Review of the Suzuki TU250 motorcycle (Volty, Grasstracker)

Technical characteristics of GRASSTRACKER 250

In the form of a motor, Grasstracker received a conventional 4-stroke air-cooled engine with 1 cylinder.

Single cylinder engine.

Carburetor power system.

Crankcase cover.

Clutch cover.

During the restyling process, the 4-valve cylinder head distribution system was replaced with a 2-valve one . According to company representatives, it was made for easier maintenance.

Transmission and clutch

The bikes received a 5-speed gearbox .

According to reviews from the owners, it worked well, turned on clearly, and there were also characteristic clicks. And some opinions flashed that you can switch to a car. From first to fourth, and from fourth to neutral.

The main drive is standard - chain .

Classic chain drive.

Front disc brakes.

Rear drum brake.

Brakes

Being a modification of the retro version, the brakes of the bike were quite simple.

There is 1 disc on the front wheel, and a drum on the rear wheel.

Hydraulic support for the front disc is provided by a 1-piston . In accordance with the retro concept, no frills options were offered.

Here the horse lies down in front of him; Ivan sits down on his skate, paddles his ears, and roars like crazy. The little humpbacked horse shook himself, stood up on his paws, perked up, clapped his mane, snored, and flew off like an arrow; Only dusty clouds of Whirlwind curled under our feet. © Ershov P. P. I’ve been meaning to write a post about my Suzuki Volty TU250 for a long time. Moreover, there are quite a lot of articles about similar motorcycles on the bikepost. Now that the motorcycle has already found a new owner, I can calmly think about everything that happened over two seasons of ownership. So, let's start with simple numbers and my conclusions (which, I hope, will be useful to someone when searching for information about not the most common motorcycle). Geometry and dimensions. The motorcycle is very low in the saddle. With my “world’s average height” of 175 cm, I felt very comfortable. The motorcycle weighs very little, which, of course, is great when riding in places where there is no asphalt and never was. Yes, of course, despite the fact that I tried to make it as “off-road” as possible, turning it into a scrambler, it did not make it a crap competitor to modern enduro motorcycles.))) But it just goes well on any roads and the narrowest walking paths. In addition, the low weight saved me several times from typical beginner (well, no one canceled my first-season experience)))) squeezing the front brake as hard as I could. There were several such cases and in all cases the bike remained standing on its wheels; if it had been 3 kilograms heavier, most likely I would not have been able to hold it. However, despite the light weight and narrow wheels, the motorcycle is quite insensitive to wind. This strangeness is not explainable to me personally, but it is a fact. The wind doesn’t blow it off the road, and in strong gusts it doesn’t wobble more than others. The bike's ground clearance is huge (at least for such a short wheelbase). Suspension, wheels and brakes. The front fork is, of course, skinny. But it’s enough if you don’t demand something impossible from the motorcycle. The rear shock absorbers are frankly weak, they make their way with a passenger at once, in general, with a passenger it also rides, frankly speaking, very conditionally))))) In general, the rear suspension is apparently designed for solo driving, well, so be it. Those who are forewarned are forearmed. I don't even know what to say about the brakes. They exist and nothing more. They brake well, but it’s difficult to call them excellent. The rear drum eliminates constant skidding (if used by an inexperienced rider). I had rather non-standard wheels for this motorcycle, not 18 and 18, but 18 front and 17 rear. Which, of course, benefited his off-asphalt capabilities. I had Dunlop TT100 tires. I liked the rubber for its versatility and durability (although, of course, the weight of the device also played a big role). Engine, gearbox, etc. The engine is great. It's as simple as three pennies! One cylinder, one carburetor, one spark plug. There is nothing to break, nothing is easy to maintain. In this regard, the device is gorgeous. The engine is low-powered (only 20 furry-legged horses), but in the city and off the roads and highways it is enough for the eyes. The gears are short, acceleration is slightly faster than the average Lada))) This, of course, has its advantages. Having changed the chain and tensioned it (I installed a sealed, Didov’s chain, and not from some “Ant”), I still did not notice any sagging over several thousand kilometers, because It seems that such a chain is weak for a motorcycle to pull)))) The horse vibrates noticeably at high speeds, therefore, when replacing the sprockets, it was decided to stretch the gears to the detriment of the dynamics (and so the speeds are short...), which gave a comfortable maximum speed on the highway of about 100-110 km/h . Then Volti accelerates only if you lie down behind the glass, remove your knees, elbows, and preferably the entire pilot somewhere!)))) During my ownership, the following changes were made to the motorcycle, which, I personally think, benefited it: - I already got it with a custom high exhaust (but I highly advise anyone installing it to go through thermal tape twice, because it gets hot on your right thigh when you put your leg down, even through the aluminum screen). — crankcase protection with a molded duralumin plate (just in case) — metal protection for levers and hands with burdocks. The protection is homemade, heavy, even though the walls are rammed, I wanted to maintain the overall appearance in the rat style with killer reliability, so the protection frame itself was made of a 5 mm steel strip, and the mugs were made from an outdated cross-country tire - a high and long front fender with a mudguard (also homemade from the same cross-country tire) It looked terrifying)))) — In place of the rear plastic (cute in its own way, but absolutely useless) a large trunk was welded and installed. The trunk perfectly accommodated a Louis rollbag + a sleeping bag and a backpack. — A large windshield has been installed (the importance of this element cannot be overestimated) Overall, I am incredibly pleased and very glad that my first motorcycle was a Volti. Everything he could teach me, he taught me (probably). But... I want long trips, open spaces, and it was decided to change the motorcycle for something more powerful. The update has been found and is already being “finished” to the state in which I would like to see this new bike. I will write about him separately. In the meantime, I can only say that this is a Honda NTV 650, which has long excited my brain with its appearance and capabilities.

