my ripe old age of 48 I still own a 2011 ktm 300xc smoker..but love & owned a few Honda's also.
These trips down memory lane are so great. One of my biggest regrets ever is getting rid of my 2005 CR250. Love all the stuff you put out, keep up the great job!
Our taste in CRs is roughly the same but a little different, I think 1985 is the best looking and 1987 for second place and a tie for third with the 1986 and 1989. Thanks for all the awesome videos 👍
I loved the Hondas from the 80's and was the best decade for them. I had an 85 and 86 CR 125, but agree the 87 was the best looking. This videos are fantastic and sad at the same time as it brings back so many good memories. If we could only re-live them. Just imagine the things we would do differently.
I would have put the 1983 CR250 at number 1. That was the bike that started it all for Honda in the 80s and I love the original yellow wing on the shroud.
1989 thru 93 CR’s are my favorites. 1990 RM’s 1987 KX125 1986 ATC 250r. 1990 YZ’s those are the bikes I grew up with. Still have my 1987 KX125 and my favorite 86 ATC250r.
There's something about the silver Elsinores for me, although I loved everyone I had. 74, 75, 76 CR125, 87 CR250, and lastly a 91 CR500. The 500 was the hardest to sell, by far the most fun dirtbike I've ever ridden.
I want to buy one desperately but the last one I seen was 10,000 US dollars. Mind you is all original in mint condition but still. Hard sell to almost everyone except a few select nutcases such as myself who are just begging to have our arms ripped off by the Grandaddy of modern MX. It's a testament that the HP of these things still match modern open class.
87 is my favorite look. Orange and blue with gold wheels and a beautiful wing. 88's looked cheaper to me with silver wheels and silver cylinder and one color basically. Honda wing always beets out no wing IMO. I still like the 88's especially the new 250.
1987 CR 500 ... Best looking and a Beast. I have had (250, 490, 495, 500) KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawi but Honda's are the best all around and the 500 was best bike I ever owned. I wish I never got rid of it. Matter of fact I'm going to buy another CR500, any year after 1987 to the end of the production run.
Idk why people hate on the 1994 Honda cr250r. I think it's beautiful and i own one too. Just got new plastics for it. Sure the plastic really have that weird red/orange/pink color to it. It's shifting depending on the lightning. Weird, but i love it. And the engine is far better then the early Cr250's. The earlier 250's had that ''electric'' powerband, smooth and spread out. 1992 to 1994 it was all about middle and top end power.
I remember when he "Red Roosters" came out....I, and everyone else, wanted one. Was riding a Husky at the time and really liked the Husky but the Hondas were so sexy and light weight.
Of all of the motorcycles I've owned the 88 CR250 was the best handling and the smoothest power it was a hill climbing beast! Much better than the CR500's I had maybe because was 120lbs back then. Great channel love the content
Great Channel!! loved my '88 CR250 and was glad to hear the forks on the '89 were not that great. I always thought I messed up by not having the new upsidedown ones.
90 CR125, still had the 88 body lines but went back to more of the "flash red" (aka orange) color. When they made the side plates flow into the back fender, they blue it by breaking that line with 2 different colors. Much like the suzukis, the blue seat era is just iconic.. 87 being the Holy Grail (in all classes)! I'll take my 05 CRF body with actual number plates, over the later model broken nose and missing panels look.
Great vid that brought back great memories! I loved the 1990 Honda cr-250 r & the 88 was one of my favorites also. I miss the days of 2 strokes in mx & sx.
owned both @ same time 89cr500&88kx500, full race-tech on CR& forks only on kx. anybody remember AMP link? had one on KX. put kx on dyno didn't change rear to street tire, messed up readings. by ran to 9800k. they had a cr500 in file ran only to 6900k. . luved my kx alot more. honda warped clutch baskets to easy& tank slaped@ top speed
I allways prefered the 80 side panels over the 79. Would also include the 83 cr480. Loved the looks of all 82-89 era. For the 90-91 look I would pick a cr500. And sinds the begin 2000 I started to find the 97-99 250 look goofy. Don't like the side panels on the bike. 4T one pipe please. 2 pipes remember me of my HVA TE610 and the honda dominater. To trail bike looking for a crosser. But all this is being picky, as I love all Hondas and Suzukis. Great channel you have created Tony !!!!
I wouldve put the 86 at the top, overall favorite colorscheme and looking bike. I really liked the 01 cr250 also, something about the yellow on the shrouds just makes it faster
I'd pick the 250 or 500 for 1987 and the 500 for 89. And I think 1984 250. What I would like to have is a 1991 model, change the white radiator shrouds to red and create a Leisk-Geboers replica....just because Thorpes 86 RC500 would be too hard to create, for me.
