HomeBike NewsYamaha YZF-R25 vs Honda CBR 250R - Comparison review

Yamaha YZF-R25 vs Honda CBR 250R – Comparison review

First impression – Yamaha R25 certainly pulls a WoW out of our mouths possibly because we have never seen Yamaha’s badge on a quarter litre sports bike before and Honda already had a 250 in their catalogue, that looked less exciting than Yamaha YZF-R15! So even though Honda has face lifted the CBR 250R and made it a full fairing dual head lamp sports bike, they are a bit behind the R25 when sharper styling gets to you. All said, Honda fans will still be more happy than ever with the new CBR 250R, especially with the three exciting liveries the company offers.

Geeky statistics – Honda CBR 250R is more compact than R25 as the latter is a bit longer and taller by overall measurements. Seat and overall height is identical in the two, but interestingly the Honda has shorter ground clearance. Weight of CBR 250R is just 2 kg less than R25 and allows 1.3 litres less fuel than R25 can fill its tummy with. So on full tank, R25 should weight lesser when ridden by same rider. Since mileage of these bikes can be expected to be somewhat similar, Yamaha will make more miles on highway before you rush to the service lane for gas.

Yamaha R25 hosts an inline two cylinder engine while Honda bored the 250cc capacity in just one. Rest of specs like liquid-cooled, four-stroke, DOHC, four-valve and fuel injection technology can be found in pamphlets of both bikes. Even the basic gearbox spec is the same; Constant mesh 6 speed Return type. Maximum power generated by Yamaha’s twin cylinder engine is 36.0 PS (26.5kW) at 12,000 rpm whereas Honda’s single cylinder mill produces only 29 PS (21 KW) at 9,000 rpm. There is a catch coming. Peak torque of CBR 250R is 23 Nm at just 7,500 rpm while R25 churns out much close 22.6 Nm at high 10,000 rpm.

Performance – The catch is, that if we compare the power vs engine speed (rpm) graph of both the engines (which we haven’t gotten hold of), we may see that the performance curves might be very close to overlapping until 9,000 rpm. Beyond that speed, Honda’s reading might sustain for a bit and fade downwards whereas Yamaha’s continue to rise by 6 PS till 12,000 rpm.

So removing our thick spectacles, we are trying to say that until 9,000 rpm, both bikes might have similar power delivery behaviour. But given the fact that Honda’s power plant churns out more torque at much lesser rpm (7,500), the CBR 250R could unleash more spirit than R25. However, these are just our thoughts from data written on paper. Wait till we test these two on road and give a better interpretation of facts and feel.

One last bit, front and rear tires of the sports duo feature same size and aspect ratio, with Honda spacing them closer than Yamaha by 2 mm.

Price – Honda CBR 250R is offered at less expensive price of 48.95 million Indonesian Rupiah (Rs. 2.53 lakhs approx.) compared to Yamaha YZF-R25 demanding slightly more from pocket, Rs. 53 million Indonesian Rupiah (Rs. 2.71 lakhs approx.).

Read our Yamaha YZF-R25 launch story here.

Read our Honda CBR 250R launch story here.

Check out specification comparison sheet below:

SpecificationsYamaha YZF-R25Honda CBR 250R
Length x Width x Height

2,090 x 720 x 1,135 mm

2,033 x 720 x 1,119 mm

Wheelbase

1380 mm1378 mm

Ground Clearance

160mm

146 mm

Seat Height

780 mm

780 mm

Min. Turning Radius

N/A

2.64 m

Weight

166 kg

164kg

Engine Type

Liquid-cooled, four-stroke, DOHC, four-valve

Liquid-cooled, four-stroke, DOHC, four-valve

Cylinder Arrangement

Inline two cylinder

single cylinder

Total Displacement

249 cc

249.67 cc

Bore x Stroke

60 x 44.1 mm

76 x 55 mm

Maximum Output

36.0PS (26.5kW) @ 12,000rpm

29 PS (21 KW) @ 9,000 rpm

Maximum Torque

22.6 Nm @ 10,000rpm

23 Nm @ 7,500 rpm

Fuel Capacity

14.3 litres (Reserve 3L)

13 litres

Fuel Delivery

Fuel Injection

Programmed Fuel Injection (PGM-FI)

Transmission Type/Shift Method

Constant mesh 6-speed/Return type

Constant mesh 6-speed/Return type

Tire Size (Front/Rear)

110/70-17 / 140/70-17

110/70-17 / 140/70-17

Brake (Front)

Dual Piston Floating Disc Brake Ø 298mmDual Piston Floating Disc Brake
Brake (Rear)Single Piston Disc Brake Ø 220mm

Single Piston Disc Brake

Suspension (Front/Rear)Telescopic / Swing ArmTelescopic / Swing Arm
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