Serow Touring

[Lebowski]

Guys any advice on Yamaha's 250 Serow Touring. I like the looks and the touring package that Yamaha added to it.

However, specs indicate that's she's a little on the weak side with only a single valve air cooled 250 pumping out 19 bhp.

Wondering if it can really cruise with gear on the hwy at 90 to 100k.

Any thoughts and experiences would be appreciated.

[haildamage]

I haven't ridden the new one. I've ridden the older model. I think you will be able to cruise on the expressway just fine at 90-110. If you were going to be doing it for more than a couple of hours and more than one day in a row, you would probably wish you had something bigger. It will also be scary with strong crosswinds.

All that being said, I would not hesitate to recommend a touring serow as a good bike for touring in Japan. Especially if you learn how to avoid the big ugly national roads in favor of the lovely backroads.

[ToraTora]

Onsa did it with her Serow. ;)

[racer162]

Serow is a good bike but imho if you want to tour on a 250 (and many people do) stay off the highway and stick to local roads. You will see more and it's more fun. I'd agree with Haildamage on the trials of a 250 on the highway.

[adventurous biker]

By the way, this August the Serow will have a new make over on the new models. There's nothing to be seen yet, but the Yamaha dealer told me the other day about it. Although I'm unable to get currently buy one, that is my bike of choice.
https://www.yamaha-motor.co.jp/mc/lineup/serow/touring/

[Dualta]

I've owned Serow 225s and currently own a 250. I'm 65kg and can get up to 120 no problem. It goes higher. It cruises without issue at 100. I love the thing. Light and perky for throwing around on twisties, lots of touring gear for loading it up and heading off camping, and designed specifically for dirt tracks and even more gnarly stuff. Skilled riders can enduro the fuck out of Serows. I bought mine specifically for rindos, and it's simply excellent for that kind of riding. But, as was written above, I wouldn't necessarily want to ride a highway for too long on one. I've done 350km rides on mine, and it's not the worst ride, but you'd have much more fun on smaller roads. For what it's worth, I found plenty of torque to take me from 100kmph to 120kmph to overtake. I got 320km yesterday before hitting the reserve, and that was riding like a hooligan around the mountain roads of Nagano. What's not to like about Serows?

On a final note, I bought a basic model and loaded it up with only some of the touring Serow options. I bought a smaller rear rack because the Touring Serow rear rack is massive, but you might like that. I also bought better hand guards. The OEM are plastic and are only for wind protection. They wouldn't help in a spill or if you cracked your handlebars on a tree while passing in forest. I also got heated grips. The Adventure Screen is great. 1.5万円 off Amazon, and it gives great wind protection for highways and high speeds on backroads. The screen is easily taken off the rack when going off road, when you really don't need it.

[Shaun]

I love the massive rack.. 100kmh no problem with 90kg rider, camping gear, and the kitchen sink..

[the44secs]

The Djebel 250xc is always a solid bet.