2025 Yamaha WR250F Review
Motorcycle Test by Aaron Clifton
Conventional motorcycle wisdom always advises you to take the road less travelled. And in this case, it wasn’t like I had a choice. The Australian press launch of Yamaha’s iconic 2025 WR250F was held on a property owned by two-time Thumper Nats champion Lyndon Heffernan. His place is on a mountain, behind heaps of other mountains, just west of Batemans Bay in NSW. It was certainly a remote and less-travelled location, with no phone service, and after the first of many creek crossings, the GPS no longer knew where I was – so that made two of us.
But it was a spectacular place, and Heffo’s property offered the perfect terrain to put the new WR through its paces.
The new bikes were lined up, shiny as could be. We were told they offered better power, were lighter, slightly more agile, and handled better.
The engine is a fuel-injected, 249cc liquid-cooled DOHC single, as is par for the course for the category. The Yamaha powerplant has a forged two-ring piston, titanium intake and exhaust valves, a nickel-chrome-moly steel connecting rod, and a downdraft intake.
Power is transferred to the 140/80-18 70R Dunlop via a large-diameter clutch and easy-to-operate shift cam for the wide-ratio six-speed transmission. While remaining fundamentally unchanged, the engine has undergone some refinement for 2025.
The 2025 WR250F features a model-specific ECU, with maps taken directly from its YZ250F motocross sibling, and then tailored to suit bush-riding. The WR runs slightly different fuelling, ignition, and traction-control mapping than the motocross model. All the maps are customisable via the Yamaha Power-Tuner App, which has been revised to be more user-friendly.
The air-box design is lighter and allows air to enter from different directions. Inside the air-box it has what I can describe as an air horn-shaped cylinder leading onto the throttle body. This is designed to create a longer air draw into the throttle body to increase torque. The new, rounded air filter also allows for better air flow, so we are told.
Internally, the engine has an upgraded timing chain for reduced friction. When I hear “reduced friction”, I assume this means the chain had been made lighter and smaller. But this is one of those rare times I’m happy to be wrong, the timing chain has been made two millimetres wider, spreading tension across a wider surface when meshing with the timing gears. This results in less surface pressure and reduced load on the engine. The timing chain tensioner has been revised to suit. There are new cam sprockets and timing chain guides.
I’m normally a harsh critic of 250 cc machines. I’m a 450 rider, and in my opinion big power is where it’s at. Maybe my experience with the very first 250 cc four-stroke models years ago tainted my view of them. But the world has changed in that time, and so have 250 cc off road bikes.
The 2025 WR250F, has torque and plenty of it, coupled with quite respectable horsepower. It pulls nicely all the way through the rev range.
It doesn’t mind carrying a taller gear at times either, and that is refreshing for a 250 cc machine. In years gone by, the only way to get the best out of a 250 was to dance on the gear stick and slip the clutch. This isn’t the case on the 2025 WR250F – in fact, I found the bottom-end power on the bike quite forgiving in some situations.
On the trails, there were times I purposely left it in a higher gear on the steep, rocky, uphill climbs. I wanted to see how the engine would react to the extra load demand I placed upon it. It did everything I asked of it. I could land off the contour drains in a high gear, load the engine up, and it would lift the front wheel and carry it.
Under load and up a hill is also a good proving ground for the gear box and gear-shift as well. The gear box on the WR250F is different to that on the YZ250F. The YZ is a five-speed, and the WR has six cogs.
There were moments on the trails I’m certain I caused frustration for the guys behind me, as I almost came to a complete stop at the bottom of hills. But I purposely did this so I could load the engine in first gear, then shift all the way through the gear box under load up the hill. The new WR250F shifted seamlessly, the gear ratios seemed spot on. From manoeuvring over rocks and creek crossings, to faster, more open areas like grass tracks, and also on the motocross track, the gearing matched the engine nicely.
The clutch is cable-operated. Popular opinion suggests most people nowadays prefer hydraulic, and a hydraulic clutch system is available as a genuine Yamaha accessory. Maybe I’m old school, but personally, I prefer cable, and I see no issue with it. There is no risk of fluid lines leaking or rupturing, no risk of master or slave cylinder failure due to lack of fluid changes. And let’s face it, who changes their brake fluid as often as they should? Are you really going to change your clutch fluid regularly?
On the 2025 WR250F the standard cable clutch is a light and easy pull, with a nice progressive engagement. The cable has a thumb wheel adjustment at the top near the leaver. I was able to adjust the clutch in a matter of seconds at one of our stops on the trail ride; easy and simple.
The suspension features revised 48mm KYB speed-sensitive forks with 300 mm of travel. Like the latest 450 Yamaha models, the compression is a turn-dial that can be adjusted by hand at the top of the fork. The rear KYB shock has also been revised for 2025 and has 306 mm of travel.
