Why would someone want to buy a 250SX ???

[Chemical442]

I'm not being sarcastic, I'm serious...

Why buy a 250SX? What I am doing is making a list of pros and cons for myself while i search for the prefect trike for me. i have come across a few from time to time, and have hesitated on purchasing one until I know what trike i really want.

(Damn, i wish they were Manual 6 speeds...)

I know they are automatics and shaft driven and don't have the compression of a 250R and are a little heaver than the R's... i guess what i would like to hear is some possitive feedback from SX owners past or present.

Thanks for ANY feedback!

[jeswinehart]

i had one for a year and thought reverse was the best thing about it.
really didn't have any thing i could knock. i bought mine cause there wasn't any big reds(85) available at the time. i wanted a larger framed trike and found it in the big red (85)

miss the sx, very sporty for a auto 250cc.

john

[jasenr]

I had a 1985 250SX when it was new. I absolutely loved it. No, it wasn't the fastest or quickest. It was, however, a great all-around trike. I guess it was like a 5.0 LX Mustang. It didn't break any records but it was a FUN trike to own. Never gave me any problems. I have a quad now, but miss that SX more than anything... The reverse WAS great after coming from a 200e. ;) It didn't really have any bad habits that I can recall either.

[ATCkrazy]

Mines a 86, I paid $250(I got a hell of a deal on it) reverse is very handy as jes pionted out, it's kick/eletc start so you've always got back up, the suspension is like a dream, very comfy, shaft drive is also a godsend(no dam chains pop'n off in the middle of a ride) It aint gonna beat a 250R in a drag race but it'l still top out at around 50mph(mine was clocked at 53) and the best part is there a Honda, nothing beat's honda in terms of reliabilty, just hop on and ride!

[KingTecate]

The SX is without doudt the most enjoyable trike to ride. Even when i compair it to the new quads or my tecate. Ive spent hours just blasting around on a sx and had way more fun all day long than i ever had on any other atv. I would love to get my hands on another one! Some times i get tired of the white knuckled trail riding that i do with my tecate and just want to have fun with a good old tumper. Also the SX has great bottom end power you can just pull the front end up and wheely alllll dayyy long with that thing.
theres my two cents.

[Da_Catt]

well i just depends on the kinda riding you do. if you don't like to go real fast and don't plan on jumping, then the 250sx could be good. I have a 85 250sx and it is good but not race bike. I would rather heve my old 86 250r back, but i like to go fast and jump. I have a 200x which i like better thand the sx cause it is more sporty. My dad raeally love the 250sx. i keep it around for him to ride. we have had the sx since new. i ride it as hard as i can and have never had a problem with it. still going strong.

[ATCnut]

The 250sx is a good all around trike. I have a POS 86, the motor knocks, the plastic and seat are ratty, and its kinda ugly all around. I end up riding it the most of all my trikes (5) because it is the easiest. Corse I have my 350X for when I want to play hard.

[Chemical442]

Wow, thanks for all the reponses so far! These are the things I wanted to hear!

I'm 27... grew up riding 3 and 4 wheelers, mini bikes and dirtbikes, but was never a racer or even a hard core risk taker. Now I'm married with a kid on the way, so I find myself not pushing myself too hard for fear of injury.. which would seriously affect my daily life off the trails, etc. I ride at a level I find fun, yet painless. My favorite kind of riding would be characterized as riding semi fast, through pasture, some single track, through creek beds, making small to medium jumps, climbing moderate hills and ditches, crossing plowed fields, and playing hide and seek like games with my cousins and brothers through the woods while we are all on different rigs; like one may be on a QuadSport 235, on may be on a Husqvarna 250 racer, one may be on an 80 dirt bike, one on a Warior, etc...

My only draw back, after all this possitive feedback, is the fact that it is an automatic. How much power do you guys think is robbed by the auto gearbox and shaft set up, and the heavier, bulkier girth of the SX? Will I be missing much noticable performance without the option to take advantage of the clutch and popping it when needed... say when needing to pop the front up to tackle an obsticle? ... or are you guys saying the 250SX has enough low end oomph to make this a non-issue?