Agree on many Tony, fun video👍 like 89 and 94 Cr 250 too, but Im going controversial here picking the 2001 CR 500 as no 1😃 The new explosion red bodywork color and red seat made the last 500s look more new than they were, a nice new millenium goodbye to a brute legend. My 1999 CR 500 has red shrouds put on and black Honda wing🥰
Wish I kept my ‘78, traded it for an ‘84, and I also own a ‘95. Wish Honda would bring the CR back. I’d take ‘07 technology, heck I’d take ‘01-‘02 technology.
I think you should of had a 2015 or 2017 450, i personally had a 2017 and it was an awesome bike, sad i got rid of it. You also should of had one of the newer 125 and 250 two stroke.
I had the 3 on the list it's on the list 1989, 1994, and 1998. I have to agree the 89 was the best looking. The 1998 was awful in frame and suspension. Best all around was the 1994.
Had 86,7,8, and 90'. My first CR-86' 125- You never forget your first. My Dad and I both wondered " Why didn't we go red a couple years ago"? After PC ported cyl. and milled head=SWEETNESS 87' 125- shit forks and poor atac design, Ohlins kind of saved the day in the back, never yelled with that bike. 88' 500- holy 3rd gear holeshot! Resprung/valved Online brought the rest inline, was able to dial in forks, heaviest flywheel weight so I could hang on kinda= loved that bike. SO fun to race! 90' 500- motor was tame, but vibes were not. Shitty forks and shock, motor vibes put my hands to sleep, had Falicon true crank, to no relief. I think if suspension were more forgiving, motor would have been more useful for me. Broke my leg badly on this bike, all on me, but it will forever have a dark place in my memory. Thanks for taking me down memory lane👍 Hindsight is 20/20 but wish I'd gone red in 84, my YZ 125 was atrociously horrible that year!
Basically I'm saying the performance goes hand in hand with memories of aesthetics - my 84 YZ was a GREAT looking bike. But I absolutely hate it to this day
Buying a motorcycle for its looks is the most important way to buy. Some of the Chinese ones are very nice looking. I am going to try and trade my Harley and Ducati for one. Maybe my Honda CRF 450 dirt bike too for a good looking Chinese enduro motorcycle. That is the best of both worlds hands down ass up riding.
Honda's are just plain out the best!awesome video,man.i remember when I made the switch from a 91 Yamaha to a 93 Honda,it was like riding a fucking cadalac.and I turned pro the following year.💪👊
I cant argue with the bikes you selected because they had some meaning to you. I would have liked to have seen the 1976 Cr125m in the top 10. it was a little outdated with the down pipe but with a few mods and an up pipe a DG or FMF head it would be very competitive. It was as close to being Marty Smith.
I loved the old school All yellow R.m.s.the yz.with the white tank.with the red stripe or the lime green kx 125. Back then it ws simple hairy power band cheap and simple. Now there getting.2 gimiky dont.like em at all fuel injection liquid cooled no not for me even the 250 CR back then they were every where.now were stuck with gimiky expensive spacey stuffing hate even the old school YZ 250 WITH THE SILVER TANK.WITH THE RED STRIPE THAT WAS COOL LOTS OF NUTS AND EASY TO REPAR NO CRAP ON IT
1982 CR480R would for sure be somewhere on my list.
My #1 is your #10 (1:12) I like the all red and black color scheme with the gold Honda wing. Classic. But to each their own :-)
My vote is for the 89's had a 89 cr250r when it was new great bike
The 1987 CR500R not only had the best look but it was the closest production bike Honda made to a factory ride. Masterpiece of a bike and a legend. Forget the 4 strokes they don't even count lol.
Just found this channel.. Love it!.. And the 89 CR80 is my all time favorite
89-90 are the best looking for all the Japanese bikes
Yes!
Great work on the video! I’ll be watching A1 tonight and am looking forward to it, but I haven’t had that same overall excitement since 4 strokes took over. We old schoolers grew up hearing brraapp and it’s just ingrained in many of us as the TRUE sound and smell of sx/mx! On that note, thank you much for documenting so many killer CRs which took me back in time.
Gray Sinclair agree 100% I miss the 2 stroke days of mx & sx. This brought back so many great memories though & even at my ripe old age of 48 I still own a 2011 ktm 300xc smoker..but love & owned a few Honda's also.