Driving performance,

The maximum speed of the motorcycle is 120 km/h . As users say, the speedometer sometimes lies a little, so you may not see such numbers, but it’s quite easy to dial them. True, moving at such a speed is not very convenient; a comfortable cruiser is 80 km/h .

Acceleration to hundreds (dynamics

The dynamics of the bike are quite good, but for a retro motorcycle. From standstill to 100 km/h in 7 seconds . According to reviews, “ you can start racing with cars at a traffic light, but when racing in a straight line, the comparison will not be in your favor .”

Fuel consumption

Consumption, according to the manufacturer’s documentation, is 3 liters per 100 km . The average distance at one gas station is 150–200 km (standard tank is 6 l ).

Review of the Suzuki TU250 motorcycle (Volty, Grasstracker)

Suzuki Grasstracker. We can say that the moto fully met all my expectations - a maximum speed of 120 (according to Jeeps), good lows, simplicity, a lot of available spare parts for pennies (from China and from Japan (used)).

The bike can easily be adapted not only for riding, but also for racing rides - a 12 liter tank from Volti (or from an ST250, I bought it for pennies from Volti) can be installed on a long-distance bike without any modifications. Now I ride around the bay with the stock one - 6 liters (by the way, on asphalt the consumption is 3 liters per 100 km, so with the stock one I almost reached 200 km of run).

For winter driving, I ordered a Chinese hub (gn250) and put an aluminum rim from Chezet (18-inch aluminum) on it on Minskachev spokes. Rims from Minsk, Java and, probably, from everything else are suitable, but the one on hand was from Chezet. All this was flavored by the toothy Petroshin. It turned out to be a pittance. It was possible to bring the rear wheel assembly from Japan (approx. 5 kRub), but the task was to “cut it”...

Suzuki Volty 250. Since this is my first motorcycle, naturally I have nothing to compare with. Therefore, in my eyes it is fast, for 20 hp. not bad at all. Of course, it doesn’t pull away so much that there’s smoke coming out from under the tires, but if you want, you can race the car at a traffic light. During the week's operation, I tried to determine its maximum speed, but since there is no way to get out of the city, I drove around the city.

Up to 100 km/h, acceleration is confident and quite fast, after 100 km/h. less confident, but I can’t say for sure yet.

I got a Suzuki Volty 205 Y (identified by a sticker under the removable seat), black with a non-standard exhaust. Perhaps I would like to say a few words about the exhaust. The standard muffler has a modest and uncertain sound, in my case the sound is loud, bassy and bold. The sound of the Ural motorcycle is very similar, I rode with my father as a child. But I like. They hear me, which means there is a greater chance of being noticed + my helmet is cheerful (bright green is described in the topic “NUT on the head...”), which also helps people notice me. "Passive safety".

I can’t say anything about consumption yet, but I’ve already driven 50 km since the last refueling when the gas ran out. There is fuel in the tank, and in large quantities. According to the Internet, the consumption is from 2.7 liters. up to 4 liters per 100 km. mileage Quite economical.

Driving the motorcycle is not at all difficult; at speed it is easy and unpretentious to control. But at low speeds I have problems, maybe I just don’t know how to drive. I do the same on my bike))))

…..Suspension. Comfortable and soft. Small imperfections in the roadway are absorbed well. On serious bumps it bounces a little, but it’s all tolerable and forgiven.

…..Manual transmission, gear shifting is clear and comfortable. Switching is accompanied by characteristic clicks.

…..Light. Quite bright and wide angle of propagation; if desired, you can plug in a halogen light.

…..Landing. I am comfortable. The saddle is large and soft. People with big butts will fit without problems))))

So, I bought... a 1995 Suzuki Volty. Factory index TU250S. The engine is from an even more ancient (from the 80s) GN250. Power—20 horses. Four valves, overhead camshaft, air cooling of a single pot, one carburetor... everything is simple to the point of primitiveness. BUT! “Cast iron weights don’t break!” And here, too, there is simply nothing to break. The carburetor pleased me with a clever system for adjusting idle speed while the engine is warming up. You pull out the choke before starting, press “Start” and you can go close the garage, put on your ammunition, or just smoke. As it warms up, the lever itself returns to its original position, preventing the mixture from becoming over-rich. Fantastic! :blink:

The motorcycle is not much heavier than my previous one, it definitely doesn’t reach 150 kg.

The saddle is low, but not so low that you feel like you are scraping the asphalt with your butt. Not only can you reach the ground with your legs, but you can even stand up above the saddle. The landing, however, is not chopper, but quite classic. The driver's seat is spacious by my standards. During the first kilometers of acceleration and deceleration, I involuntarily moved along it, like tumbleweeds across the steppe. There is a glove compartment under the driver's seat that can hold a couple of packs of cigarettes. Since I don’t smoke, it’s empty. By the way, despite its age, I got the motorcycle with a standard set of keys, which, in my opinion, no one has ever taken out before.

The pendants are soft, but in moderation. The nose bites when braking, but does not break through the fork. And the rear shock absorbers even have spring preload adjustment. