worst bike ever? tm400 Yellow Death. In Eastern WA the power band was almost tolerable. In the woods it was always trying to rub me out on a tree. I had it for 6 months and took a 27 year hiatus before I got another durt bike. I have no fond memories of that bike except when one of my former friends tried to ride it up into the back of his truck and a branch caught the throttle cable and he punched out his back window. Putting the huge rear sprocket on it was not the way to tame the beast. 30 yrs later I am still glad he made the move on my girlfriend at the time. :laugh: Sometimes the best things you get in life are the things you don't get!
Worst dirtbikes ever(per offroad.com)
- Thread starter flynbryan
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dirt bike dave
Sponsoring Member
- May 3, 2000
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One of my friends had a '75 Suzuki TM100 with an aftermarket 11" travel 'SkunkWorks' rear suspension kit, which remounted the bike's ultra low quality stock shocks. Worst bike I ever rode - weak power, handled dangerously.
The worst bike my family ever owned was a mid 1960's Suzuki 80 that my dad got at a garage sale. It had a sheet metal frame, useless rear shocks and forks that weren't much better. Still was more fun to ride than the Skunk Works TM100!
The worst bike my family ever owned was a mid 1960's Suzuki 80 that my dad got at a garage sale. It had a sheet metal frame, useless rear shocks and forks that weren't much better. Still was more fun to ride than the Skunk Works TM100!
My worst bike was a 1983 husky WR 430. It was air cooled, and husky hadn't yet discovered the mono shock. It had tons of power.......I could smoke my older brother on his "ten worst" the YZ490 as long as we were going straight. But the Husky had horrible balance making jumping a dangerous proposition, crummy suspension, and almost no brakes. I never really felt like I was in control when I was riding it.
SFO
LIFETIME SPONSOR
- Feb 16, 2001
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Man, I can't decide.
I could ditto the Husaberg experience almost exactly though.
2gearboxes, 2 rods, and lots of other parts that are now unobtainable.
Or, the '84 Suzuki Ds600r that ate kickstarter shafts like candy and since it was a new model no parts were in the US so I sat on my hands for 6 months making payments w/ no bike to ride.
Suzuki finally told me to sell it if I didn't like it.
I just wanted it to start w/o breaking the kickstarter shaft, and you had to split the cases to replace the kickstarter shaft.
Or the new '87 yz-490 that ate 5th gear along with a set of cases before I finished my first season of ice racing on it.
I double dipped to buy that one and couldn't afford to fix it.
I could ditto the Husaberg experience almost exactly though.
2gearboxes, 2 rods, and lots of other parts that are now unobtainable.
Or, the '84 Suzuki Ds600r that ate kickstarter shafts like candy and since it was a new model no parts were in the US so I sat on my hands for 6 months making payments w/ no bike to ride.
Suzuki finally told me to sell it if I didn't like it.
I just wanted it to start w/o breaking the kickstarter shaft, and you had to split the cases to replace the kickstarter shaft.
Or the new '87 yz-490 that ate 5th gear along with a set of cases before I finished my first season of ice racing on it.
I double dipped to buy that one and couldn't afford to fix it.
I almost forgot about the '74 TM125 with bad port job and similar "skunk works" custom rear shock mounts. This bike had a really narrow powerband way up high, couldn't even take off in 1st gear without pegging it. My custom "air forks" worked great until the seals blew. And who's stupid idea was it for the expansion chamber to be the glide plate? The pipe looked like it had been used for welding practice in a junior high shop class.
woodsguy2000
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- Apr 24, 2001
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Without a doubt, out of over 50 bikes the worst was 1984 CR500 Honda. Can't think of anything that was good about it except one day we went to the woods and I came home with a '86 Husky 400. Actually it wasn't that great either but way better than the Honda. We did a head's up swap unplanned after a ride.
endurohero
Member
- Apr 16, 2003
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worst bikes ever any kx between 88-93(excluding 92-93250s) 82 cr250 any ktm from 81-89 89 92 husaberg 350 88-91 cr500 90 cr250 96 rm 250 98 husky wr 125.I worked in multiple bike shops as a mechanic and found more massive(expensive) problems with these particular machines.I have left out many to aviod hurt feelings.
