[Morty]

Greetings from the Pacific North West.

Contemplating a CBR250R to cruise the back roads and travel about my small town. I am 48 years old, 6' 200 lbs and am just looking for a nice easy bike to go for a short ride around the area.

Joined the forum to get information about the bike, etc.

But i have an odd question that may get me booted so please be kind...

I am not a racer, speedster, etc. I have years of dirt bike experience and would like an opinion on the following...

CBR 250R or Vespa 300 GT?

Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Timbo64]

I'm only 5'5" and I'm quite comfortable on my CBR250R, but I've read where a lot of six footers are comfortable on the CBR250R too.

As far as scooters go, the Vespa 300 GT is a nice scoot. I find that most riders who put down scooters have never ridden one.

Have you considered a Yamaha Tmax? They are fantastic sports scooters and the tall and wide seat is tailored made for taller riders. On the down side, they are kinda pricey. I paid $5,500 for a 2009 model with 1000 miles on it last year, but traded it in on a new 2012 Suzuki Burgman 400 after a few months because that tall and wide seat was a PITA at red lights.

I also have a Yamaha Zuma 125 and those are fun scoots too although they run out of wind at 50-55 MPH.

Do a Google search for "CBR250R tall rider".

The Tmax has a gorgeous aluminum frame. Its DNA is far more motorcycle than scooter. Sport bike riders were always asking me about how fast it was or how well it handled. Those guys totally ignore my Burgman, but were usually all over the Tmax.

I love my CBR250R, but I'm a big fan of the Tmax too. However, my wife is way more comfortable on the back of the Burgman than she was on the Tmax. She says it's as comfortable as a GoldWing back there.

 

[kfsrq]

Greetings from the SE corner, almost.

Well, if I had each of those machines in my garage,
the Vespa would spend a lot of time alone there.

Rent a scooter for one day, and rent a motorcycle for another day,
and I believe you will see the difference very clearly. In my opinion,
when I straddle the tank and put plenty of me very close to the
motorcycle, I unite with the machine and we work in harmony.
On the rare occasions when I have ridden a scooter, I have felt
detached and a little precarious. I was fully in control, but of
a machine that felt more remote than a motorcycle feels.

I stress this is just my way of thinking, but I have been thinking
this way since before you were born, so I am not likely to change.

One of the truisms of motorcycling is YMMV, literally meaning,
"Your Mileage May Vary", but by extension meaning that your experiences
may be very different from mine. The popularity of scooters, worldwide,
shows that not everybody reaches the conclusion that I have reached.

Another: Ride Your Own Ride, which reminds people in a group ride
that they do not need to corner as swiftly as the rider ahead.
In your case, you need to find out what your ride is, and all the
conversation in the world will give you just a hint as to its nature.

Best of luck! You are on a fabulous quest, and your goal may
matter enormously to you in the next few decades.

Keith

 

[Rory_L]

I considered the Vespa but went with cbr250r partly out of economy. The Vespa costs more.

That aside, the new Vespa scooters are nice and you won't hear me say anything bad about them.

What do you prefer riding on? The small wheels or the big wheels? Manual or automatic transmission(I believe they, veapa, are all automatic now).

 

[Timbo64]

"Rent a scooter for one day, and rent a motorcycle for another day,
and I believe you will see the difference very clearly."

Very true statement. While the Tmax really handles and rides like a motorcycle due to its frame design, the Burgman never lets me forget that I'm riding a scooter.

There's a HUGE difference between the riding characteristics of a big scooter that has a motorcycle like frame mounted engine, the Tmax, and one that has a swingarm mounted engine, the Burgman 400, like one finds on a traditional scooter.

The Burgman 400 has a very "appliance" feel to it while the Tmax felt like I was riding a motorcycle that was an automatic.
I enjoy riding the Burgman 400 with my wife on back and probably 95 percent of the miles on its odometer are two-up miles, but it's nowhere the enjoyable riding experience I felt on the Tmax or I feel on my CBR250R.

For commuting, a maxi-scooter may be the best choice for a lot of people due to its huge storage capacity and good wind/rain protection, but if you're looking for a two wheeler to ride for FUN and you hate big sports scooters like Yamaha's Tmax or BMW's new sports scooters STICK WITH A MOTORCYCLE.

 

[CBR250R]

How about a BV (Beverly) 350? That's what I would get over the GTS300. Why? 33 hp vs. 22 hp. And apparently, it's more fuel efficient than the GTS300 too!

A friend of mine had a Vespa LX150 and then a GTS300. Really nice scooters. I rode both of them. Convenient to quickly hop on and pick up some groceries. The GTS300 accelerated like a rocket off the line. He now has a Moto Guzzi V7 Classic (Hey - he likes Italian machinery!) that he loves to bits too.

When he had the LX150, we decided to do a friendly drag race with my CBR125R on a deserted industrial road starting at about a walking pace. Well, we were neck and neck through my first two gears. However, when I switched to third - I walked away from him pretty dramatically. The CBR125R also netted considerably better fuel economy than his LX150.

Scooters are a convenient, well thought out, practical, stylish, and frugal mode of fun transportation. However, I find small displacement motorcycles just more engaging to ride, equally inexpensive on insurance, affordable to purchase and maintain, and yield better performance/while also getting better fuel economy compared to comparably sized scoots.

Mike

 

[Timbo64]

"Moto Guzzi V7 Classic"

Man, would I love to have one of those. Those will NEVER go out of style!

 

[CBR250R]

"Moto Guzzi V7 Classic"

Man, would I love to have one of those. Those will NEVER go out of style!

Yeah - he definitely gets lots of looks. Whenever we stop somewhere - he gets all the questions. The funny thing is many people ask him how long it took him to restore it. They don't realize it's a modern retro Guzzi. I've ridden it a few times. Tons of character. Seems to vibrate more than the CBR250R! But what surprised me most was what a great handling bike it is.

Mike

 

[Morty]

Thanks for the quick feedback everyone. I also found a great thread about the 250 and "tall riders" looks like there should not be a problem.

Also thanks to KFSRQ (Keith) for pointing out the fun of being one with the bike as well as Rory for reminding me of the joy of shifting gears and the control one has rather than on an automatic scooter.

When I get one I will post photos with an update. Hope to be back soon!