[200xer]

non issue :-D

[als250]

Ch442, Sounds to me like the sx is just what you need ! Read any of my posts and I thinkyou'll find I really like mine !! The things are BULLETPROOF. I ride mine pretty hard and it takes every bit of it. As for the auto-tranny, works good for me because I use it for yard work also. Which makes reverse a must. Electric start another + (pulls-42"sweeper,25 gal. sprayer and 10 cu. ft. wagon.) Not all together of course, but bet it would, with everything full !! :D Plenty of torque!
I think its the best all around trike made! I realize its not the fastest trike made, but I don't race professionally. It's definitely a very reliable in my opinion. So if you just want to hit some trails, climb some hills, weave your way through the woods (reverse +) or try you're luck in the mud bogs, 250sx is a great machine! Well I've said enough (you realize how long it takes a guy that CAN'T type to say all that !!!) ;)

:shock: WOW!! Just reread post, I sound like a frickin' "HONDA 250SX" commercial !! :D

p.s. I know you're all waiting for it sooooooooo......... HERE'S A PIC !!
(CH442 more cool pics in post- Show me your BLAH BLAH BLAH... 250SX !)

my two dollar & fitty cent worth !!

Al

[ATCnut]

I love the pic with the sprayer. I use mine to haul a 10 ft wagon, my chipper, the snowmobile trailer, and anything else that needs moved. Plus it has rescued the riding mower a couple of times, heres a pic (note the chain between the trike and the mower)

[Timbo1]

250sx rule. not the fastest, but fast enough.. you get all these idots that go 50 through the woods, they're lookin for trouble. Id say the 250sx is my favorite..shaft drive, fourstoke, a cumfy ride is the way to go.
P.S. I wish my sx looked like that.

[ATC crazy]

The 250sx is the most reliable 3wheeler ever made. I owned mine for a little over 4 years and the only thing i did to it was chance the oil every 20 hrs. and put gas in it. The SX has a low 1st gear for pulling stuff, but can still get into the high 50's. The engine is bulletproof and will provide decades of thrills. Between my 2 older brothers and all of their friends, I swear that is had about 90,000 miles on it before I got it, and then I rode it for 45 minutes every day for 4 years. It it still running strong today and will pull wheelies in just about every gear.

[kimmer250r]

Don't under estimate the sx. My brother in law had his sx at haspin last year and rode it like a dang mx bike. He was riding the mx tracks with it! I think everyone at trikefest thought he was nuts, but it was pretty funny. Next to my 86 R, I think it is one of my favorite trikes. I might pick up another one for me.

[Chemical442]

Thanks again for all the replies... Now to find one that won't break me! :D

[Kilborg]

Well, heres my view coming from a hardcore performance enthusiast..

We had both a 250sx and a 250es when I was younger, before I got into the performance scene with the 200x and various other machines that I have owned.

The sx is a great machine for what it is. For nice easy going trailriding and offroading, it's really a hard package to beat. For what you are looking for, it is probably the best trike you can get. The 250sx is fairly heavy (much more so then the 250r), but it gets itself around pretty well. The automatic clutch does induce a bit of parasitic loss, but it's not a high performance machine so it does not really matter. Be that as it may, the 250sx is still a pretty well rounded machine. Don't expect to win too many drag races but it will do pretty respectable. The 250 is a little torquer, and that helps it greatly when the terrain gets shitty. A good set of tires and a competent rider on a 250sx will get just about anywhere a 4x4 quad will til it gets truly nasty.

As far as suspension goes, the sx is nothing astounding but it works. I took my 250sx on a mild mx track (it was more or less just a huge dirt oval we always rode on with several sets of jumps) and the 250 came away fine. It wasn't nearly up to par as my 250r, or even my older 200x's, but it was not designed for this either. It is pretty nice knowing you can do these things even though your not exactly going to the next chance you get...

Reliability? the 250sx is a real trooper. Of course they will break down at some point, but compared to most machines (even new stuff), the 250sx has an excellent track record. I have a few freinds still running theirs on original engines with nothing more then perhaps a valve or ring job. Of course the bearings and such would go, but thats to be expected. On our 250es and 250sx we would have to replace rear ends nearly every year and we were not particularly destructive with them (my 200x's took tons more beating, but I was much younger and couldnt ride as well back when i had the 250's). This should not be a problem for you..I have yet to hear of anyone having as many problems with their final drive units as we did with outs. It is pretty possible becuase our machines had previous owners that were into MX but we rode alot (we would go on several hundred mile ride trips every weekend, and ride weekdays as well). Also I believe we may have not been doing complete job since money was an issue, and just replace the core parts and try to keep up with the rest as best we could. I was pretty young and not the wrench feind I am now, so I was more or less turning the wrench and figuring the basic concepts of mechanics (this was when i was 8-12).

Anyway, This should help you with other peoples views. If you have any more questions, shoot.

[Chemical442]

Thanks for the book, JB! That really helps! :-D