These trips down memory lane are so great. One of my biggest regrets ever is getting rid of my 2005 CR250. Love all the stuff you put out, keep up the great job!
doug148877 thanks
Now I have to go outside and admire my '89 250 sitting in a snowbank out behind my shop! Epic bike
Our taste in CRs is roughly the same but a little different, I think 1985 is the best looking and 1987 for second place and a tie for third with the 1986 and 1989. Thanks for all the awesome videos 👍
1985 is probably my favorite year too
I loved the Hondas from the 80's and was the best decade for them. I had an 85 and 86 CR 125, but agree the 87 was the best looking. This videos are fantastic and sad at the same time as it brings back so many good memories. If we could only re-live them. Just imagine the things we would do differently.
I would have put the 1983 CR250 at number 1. That was the bike that started it all for Honda in the 80s and I love the original yellow wing on the shroud.
@ROB H8U I never had a problem with it maybe because I'm tall. I could sit on the bike at the gate and start it while sitting on it.
1989 thru 93 CR’s are my favorites. 1990 RM’s 1987 KX125 1986 ATC 250r. 1990 YZ’s those are the bikes I grew up with. Still have my 1987 KX125 and my favorite 86 ATC250r.
Hands down the best year was 1983 when they first started using the blue seats! The blue on the red was bold and beautiful!
There's something about the silver Elsinores for me, although I loved everyone I had. 74, 75, 76 CR125, 87 CR250, and lastly a 91 CR500. The 500 was the hardest to sell, by far the most fun dirtbike I've ever ridden.
I want to buy one desperately but the last one I seen was 10,000 US dollars. Mind you is all original in mint condition but still. Hard sell to almost everyone except a few select nutcases such as myself who are just begging to have our arms ripped off by the Grandaddy of modern MX. It's a testament that the HP of these things still match modern open class.
Always loved the 91 range myself
To me, the best looking Honda will always be the Carmichael era CR250R's with Woody Woodpecker graphics.
86 XR 600 was my best looking bike I had a 86 CR 250 also.
87 is my favorite look. Orange and blue with gold wheels and a beautiful wing. 88's looked cheaper to me with silver wheels and silver cylinder and one color basically. Honda wing always beets out no wing IMO. I still like the 88's especially the new 250.
I owned the 87 for around 7 / 8 years. (250)
3 cylinders
3 bottom ends
Glad to see it at the top
No way the 84 's looked great..cant believe it
1987 CR 500 ... Best looking and a Beast. I have had (250, 490, 495, 500) KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawi but Honda's are the best all around and the 500 was best bike I ever owned. I wish I never got rid of it. Matter of fact I'm going to buy another CR500, any year after 1987 to the end of the production run.
Great video.I had an1983 CR 125,a 1986 CR 500, and currently have a 1994 and 1996 CR 250s .
Idk why people hate on the 1994 Honda cr250r. I think it's beautiful and i own one too. Just got new plastics for it. Sure the plastic really have that weird red/orange/pink color to it. It's shifting depending on the lightning. Weird, but i love it. And the engine is far better then the early Cr250's. The earlier 250's had that ''electric'' powerband, smooth and spread out. 1992 to 1994 it was all about middle and top end power.
the 02 - 07 CR’s was the best looking ones and the 09 crf 450 its such a beautiful bike, the 17’s crf 450 there are nice to
I think the 2020 cr250 is the best ;)
Read the again.... it's the BEST looking, not the ugliest.
I had an 87 cr 80 Barr's compatition motor quick throttle it was smoking fast bike.
My favorite is the 86 cr250
I remember when he "Red Roosters" came out....I, and everyone else, wanted one. Was riding a Husky at the time and really liked the Husky but the Hondas were so sexy and light weight.
Of all of the motorcycles I've owned the 88 CR250 was the best handling and the smoothest power it was a hill climbing beast! Much better than the CR500's I had maybe because was 120lbs back then. Great channel love the content
Great Channel!! loved my '88 CR250 and was glad to hear the forks on the '89 were not that great. I always thought I messed up by not having the new upsidedown ones.
About to buy 1987 cr250 so stoked it came in 3rd I know it’s the “r” and not 2 stroke but hey I tKe what I can get
Whilst I agree with most of your choices, for me the #3 bike would be the #1….that colourway is by far my absolute favourite of all time 😍😍😍
90 CR125, still had the 88 body lines but went back to more of the "flash red" (aka orange) color.
When they made the side plates flow into the back fender, they blue it by breaking that line with 2 different colors.
Much like the suzukis, the blue seat era is just iconic.. 87 being the Holy Grail (in all classes)!
I'll take my 05 CRF body with actual number plates, over the later model broken nose and missing panels look.
