Dual sported 06' EC250 questions.........

[Harv]

I'll start off by saying I know very little about these bikes so I apologize if my questions seem amateur.

I came across a 2006 GASGAS EC250 that has the full euro street kit on it. It also has the dual ignition. Real nice to say the least. I'm curious if anyone has experience with such a bike as a dual sport. I'm not a stranger to dual sported 2-strokes (their still legal here in Canada).....I don't mind mixing fuel. I just wonder how reliable these bikes would be if it was used for 50/50 dirt/commuter?? How would they hold up to highway speeds up to 60mph?What is the "dual ignition" all about?? Thanks guys!! BTW.nice forum!!!

[SpeedyManiac]

Just remember it's a two-stroke. Two-strokes aren't really great for prolonged steady throttle openings (especially WFO) so make sure you jet it right. If I was getting a dualsport bike, it'd be a thumper unless it was primarily a hardcore trail bike with just the bare minimum of street gear to connect trails.

[Harv]

I hear ya! I was looking at purchasing a DRZ400 but everytime I see this GASGAS..........well I want it!!! I have driven many 2-stroke dual sported bikes and currently have a very modified Suzuki TS200R. It does have it's limits but it has been a real trooper and now has 27,000kms on the clock with the bottom and topend being done at 20,000kms. I like the bike but the suspension, handling has severe limits for my 6'3 235 lbs frame. I was curious if other 2-strokes are as reliable as it has been. I'm by far not an overly aggressive rider.....getting older and more afraid of falling I guess

[Berkyboy]

SpeedyManiac is right the biggest concern is using any prolonged throttle position to avoid seizures. Us good fuel and a good synthetic oil and listen for any pinging.

Also be a little careful of cold seizing the motor as on colder days you may have to block of one of the radiators so the engine runs a little warmer. A good rule is to always allow the engine to warm up a little longer than you normally would if your going to head on down the highway right away.

A good idea to use when jetting the bike is target the hi setting for offroad work and use the low setting as a default setting when running on the highway as the bike will run cooler as the lo setting gives you the equivalant of 1 1/2 to 2 degrees less timing advance.

[widebear]

Years ago on one of my trips to Thailand I came across a 90 or 91 Honda crm 250 street bike, based on a cr 250. The clock showed 14000 km, the owner told me It had the original piston! You used to see lots of 2 stroke dual sports around, in Costa Rica I saw a Yam dt 200 that looked exactly like the wr 200 that was sold in the early 90's and ive seen street legal kdx's in Argentina. I can assure you those bikes go a long, long time without any major service.

[fullthrottle]

i have a 06 ec250 with road reg, i do a few km on the road as transport sections as part of the series i race in with no probs, but more like 5-20km not longer than that and no real highway. I also have a 99 wr200 road reg and i think it would be more of an option for a few reasons ie smoother motor nicer seat i had about 7000km on the wr before top end and it still looked great if that helps. but i have to say lastlt ther is NO comparison in the scrub !!