TWEEN-SIZE TRAIL FUN: SSR XD250

[MotoFactory]

With every passing year it seems we’re building more trust in Chinese-built motorcycles. Political and economic tensions aside, there’s no question that there are some worthy motorcycles coming out of China, carrying with them some tempting price tags. Among these are bikes with a build quality that can allow you to have some real fun and can even fill a void in the modern lineups of legacy brands.

Founded in 2002 as a pit bike company, SSR Motorsports has seen steady growth in the last two decades, offering a wide-reaching product range that includes dual-sport bikes, UTVs, electric toys and more things that go. In recent years the U.S.-based company has sourced products in the mid-size and even full-size range of off-road bikes, such as the SR300S that we tested back in 2021. SSR’s newest is the XD line, which brings with it the XD250, a bike we’ll call a “tween-size” trail bike.

The stout chassis is very stable, and tracks through rocky terrain and bumps with remarkable composure.

A CLOSER LOOK

Being called a 250, you might assume this is a full-size bike, but the XD250 has dimensions similar to an 85cc two-stroke big wheel. In trail bike sizing, it would be in between a 150 and a 230. The engine is 223cc—identical to the displacement of Yamaha’s TT-R230. But, unlike the 230 trail bikes from Yamaha and Kawasaki, which both come with full-size wheels (21-inch front, 18-inch rear), the XD250 rolls on a 19-inch front and 16-inch rear, which is the sizing you’d find on an 85cc big-wheel motocrosser.

Another distinction between the XD’s 223cc engine and its Japanese counterparts is the bore and stroke. At 65.5mm x 66.2mm, the air-cooled SOHC four-stroke is slightly under-square, giving it a longer stroke. Coupled with smaller wheels to turn, the XD250 puts a stout amount of power to the ground.

The XD250 is carbureted, which may be a deal-breaker for some and a selling point for others. Air cooling and electric start keep things simple, and a back-up kick-starter will also appeal to traditionalists.

Torquey power puts out a surprising amount of grunt, but remains docile and predictable enough for novice riders.

On the chassis side, the beefy front suspension is another standout. While many mid-size trail bikes will come with thinner conventional fork tubes, the SSR’s USD fork is closer in size to what you’d find on a full-size bike. SSR specifications do not list the size, but we measure the fork tubes at 43mm. They feature adjustable rebound and 10 inches of travel—rather stalwart measurements for a bike this size.

Rear suspension is also adjustable. The link-mounted single shock allows for rebound and spring preload tuning, but you’ll only find 7 inches of travel out back. Brakes are disc, front and rear, but don’t take that to mean they’re powerful, because they aren’t. More on that in a minute.

A keyed ignition isn’t exactly a security device, but can help deter illicit use, whether it’s unsupervised youngsters or buddies who came over to help you in the garage but really just want to take a little joyride up the street. A handlebar-mounted choke lever on the left above the clutch lever is another peculiarity. As we became familiar with the XD250’s cranky, cold morning habits, the choke lever started to make sense. 

GETTING STARTED

Key on. Petcock on. Choke lever in. Clutch lever in. Thumb the starter. Let the clutch lever out, hold the choke lever in. Hold for at least one minute. Feather throttle while slowly releasing the choke halfway. Bike dies. Repeat steps three through eight. This went on for about five minutes on a 55-degree morning, but once everything is up to temp, starting becomes simple and reliable.

The power of the XD250 is docile and predictable enough to be an ideal beginner bike. But, in the hands of more experienced riders, it churns out a surprising amount of grunt that will find you daring to see what it will do next. Our 16-year-old test rider (5-foot-6, 145 pounds) was an ideal fit for the tween-size mount, and enjoyed the satisfying amount of torque that let him crawl up and over rock faces, power through sand, and even tackle some borderline hairy stuff that we didn’t exactly plan on riding.