Great vid that brought back great memories! I loved the 1990 Honda cr-250 r & the 88 was one of my favorites also. I miss the days of 2 strokes in mx & sx.
I had an 87 CR125. Great bike.
What did cr stand for
owned both @ same time 89cr500&88kx500, full race-tech on CR& forks only on kx. anybody remember AMP link? had one on KX. put kx on dyno didn't change rear to street tire, messed up readings. by ran to 9800k. they had a cr500 in file ran only to 6900k. . luved my kx alot more. honda warped clutch baskets to easy& tank slaped@ top speed
I allways prefered the 80 side panels over the 79. Would also include the 83 cr480. Loved the looks of all 82-89 era. For the 90-91 look I would pick a cr500. And sinds the begin 2000 I started to find the 97-99 250 look goofy. Don't like the side panels on the bike. 4T one pipe please. 2 pipes remember me of my HVA TE610 and the honda dominater. To trail bike looking for a crosser. But all this is being picky, as I love all Hondas and Suzukis. Great channel you have created Tony !!!!
1989/90 across the range Cr, Rm,Yz,Kx all looked great also loved the 1997 cr250 gorgeous bikes
Totally agree
damn, no 2 looks sooooo light.
i had all previous 80's cr125r
super cool channel.
you are right about the red cr it looks way better than green and grey
89 was the snizzle. I like 81, 83, 84, 87, 89, for the 2 strokes...
Keep up the good work Tony my boyfriend whos name is Tony is a moto nerd too and now so am I but your videos are awesome
My favorite looking crs is the 1990 cr250 and 88 250
I picking up my 1990 CR250 this Saturday. Paid $3500 NZD
Love the 89 but had bought 88 new and now found a fairly clean one and doing a light restore on it so 88 89 both just don’t look 30+ yrs old
Anything pre 2002 for me is straight beauty! But for me, iconic bikes will always be: 89 Kx500 and the CR250 from 94 all the way to 2003.
I put the top three best looking as -
1 - prototype electric motor CR 2019/2020 (whatever year it is)
2 - 2001 CR250
3 - 1986 CR250
How can you not rank the 2001 CR250R !?!? For me that was the best year of Honda's 250 two strokes. That bike was fast !!
Great video, brother!!
Clark Kent thanks!
I think the 96 CR250 and the 89 are the best tough call which if first
I wouldve put the 86 at the top, overall favorite colorscheme and looking bike. I really liked the 01 cr250 also, something about the yellow on the shrouds just makes it faster
My favorite is the 79 cr. Why. Cause I have a mint one.. looks great on my wall in mint condition
96/97 best looking year steel frames 250/125 period. after that I gave up on honda 2strokes but enjoyed their 250f in style when it came out.
What about the ATC 250R not really a bike more of a trike but still.
Aaron Martin TV it would be in there if I had included ATVs
I'd pick the 250 or 500 for 1987 and the 500 for 89. And I think 1984 250.
What I would like to have is a 1991 model, change the white radiator shrouds to red and create a Leisk-Geboers replica....just because Thorpes 86 RC500 would be too hard to create, for me.
Agree on many Tony, fun video👍 like 89 and 94 Cr 250 too, but Im going controversial here picking the 2001 CR 500 as no 1😃 The new explosion red bodywork color and red seat made the last 500s look more new than they were, a nice new millenium goodbye to a brute legend. My 1999 CR 500 has red shrouds put on and black Honda wing🥰
I agree that 1989 CR250R is the best looking out of all of them
I think the 86 had the prettiest seat. Too bad you didn't show the 1980 it also was the number one bike for me.
hell ya i have the 94 cr125.i love it.
2011 crf250r and 2007 cr250 are my two favorites
Thanks for sharing this video. I had and or rode your top 4 bikes and will say for me the 1987’s were the best looking Honda CR’s of all time.
I have an 87 CR 125. Love it
I HAVE A 1989 CR250R
PNG(plain new graphics?) 😊
1981 CR250 #1. I don’t know, I just like it. Very different. Let the hate begin... haha! 🏁🇯🇵
Great choices in the video too!
Nothing compares to the 87 Hondas!!
I owned an 84 CR 250, they were fast!!!! But they were as heavy as my old 1980 YZ250
84 cr500 is the best looking
Wish I kept my ‘78, traded it for an ‘84, and I also own a ‘95. Wish Honda would bring the CR back. I’d take ‘07 technology, heck I’d take ‘01-‘02 technology.
I think you should of had a 2015 or 2017 450, i personally had a 2017 and it was an awesome bike, sad i got rid of it. You also should of had one of the newer 125 and 250 two stroke.
