For most beginners, a 250cc motorcycle is a perfect choice to be started. As 250cc is considered a small displacement engine motorcycle, that makes it easy to learn for most starters. But, one question that comes in every beginner rider is the top speed of a 250cc motorcycle. We will discuss briefly, the speed of a 250cc motorcycle in brief.
So, How fast can a 250cc motorcycle go? Most 250cc motorcycles can hit around 85mph (137 km/h) easily, but the top speed depends on the type of motorcycle and engine it’s equipped with. Because a sports motorcycle will have greater top speed than any cruiser or naked type of the same cc.
Apart from this the motorcycle top speed also depends on the condition of the motorcycle. If you service your motorcycle at the right time interval then you will get better top speed than others who don’t care about service. Thus, there are factors that also affect the top speed like as we discussed the condition of the motorcycle, types of road, riders’ skills.
In the below table, I have discussed the data of various 250cc range motorcycles with their top speed:-
| Motorcycle Name (Sports) | Engine Displacement | Top speed |
| Honda CBR300R | 286cc | 99 mph (160 km/h) |
| Suzuki GSX250R | 248cc | 88 mph (142 km/h) |
| Kawasaki Ninja 250 | 249cc | 105mph (170 km/h) |
| Honda CB300R (Naked) | 286cc liquid-cooled | 99 mph (160 km/h) |
| Yamaha V-Star 250 | 249cc air-cooled | 85 mph (137 km/h) |
| Honda Rebel 300 | 286cc | 85mph (137km/h) |
| Honda CRF250L Rally | 250cc liquid-cooled | 90mph (145 km/h) |
| Kawasaki Versys-X 300 | 296cc twin-cylinder engine | 100mph (160 km/h) |
| Kawasaki KLX250 | 249cc Four-stroke engine | 80 mph (128 km/h) |
In the above table, I have included various types of 250cc motorcycles in the table. The types include Sports, cruiser, Adventure, and Naked.
As most of the motorcycles in the range of 250cc are not exactly to the specified engine. You will always find a small variation in the displacement range of the motorcycle. Thus on the above list, The average displacement of the motorcycle engine is between 250cc to 300cc.
Note:- The top speed mentioned in the above table is not the exact data in any way. The above data has been gathered or recorded under certain conditions and road types. Thus, top-speed may vary a little bit.
Is a 250cc motorcycle enough for Highways?
A 250cc motorcycle can reach the top speed of 85mph (137 km/h) to 90mph (145 km/h) easily which is more than enough for highways. You can cruise and get ahead of the traffic in less time. As a 250cc motorcycle comes in low-weight, it’s easy to drive and handle in traffic.
The speed of a motorcycle depends on the physical built and chassis. Sports motorcycles can attain the top speed earlier than the cruiser or naked one in the same CC range. Thus, if you are buying a cruiser or standard motorcycle type then you may find a delay in reaching the top speed of it.
Thus, if you are thinking of buying a 250cc motorcycle only for speed or reaching top speed then I will suggest you go with a sports one, as it comes with a high-revving engine and lighter body.
In the next section, I have discussed some crucial factors that affect the top speed of the motorcycle. Thus, read further to know what contributes the motorcycle to reach its top speed.
Factors affecting the top speed of the motorcycle
The top speed of the motorcycle depends on many factors that are required to maintain the top speed. In this section, I will discuss briefly what affects the speed and what can you do to avoid it.
Weight of the motorcycle and Rider
The first and foremost factor that affects the top speed of a 250cc motorcycle is “weight”. And by weight I mean, weight of both riders and the motorcycle. The motorcycle weight includes the overall body of it, what’s it made of, material, etc. For instance, take the example of Royal enfiled 350cc, its top speed is around 75mph to 80mph whereas Kawasaki Ninja 250cc has a top speed of approx 105 mph (170 km/h).
Thus, certainly, you have spotted the difference between these two motorcycles. Despite having a larger displacement in the engine, the smaller displacement motorcycle will win the race. The reason is the less weight of the motorcycle and aerodynamic built body.
As Royal Enfield is totally made up of “steel” that increases the overall weight of the motorcycle by 20kg to 30kg compared to our other opponent Kawasaki Ninja 250. While any motorcycle made of fiber will considerably have lesser weight than the steel-made body.