Jon K.
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- Mar 26, 2001
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I couldn't disagree more with your choice of KXs. '88 & '89 kxs were some of the BEST bikes ever made. I still have an '89 KX125. Completely bulletproof, good power, great suspension (for '89"). Frankly; I can't figure how you came up with those bikes for your list.
endurohero, some of the crs you mentioned have the crappy early generation of inverted forks, but other than that, what was wrong the them?
Speaking of forks, didn't some of those KX's mentioned have those awesome conventional forks (in the late 80s?)
Speaking of forks, didn't some of those KX's mentioned have those awesome conventional forks (in the late 80s?)
endurohero
Member
- Apr 16, 2003
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I raced both 125 and 250 in those years in motocross and enduros and never spent so much money to keep them reasonably tight eg: stock frames would stretch over 1 inch in wheel base in less than 10 rides frames arent cheap.True the forks where very good but the clamps that held them where very flexi.Foot pegs , mounts and springs in 89 i used 8 sets of rights 5 sets of lefts while breaking both ancles and dislocating my left knee every time i broke a left peg or mount, i only weighed 135lbs not funny.Leaky engines the amount of epoxy put in the 125 cases to stop air leaks was rediculous, before the easy access to nicasil plating , cyls were good for about 30hrs then the plating would wear off around the ports and the ring would stick and its all over but the crying.I could keep going but i'm getting pissed off just writing this.Most of the problems with crs i mentioned where just alot of little things that would nickle and dime the owners to death.
Jon K.
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- Mar 26, 2001
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Rode my '89 KX 125 in SERA enduro, local MX, and the odd hare-scramble now and again. At the time I weighed 190, was 33 years old and made of steel. Would enter an enduro test section, twist the throttle wide open and keep it there until section over. Nope, never went to six-days (checked your bio) but did win the 200 "A" class that year and put it into the SERA "AA" class as well.
When I sold it I still had the original pegs, pins, mounts, etc. I pulled the engine down once, and just because I already had bought the piston and rings, I changed them. Nothing really wrong with them, though.
All year, not a single failure. Not a cable, not a lever, I finished every race I entered.
Must be those inferior Canadian models. ;)
Or perhaps you are really Superman . . . . or the Hulk . . . .to be able to destroy such a fine machine. :thumb:
When I sold it I still had the original pegs, pins, mounts, etc. I pulled the engine down once, and just because I already had bought the piston and rings, I changed them. Nothing really wrong with them, though.
All year, not a single failure. Not a cable, not a lever, I finished every race I entered.
Must be those inferior Canadian models. ;)
Or perhaps you are really Superman . . . . or the Hulk . . . .to be able to destroy such a fine machine. :thumb:
My worst experiences were with:
1) My 1982 KX250 with the two piece swaged lower fork legs that came apart.. and hurt me really badly.(And the frame DID change dimentions over the time I raced it)
2) My "vintage 1984 Husky AE500 that could not get the heat away fast enough to survive.....toasted itself anytime the riding got fast and furious. Tended to cook the transmission oil as well. Needed water cooling)
3) My son's 1989 KTM that ran backwards when he didn't kick through hard enough. It finally toasted itself and we found the CDI had failed. More dissapointed kid days with that bike than any before or since.
My best bikes:
1978-1980 KTM 420's (in 1980 i was the MC80). Never broke. Won races on them. Only re-occuring issue was fork seals. Wish I had one today.
1986-88 Honda CR's (88 250 was slow but was bullet proof)
1992-96 Honda CR's
So far ny 2002 VOR 450 is working its way on this list.....so far so good. Maybe in another year of use I will know.