The stout chassis is very stable, and tracks through rocky terrain and bumps with remarkable composure. Speaking of stout, the XD has a claimed curb weight of 236 pounds, which is in the ballpark of a full-size bike. On the trail, it feels front-end-heavy, which isn’t surprising, because those girthy fork tubes aren’t light. But, before you sneer at the scale or call it too heavy for a beginner, consider that this also translates to stability and traction. The grunty torque stays glued to the ground as it chugs its way over obstacles and through rocks. At technical low speeds, the XD never felt unsettled. At higher speeds and through whoops, the weight factor will start to work against you, since the XD likes to stay connected to the ground.

That didn’t stop us from taking the SSR to the motocross track, however, where we were pleasantly surprised at its willingness to cooperate. The torquey power gets out of turns well, and once again, the robust chassis keeps you planted in turns, soaking up bumps and even hopping over some little tabletops with surprising ease. Its ability to track through flat, sweeping turns and rutted corners can be partially credited to the Kenda tires, which are a nice touch.

A keyed ignition and inverted fork tubes are among features you might not expect to see on a sub-$3000 dirt bike.

 

Carburetion keeps things simple and analog, but might be a turn-off to some.

We’re fully aware that this is no motocross bike, or even a competition bike, and that you’re going to run into some limitations. Among those are the brakes, or lack thereof. Not that our expectations were high, but even for this bike the lack of stopping power is disappointing. Of course, a powerful and touchy front brake isn’t a good idea for a beginner rider, but just know that braking power on the XD is very mild. We’ve felt drum brakes stronger than this. Even unloading it was scary. It’s so weak, it can’t even stop our whining, let alone the bike.

Besides the brakes and being cranky on a cold morning, the only other gripe we had about the XD is the kickstand, which doesn’t kick quite far enough forward to be stable. Beyond that, we’ll say that hand guards and a spark arrestor would have been nice.

SSR’s new XD line features the XD250 (left) for $2800 along with the smaller XD150 (right) for $2400.

THE REAL WORLD

It’s important to calibrate your expectations before you start critiquing a bike like this. Are you going to get peak performance? No. But you already knew that. What you should get is a good value, so consider the balance of where this bike shines and where it compromises, and grade that on a curve of a $2800 price tag.

Just as important as managing expectations is identifying who this bike is for. The XD250 comes through in most of the areas that are critical to a beginner/novice rider, or even for an experienced rider looking to run the pace of a beginner. If you want something you can use to putt around on with the kids as they learn, this is a great, inexpensive option. It will scoot along on twisting trails and put an ear-to-ear grin on your face. It’s much better than feathering the clutch on your 450 for hours on end and struggling to find something to lean it against while you help Junior pick their bike up off the ground.

It’s not without its shortcomings, but if it has everything you need and nothing yo don’t, then the SSR XD250 is well worth the price of admission, or at least worth serious consideration.

SSR XD150

Joining the XD250 is a smaller sibling, the XD150. We had a chance to sample the goods alongside the 250 in our testing and found many of the same great features on the smaller XD. With a nearly identical frame and equally stout chassis (37mm USD fork and link-mounted shock), the XD150 is also adept at tackling technical terrain. The motor is very beginner-friendly, but without the same level of grunt as the bigger XD, the XD150 requires more shifting and clutching to keep it in the meat of its torque. Smaller wheels (17-inch front, 14-inch rear) give it a more approachable seat height that will allow many riders to reach to the ground with both feet.

Like the XD250, we found the braking power lacking on the XD150, even after very deliberately breaking them in. Our only other gripe with the 150 is the kick-starter, which sticks out in a pretty obtrusive way. We found it kept getting caught on boots, causing an alarming clacking noise that we could do without. The strong e-starter never missed a beat, so we’d be confident enough in taking the kick-starter off completely.

At a modest $2400 price point, the XD150 is another worthy consideration for beginner/novice riders.

The post TWEEN-SIZE TRAIL FUN: SSR XD250 appeared first on Dirt Bike Magazine.

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