New to Perth- Considering a Dirt Bike

[Don Logan]

Hi,

I'm relatively new to Perth and am considering buying a dirt bike of some sort. I've owned a couple of two stroke MX bikes and a road bike in the past, but haven't ridden off road in a long time. I wouldn't be taking part in motocross racing or similar but would really like to get out exploring some trails, playing around at Lancellin, and a bit of MX track riding.

A couple of questions regarding what to get and where to ride:

• Would a four stroke 450 be better for the above than a two stroke 250? As I said, if not throwing it around a mx track exclusively then i'd have thought the 4t might be better suited. And would I be right in thinking that a 4t would require less maintenance than a 2t?
• Regarding trails- to ride at Metro Road, Mundaring Powerlines, and places like that, do I need a road registered bike?

If it does need to be rego'd then any recommendations on what to get for something that can handle the odd mx track ride as well trails, woodland, etc.? I was thinking that a WR450 or some other sort of enduro might be better than a road legal crosser such as a CRF450 or similar, as maintenance/rebuilds would be less frequent, longer range tank, etc.

Budget would probably be around $6k, so if going for a road legal enduro then whatever I get would be getting on a bit, so i'm not sure if that would mean more chance of repair bills and false economy as opposed to just getting a newer 450 full on mx bike...

Thanks for any advice.

[Hillz]

WR450 is useless unless you only want to ride to max of 80km or get a bigger tank.

the unfortunate truth is that the jap 4t have dropped the ball over the last 15 years & nothing they make will cut the mustard with out a bigger tank or caring / stashing extra.

and pretty much any where you ride in perth you will need a rego'd bike or in the eyes of the ranger / water corp / KTM riders you will be the devil & the cause of everyone's problems

enduro / mx both the same in the way of economy & repair bills a DRZ or XR is going to be cheapest but boring to ride off road

[Water pig]

Hi mate
Modern 4 strokes are money pits if not maintained at least as well as the 2t. Road rego is required for every where except Lano, but it depends on how you feel about bending the rules to ride unregistered. Personally I'd be getting a MX bike and a bigger tank if you need the extra range. My experience with KTM is, never again ! Yes I've had 3, 250 2t sx, 450 exc and my kid raced an 85 and they're all buckets of shit, all owned from new and looked after more than any of my Jap mx bikes

[Hillz]

yeah that's right, i rode a KX250 & a YZ250 all over the perth offroad scene for the best part of 15 years. just dont let ranger or water corp catch you & all is well.. i dont mind being the devil, but most rego riders will look down their noses at you along with the RTRA

jap 250 2t are cheap, easy to maintain & you will get 90 to 100k from a tank & as fast if not the fastest thing on the trails

[Don Logan]

Thanks for the replies. I'd have thought that I could live with the 80km range of the WR, for now at least or until i'd get a bigger tank. Would a WR still be fun to throw around a MX track and ride twisty trails and sand dunes, or is it only suited to enduro, etc.?

What the options for registering an MX bike? Sounds like a PITA if my experience with Australian bureaucracy so far is anything to go by. Is 'B Class Rego' as detailed on www.rtra.asn.au enough?

[Water pig]

B class will only allow you to ride in sanctioned events. Wr's are heavy pigs after the delights of mx bike ownership. Like hillz said a 250 smoker is fast and fun

[Don Logan]

B class will only allow you to ride in sanctioned events. Wr's are heavy pigs after the delights of mx bike ownership. Like hillz said a 250 smoker is fast and fun

Cheers. And how about road registering one?

[Water pig]

Cheers. And how about road registering one?

No chance

[Shady7/8]

If you do consider a WR450, my 2012 is for sale with 30 hours on it, and I do have a safari tank for it as well. Comes with some nice spares too.

I'm just finishing putting it back to road spec and then it needs registering.

PM if interested and I'll send more info.

[Don Logan]

No chance

KTM 250/300 EXC, Husqvarna TE300?