1) My 1982 KX250 with the two piece swaged lower fork legs that came apart.. and hurt me really badly.(And the frame DID change dimentions over the time I raced it)
2) My "vintage 1984 Husky AE500 that could not get the heat away fast enough to survive.....toasted itself anytime the riding got fast and furious. Tended to cook the transmission oil as well. Needed water cooling)
3) My son's 1989 KTM that ran backwards when he didn't kick through hard enough. It finally toasted itself and we found the CDI had failed. More dissapointed kid days with that bike than any before or since.
My best bikes:
1978-1980 KTM 420's (in 1980 i was the MC80). Never broke. Won races on them. Only re-occuring issue was fork seals. Wish I had one today.
1986-88 Honda CR's (88 250 was slow but was bullet proof)
1992-96 Honda CR's
So far ny 2002 VOR 450 is working its way on this list.....so far so good. Maybe in another year of use I will know.
Can Can Kev
Member
- Feb 24, 2003
- 233
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1981 Honda XR 200 beat to hell and blown rear shock, the engine was fine but man did the chassis suck the pegs saged and the seat cover was home made by my mome outts soem material that was so slick u slid all over the slace, the for seals leaked it had a seaping base gaskeyt but it just kept on runnijng , one day when i went rdiing after hevy raid i tryied to cross a huge puddle (small pond) and i made it to the oder side but i fell and the enge big went completly under the water only could see the grip sticking out of the water i thought my biek was to picked it up rolled to to flat ground kicked it over once it fired up shot soem water otu the tail pipe and it was ready to go lol gotta love the old honda engines......
- Jan 8, 2000
- 3,331
- 1
I have to agree with gwcrim... "Even the worst bike I had was a good one!"
But with the topic in mind, here are a few bikes that I grew-up with (or friends owned that I rode because they wanted to ride my bike) that deserve some notoriety:
’73 Suzuki TS50 – My first bike; bought new. By the end of the summer the foot pegs had cracked off the frame and the piston had a hole in it. I rode (and jumped) that bike for half of the summer of ’74 with my feet on the engine. What were my parents thinking! For some reason I have some fond memories of that POS.
’75 Suzuki TC125 – Gutless power and a transmission that had 4 street gears and 4 trail gears. 8 gears in all, none could find any power in that engine.
’75 Suzuki TM-400 – My older brother had one. He let me ride it once (at the age of 14!) and it was spooky. I begged him all summer to let me ride it. After I rode it I never asked him again.
’77 Hodaka Dirt-Squirt – Owned by my friend Russell. Vibrated so bad that it cracked its frame every 10 hours or so. Had an appetite for spark plugs.
The worst bike I ever rode though was this 90cc two-stroke thing that actually had a Harley-Davidson nameplate on it. If my memory is correct it had an auto clutch and it shifted via a twist grip (like a modern mountain bike) on the left side. No power – ever. It belonged to a cousin of one of my friends and he spent a lot of time pushing it. I felt real bad for the guy but he had a good sense of humor about the thing. Since it was a Harley he called it smoky-the-pig.
I took the 80’s off, so by the time I re-entered the sport all of the bikes were great. You young guys can complain all you want about a nineteen ninety-whatever CR or KX, but you have to thank the moto-gods that you didn’t have to suffer through the 60’s and 70’s when the buying public was the motorcycling industry’s R&D department. Those were the good old days.
But with the topic in mind, here are a few bikes that I grew-up with (or friends owned that I rode because they wanted to ride my bike) that deserve some notoriety:
’73 Suzuki TS50 – My first bike; bought new. By the end of the summer the foot pegs had cracked off the frame and the piston had a hole in it. I rode (and jumped) that bike for half of the summer of ’74 with my feet on the engine. What were my parents thinking! For some reason I have some fond memories of that POS.
’75 Suzuki TC125 – Gutless power and a transmission that had 4 street gears and 4 trail gears. 8 gears in all, none could find any power in that engine.
’75 Suzuki TM-400 – My older brother had one. He let me ride it once (at the age of 14!) and it was spooky. I begged him all summer to let me ride it. After I rode it I never asked him again.
’77 Hodaka Dirt-Squirt – Owned by my friend Russell. Vibrated so bad that it cracked its frame every 10 hours or so. Had an appetite for spark plugs.