93 was the absolute best year
I had the 3 on the list it's on the list 1989, 1994, and 1998. I have to agree the 89 was the best looking. The 1998 was awful in frame and suspension. Best all around was the 1994.
Had 86,7,8, and 90'.
My first CR-86' 125- You never forget your first. My Dad and I both wondered " Why didn't we go red a couple years ago"? After PC ported cyl. and milled head=SWEETNESS
87' 125- shit forks and poor atac design, Ohlins kind of saved the day in the back, never yelled with that bike.
88' 500- holy 3rd gear holeshot! Resprung/valved Online brought the rest inline, was able to dial in forks, heaviest flywheel weight so I could hang on kinda= loved that bike. SO fun to race!
90' 500- motor was tame, but vibes were not. Shitty forks and shock, motor vibes put my hands to sleep, had Falicon true crank, to no relief. I think if suspension were more forgiving, motor would have been more useful for me. Broke my leg badly on this bike, all on me, but it will forever have a dark place in my memory.
Thanks for taking me down memory lane👍 Hindsight is 20/20 but wish I'd gone red in 84, my YZ 125 was atrociously horrible that year!
Basically I'm saying the performance goes hand in hand with memories of aesthetics - my 84 YZ was a GREAT looking bike. But I absolutely hate it to this day
You forgot the Honda cub EZ 90. Best dirt bike ever!
The 1978 to 81 elsinores were the best looking bikes
I have a 89 cr125 and me and my dad have three 1986 cr250
Buying a motorcycle for its looks is the most important way to buy. Some of the Chinese ones are very nice looking. I am going to try and trade my Harley and Ducati for one. Maybe my Honda CRF 450 dirt bike too for a good looking Chinese enduro motorcycle. That is the best of both worlds hands down ass up riding.
Motocross bikes beauty come from how they work. Gimme a 85-86 500 and don't get in my way.
i like '85-'87 anything lol.
02-07 CRs #1, 86 CRs #2....
Didn't the 09 screw up by adding air forks? I know lighter guys liked it
Thats my first choice along with the '90 cr250.
1986 cr500r is probably the fastest 2 stroke bike ever made
hard to imagine the "91's not making it
dasling I was never a fan of the tiger stripes and graphics that year
@@TheMotocrossVault they still could grow on you
Honda's are just plain out the best!awesome video,man.i remember when I made the switch from a 91 Yamaha to a 93 Honda,it was like riding a fucking cadalac.and I turned pro the following year.💪👊
89 is a sexy machine 🤙🏻
Spot on 💯 great vid ! Was surprised you didn’t mention the 02-07 Cr’s 💎💎. I reckon they look real similar to the 06’ crf on the list though
NorthTexasFarming I was real close to putting them on the list, but I preferred the cleaner 2004 CRF side plates.
The Motocross Vault agreed
Wow I always A-S-S-U-M-E-D :-) the "R" in CR250R stood for "Racing". Thanks for the good info!
1994 easily best, 89 second
1992-model for me #1 is best looking bike! Yes.. aesthetic is truly personal..😂😂👍👋
I love th 250 94 shape.. I have 1988 cr500 1990 cr500 2006 500af 2005 on road cr af 500 supermoto and one more I'm buildin now 2stokes always 🏴✌
I cant argue with the bikes you selected because they had some meaning to you. I would have liked to have seen the 1976 Cr125m in the top 10. it was a little outdated with the down pipe but with a few mods and an up pipe a DG or FMF head it would be very competitive. It was as close to being Marty Smith.
I loved the old school
All yellow R.m.s.the yz.with the white tank.with the red stripe or the lime green kx 125. Back then it ws simple hairy power band cheap and simple. Now there getting.2 gimiky dont.like em at all fuel injection liquid cooled no not for me even the 250 CR back then they were every where.now were stuck with gimiky expensive spacey stuffing hate even the old school YZ 250 WITH THE SILVER TANK.WITH THE RED STRIPE THAT WAS COOL LOTS OF NUTS AND EASY TO REPAR NO CRAP ON IT
The nineteen eighty six was the best looking one after that the seats were bananas
My vote 1987 CR 125
Another great video! You really ought to reconsider an appreciation of some of the 1970’s bikes as well. Just glad it wasn’t a 90’s-fest😉😂😂
While I know the first aluminum framed 125s were slow, nothing was as slow as an 1984 YZ 125!!!!!
1979 HONDA CR250R ELSINORE.
alway heard 84cr250 was fastest 250. my 85cr250 had very usabule power but slow playride in field
LOL at the fart strokes ..