[Water pig]

I think you should read my earlier post for my opinion on KTM which by default means husqvarna

[Marty MOOSE]

The newer WR's are fine they are no pig, they are also great value, Midvale Yamaha are the only ones who support Enduro's and the WA offroad championships in Perth. KTM and the Husky in particular are pricing themselves out of the market. Pop in and see Ram at Motorcycle Studio he sells Beta, Sherco and Gas Gas all great bikes. Anyone who doesn't get good life out of a modern 4st doesn't know what they are doing don't be afraid, I've been running various ones since the mid 2000's and never had an issue. If you want secondhand post up being in the enduro club I have a good finger on the secondhand market as does Ram. Check out https://trailandenduro.com.au/ and come for a look at one of the races. Rego is better and enduro bikes work better offroad then M/X bikes.

MM

[Don Logan]

The newer WR's are fine they are no pig, they are also great value, Midvale Yamaha are the only ones who support Enduro's and the WA offroad championships in Perth. KTM and the Husky in particular are pricing themselves out of the market. Pop in and see Ram at Motorcycle Studio he sells Beta, Sherco and Gas Gas all great bikes. Anyone who doesn't get good life out of a modern 4st doesn't know what they are doing don't be afraid, I've been running various ones since the mid 2000's and never had an issue. If you want secondhand post up being in the enduro club I have a good finger on the secondhand market as does Ram. Check out https://trailandenduro.com.au/ and come for a look at one of the races. Rego is better and enduro bikes work better offroad then M/X bikes.

MM

Great advice, thanks for that. If looking at Wr450s then would 5-6 grand get something in half decent condition? And when you say 'If you want secondhand post up being in the enduro club' do you mean to join that trailandenduroclub.com.au and look at the classifieds on there? I stopped at Five Star in Hamilton Hill today but the only used WR they had was a 2014 with 3000 Kms for $7.5k which is out of my budget. Is it worth looking at something older, maybe 2012ish, and should one of that kind of age or Kms have had a rebuild or other major work by now? Cheers.

[xrsism]

WR450s are pretty reliable. Good alround bike. Took mine up north to Wickham and rode a lot of trails and doubled it up too to hit the mx track there. No problems. Good fun. Never any mechanical problems and I had confidence it wasnt going to leave me stranded.

It wont keep up with the mx bikes on track and you have to take a few spanners for mirrors, number plate etc. Not a long job but worth it for the fun factor.

I used to get closer to 100 -120km on mine. 2009 model with 500km on it for 6500.
Plenty on gumtree. Just look for the usual signs of abuse. Dont be afraid of older bikes either in good condition. I ride a 2000 xr650r and its never let me down....yet....and its got 25000km on it. I swapped it for a 2001 zx9.... same

[Rich...]

Apparently Gas Gas are due to release a 280cc two stroke, road rego’d trials bike...

Has a seat of sorts, larger fuel tank and what’s required for road rego...

It’s never going to be a high speed open trail killer, but it will no doubt be awesome on the tight single trails...

The only Jap two stroke rego’d bikes are going to be older...RMX250, CR250CM?, CR500e...

[Marty MOOSE]

Great advice, thanks for that. If looking at Wr450s then would 5-6 grand get something in half decent condition? And when you say 'If you want secondhand post up being in the enduro club' do you mean to join that trailandenduroclub.com.au and look at the classifieds on there? I stopped at Five Star in Hamilton Hill today but the only used WR they had was a 2014 with 3000 Kms for $7.5k which is out of my budget. Is it worth looking at something older, maybe 2012ish, and should one of that kind of age or Kms have had a rebuild or other major work by now? Cheers.

5-6 will get you a great bike, if your heart was set on a WR it would be the older 5 valve in that price range. Go see Ram at motorcycle studio he always has leads on bikes as people are always wanting to trade to new models. 5-6k will get an awesome m/x bike but it will need work in order to be effective offroad and still have no rego and the limitations of gearing and engine tuning.

MM