The worst bike I ever rode though was this 90cc two-stroke thing that actually had a Harley-Davidson nameplate on it. If my memory is correct it had an auto clutch and it shifted via a twist grip (like a modern mountain bike) on the left side. No power – ever. It belonged to a cousin of one of my friends and he spent a lot of time pushing it. I felt real bad for the guy but he had a good sense of humor about the thing. Since it was a Harley he called it smoky-the-pig.
I took the 80’s off, so by the time I re-entered the sport all of the bikes were great. You young guys can complain all you want about a nineteen ninety-whatever CR or KX, but you have to thank the moto-gods that you didn’t have to suffer through the 60’s and 70’s when the buying public was the motorcycling industry’s R&D department. Those were the good old days.
Easily the worst bike ever built by humans (that I owned) was the 1984 KX-500. Dual-plug head, which it needed because it only ran half the time and when it did run you better be wide open to ensure it stayed running. Jetting was a lesson in futility. Also had the most stupid looking number plates ever put on a dirt bike.
- Jan 8, 2000
- 3,331
- 1
Hey Pat,
A friend of mine just bought his son a NEW KE100. What a POS. I begged him not to buy it but for some reason he was hell-bent that this would make a good first bike.
KE's haven't changed since the 70's.
A friend of mine just bought his son a NEW KE100. What a POS. I begged him not to buy it but for some reason he was hell-bent that this would make a good first bike.
KE's haven't changed since the 70's.
I must be lucky! I've never had a worst bike yet.
By no means were they all great bikes but just the fact that I had a bike meant something to me. I knew alot of kids growing up that did not have a bike at all. My expectations always ran a little higher than what my Dad would have in mind. But I was always happy with it none the less. I remember when I out grew my Z50 and we went out looking for a bigger bike, Dad told me he new somebody that had a Yamaha 100 for sale. I was thinking more in the line of a yellow YZ100 than the purple '73 LT3 100 Enduro we brought home. But it turned out to be a great bike, never had a problem with it. I wish I still had it to put around town on...
By no means were they all great bikes but just the fact that I had a bike meant something to me. I knew alot of kids growing up that did not have a bike at all. My expectations always ran a little higher than what my Dad would have in mind. But I was always happy with it none the less. I remember when I out grew my Z50 and we went out looking for a bigger bike, Dad told me he new somebody that had a Yamaha 100 for sale. I was thinking more in the line of a yellow YZ100 than the purple '73 LT3 100 Enduro we brought home. But it turned out to be a great bike, never had a problem with it. I wish I still had it to put around town on...
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Jon K.
~SPONSOR~
- Mar 26, 2001
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I seem to recall that those bikes had stainless steel reeds. If one broke; it could (would) destroy the piston, cylinder (cast iron), and the crankcases all in one fell swoop.
Hmmmm . . . . . now why would I recall that?
Ahh, those were the days, Thermo-Flow shocks and Torque Induction. :thumb:
My '82 RM125 may not have had much low end, but that sucker was indestructable! We would climb hills and crash, I remember bending the bars so many times one day that they looked more like wheelbarrow handles (they were pointing straight back)! This bike went through owner after owner (basically all people I rode with), many many hours, and never had the top end apart.
I remember getting it out of the shed when my friend showed up with a new '87 CR125 and thought it was fast. By this time someone else owned it, but had abondoned it at my place. Bald back tire, chain way loose, leaks here and there, and the grips were so torn, well there really wasn't much less. We went out and dragraced the bikes and the RM would smoke the CR every time. Every time I read about how I have to change the top end every 10-20 hours, I think of this bike.
I remember getting it out of the shed when my friend showed up with a new '87 CR125 and thought it was fast. By this time someone else owned it, but had abondoned it at my place. Bald back tire, chain way loose, leaks here and there, and the grips were so torn, well there really wasn't much less. We went out and dragraced the bikes and the RM would smoke the CR every time. Every time I read about how I have to change the top end every 10-20 hours, I think of this bike.