Here I have shared a Weight comparison of the above motorcycles to have a better idea:-
| Motorcycle Name | Engine Displacement | Kerb Weight | Top Speed |
| Royal Enfield 350 | 346cc | 191 kg | 75 mph- 80 mph |
| Kawasaki Ninja 250 | 249cc | 170 kg | 105 mph (170 km/h). |
| Suzuki GSXR250R | 248cc | 392 lbs (178 kg) | 88 mph (142 km/h) |
Driving Skill of the Riders
Rider skills play a most crucial role in reaching the motorcycle’s top speed. Let’s understand this with an appropriate example. Suppose I fixed a race between two riders providing them the same 250cc motorcycle in the same condition but there will be a cheat. Out of two riders, one will be a real racer who has actually got into the race and the other rider will be a normal guy having some experience of riding the motorcycle.
Now, tell me who will be the winner or reach the top speed earlier out of these two riders. Most of the readers may have already guessed…. The racer will reach the top speed earlier or win. So, this proves that riding skills do matter in reaching the top speed of the motorcycle of any engine displacement.
Thus, if you want to reach the top speed earlier then you must hold some skill set. Apart from this, if you are a normal guy riding the motorcycle to school or a job, maybe you don’t need to stress out from this. You don’t need to reach top speed, you just need to reach home safely. So, have precautions and ride safely in traffic.
Here is an article curated with my own experience of riding to help you ride and getting out from heavy traffic.
Motorcycle Chassis & Ergonomics
Ergonomics are the most basic factor by which we can predict the motorcycle’s purpose. And we can say whether it is made for speed or not.
Like you can see the sports motorcycle by the first sight on the body you can predict it is made for speed. And you know you will get the better speed on the sports motorcycles that cruiser or naked.
Now, let’s discuss what is the basic part that makes the sports motorcycle different than other motorcycles? The basic things that make the sports motorcycle different than others are its fairing and aerodynamic chassis.
Windshield and Fairing are the main contributing components that help the sports motorcycle being more aerodynamic which in result gives you top speed.
Now, don’t think that chassis is the only dominating, it’s not like that. The top speed is the result of the associating of every factor that some of I have already discussed above and some I will discuss further.
Types of engine used in the motorcycle
Talking about the engine, I will not go deep into the working of the motorcycle engine. But I will share the information required for this article.
As engines are the core and essential component of the motorcycle without them the motorcycle can’t do anything. Your motorcycle is running because of the engine working while you are riding.
There are some crucial types of Engines that decide the overall performance, speed, efficiency, etc. Their names are Two-stroke and Four-stroke.
These are the engine architecture or design that is the basis. Here, I have given a required introduction for both terms.
Two-stroke Engine
This engine architecture helps you to reach speed and give you performance. It provides more RPM than four-stroke engines.
Two-strokes engines are cheap thus they produce noises and vibration if you ride at full throttle or maximum speed. The 2-stroke engine comes with lesser parts than the four-stroke engine which makes it easy to fix.
As 2 stroke engines are constructed to run at higher RPM, thus they also tend to wear early. It creates a lot of pollution because of the oil and fuel mixing in it.
Four-Stroke Engine
This engine architecture is very efficient, durable, and more reliable than 2-stroke engines. As four-stroke engines have more parts inside them thus require maintenance making these engines costlier than the two-stroke engine.
Four-strokes are an environment-friendly engine design because it is much quieter and it doesn’t require pre-mixing of oil and fuel. Although it provides slightly less performance like less rpm and speed.
Now, let’s discuss some points on the engine basic part, Cylinder which is the required one.
Cylinder in Engines
Cylinders are the power unit of the engine, it is the place where fuel burns and turned into power.
The number of cylinders directly affects the speed and rpm of the motorcycle. An engine with more cylinders will perform have better performance and speed than fewer cylinder engines.
But with more cylinders, the fuel consumption is also likely to be increased. While an engine with fewer cylinders is likely to be fuel-efficient.
Thus if your primary goal is about speed and performance then go for more cylinder motorcycles like 4 cylinder engines.
Conclusion
Now you must have become confident whether you need a 250 cc motorcycle or not. As I have already discussed most of the required points in this article briefly. Even though, if you feel that I have left some points then let me know in the comment.
FAQs
Is 250cc a good starter motorcycle?
As most of the 250cc is lightweight and can reach the top speed of an average of 85-mph to 90mph which is more than enough to keep you ahead of the traffic. Thus considering all the benefits that come with a 250cc motorcycle, it is good to go with for starters or beginners.
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