A forum for owners of Yamaha TTR250 trail and enduro bikes!

rozzadogga · Newbie

Dirt Bike Odometer Tampering

petenz · Super Guru

What do yer mean.... like I have done to mine ..
remove the speedo cable....

14,000k is still almost newish.... should get 50,000 first engine life
as long as the oil changes are done & air filter is kept clean..

rozzadogga · Newbie

hey petenz,

thanks for the quick reply, I would like to know if the reading on the odometer is legit and how to tell if it has been altered in anyway. I am planning to buy one of these bikes and don't want to buy a bike that has done some ridiculous kilometres but says on the odometer low kilometres.

Thanks.

petenz · Super Guru

Yer can't tell... best way is look at the bike for signs of ware... paint worn off etc...
see if the bikes over all condiction matchs up with the mileage reading..

mine dosn't clock up a lot of miles... but when it gets used it is in the dirt.
so mine has low miles but a over all very used condiction...

It's so hard to tell alot of the time..
If yer have any concerns about it.... walk away..

TT-R250M · Super Guru

Welcome Rozzadogga

Yes they can be tampered with (not going into detail) and the usual signs are that the numbers don't line up perfect.

Any bike that has done 10,000km is in question- has it been looked after, regularly serviced and had a sprag clutch replacement, timing chain? if not your probably looking at replacing it and anything else that happens to be out of spec down the track. This said, if all has been maintained, it will still be a good bike.

A TTR at 5,000km it is still basically brand new and the only question would be has it been serviced regularly and maintained. Other than that there is nothing to worry about.

These bikes are basically bulletproof and are quite good for trail riding. The only downfall is that they are still only 250's and lack the wheel-standing power and top speed of the bigger bikes, but in the tight trails you would hardly notice.

All in all, if you are looking for a bullet-proof trail bike that does a bit of road riding here and there it is ideal. If you like pure muscle (and a fair bit of maintenance) buy a WR400, WR426 or WR450 etc.

I think from the sounds of it you would suit the TTR to a ''T'' wink

Jarrah

rozzadogga · Newbie

Hey Jarrah,

Thanks for the reply, you said that any bike over 10,000km is in question, why is that?

Should I be shopping for a bike under 10,000km as stated on the odometer.

Keep the replies coming.

TT-R250M · Super Guru

rozzadogga wrote:
Hey Jarrah,

Thanks for the reply, you said that any bike over 10,000km is in question, why is that?

Should I be shopping for a bike under 10,000km as stated on the odometer.

No problems Rozzadogga.

I am not saying that a TTR would self-destruct after 10, 000km and with regular services and general maintenance 10,000km is not a worry for a TTR250. Just that without proper maintenance, any bike could self-destruct or have problems with general maintenance (suspension linkage bearings/bushes, sprag clutch etc.).

Jarrah

rozzadogga · Newbie

Oh no worries Jarrah,

Dumb me I thought you meant that anything over 10,000km's was safe from being tampered with the odometer lol.

TT-R250M · Super Guru

rozzadogga wrote:
Oh no worries Jarrah,

Dumb me I thought you meant that anything over 10,000km's was safe from being tampered with the odometer lol.

Lol, NO, if anything the old Open Enduro bikes (1993-1999) are less likely to be tampered with as they have a digital speedo.

TTRfan · Super Guru

With the blue TTRs, quite often the 3 tab washer in the speedo drive gets damaged and the speedo/odometer stops working. If the TTR is mainly used off road then it may be left like that and the mileage will therefore under read.

If everything is working on the TTRs you look at then its a matter of how much you trust the seller and learning about the history of the bike. Tell tale signs of high mileage are worn footpegs and pivots and a floppy sidestand!

In the UK, it is possible to look at the mileage on the annual MOT certificates. See here. If the mileage is the same over a couple of years then be suspicious unless there is a good explanation for it.

Buying any s/h car or bike is always a bit of a lottery. The beauty of the TTR is that it is easy to work on and most repairs will not break the bank.

Brian