Suspension and handling are everything if you want to get the most out of your bike. This bike was brand new when I rode it, and my initial impression of the suspension was very good. You can only do so much riding in one day, but I made sure I rode the bike completely standard before making any changes. I put one tank of fuel through it on both the grass track and motocross track, then I decided to make some changes to the forks.
Pushing it a bit harder, I wanted the front end to “bite” more when initiating the turn and follow a tighter arc. So, after talking with the Yamaha gurus, I slid the forks through the triple clamps an extra three millimetres from standard, went two clicks faster on rebound, and two clicks softer on compression.
That’s all it took to make a noticeable difference. The standard suspension held up extremely well in all the situations I was able to put it through. Flat-landing jumps, creek crossings over rocks and logs, hard-pack square-edge bumps and loamy ruts, were no issue at all.
The 270 mm front brake and the 240 mm rear brake provided good, strong, and progressive feel. Put together with what many consider to be some of the best stock suspension and stable chassis in the industry, this bike has braking ability that sets the benchmark for its competitors.
Following in the footsteps of Yamaha’s latest motocross weapon, the YZ250F, the 2025 WR250F boasts a lower centre of gravity, thanks to a new frame, and engine mounts, all optimised for enduro riding. The new bi-lateral frame has been designed with the objective of achieving excellent handling and turning ability. Yamaha engineers needed to strike the balance between frame rigidity, while also maintaining rider comfort and impact absorption.
The new WR250F can be described as more compact, with its lower centre of gravity, but with 10 mm more ground clearance than the previous model. The foot pegs have also been lowered 10 mm to give the rider more leg room, along with 50 mm narrower shrouds and a new seat profile, that is both flatter and narrower. All this makes moving around the cockpit noticeably easier.
The 2025 WR250F weighs in at 113 kg ready to ride, which is two kilos lighter than the previous model. The narrower profile also makes the bike feel lighter, because it just doesn’t feel as bulky underneath you.
To achieve this weight loss the changes are small, but they-all-add-up. A lighter exhaust-header protector, a thin-gauge throttle cable and new throttle-grip design all contribute to the diet. The sub-frame now incorporates the battery box for rigidity, and it boasts a slimmer fuel tank. Foot-peg brackets are no longer steel, and are now made from lightweight aluminium. There’s a smaller handlebar pad, a lithium-ion battery, and a revised starter motor.
The ignition coil is also new, as is the neutral switch and multi-function button on left handlebar. The clutch perch and cable retention is also new, and Yamaha has updated the main harness.
As we concluded the day, I put the bike on the stand, grabbed a drink and gathered my thoughts. This 2025 WR250F is a bike that really does do what it says on the box, if it were to say on the box: “Lighter, Faster & More Agile”. It is a serious off-road machine made for the serious off-road rider, and the harder I rode it, the better it performed.
If you are that rider, and you’re considering buying a 2025 WR250F, it may be worth investing in an aftermarket exhaust and removing the restrictive ADR-compliant standard muffler. This, I think, would certainly make a good thing even better, allow for better exhaust flow, and increase bottom end power. I am sure there are some good options out there that do that without making the bike too loud.
The 2025 WR250F is a worthy successor to its previous incarnation – and that was a great bike. Now’s it’s better.
Warranty is three-months on parts only, as is normal for a competition bred enduro bike. By the book the first service is due at 1000 km, second service at 3000 km or three months, followed by 5000 km or six month intervals. Under race conditions, oil changes are due every 500 k, or every third race.
Yamaha dealers have the WR250F on their floors now and you can ride one away from $16,799.
Yamaha WR250F Specifications
- Engine – 250 cc, four-stroke, DOHC, 4-valve
- Cooling – Liquid
- Bore x Stroke (mm) – 77.0 x 53.6
- Compression Ratio- 13.8 : 1
- Lubrication System – Wet sump
- Fuel Management – Fuel Injection
- Ignition – TCI
- Starter System – Electric
- Fuel Tank Capacity (L) – 7.4
- Final Transmission – Chain
- Transmission – Constant mesh 6-speed
- Frame Type – Bilateral beam
- Suspension Front – Telescopic forks, 300mm travel
- Suspension Rear – Swingarm (link suspension), 306mm travel
- Brakes Front – Hydraulic single disc, 270mm
- Brakes Rear – Hydraulic single disc, 240mm
- Tyres Front – 90/90-21 54R Dunlop EN91F
- Tyres Rear – 140/80-18 70R Dunlop EN91
- Length (mm) – 2170
- Width (mm) – 825
- Height (mm) – 1265
- Seat Height (mm) – 955
- Wheelbase (mm) – 1470
- Ground Clearance (mm) – 330
- Wet Weight (kg) – 113
- Available – Now
- Servicing – First service is due at 1000 km, second service is due at 3000 km or three months, followed by 5000 km or six months. Under race conditions, oil change is due every 500 km or every third race.
- Warranty – Three months, parts only
- Price – $16,799 Ride Away
Yamaha WR250F Images
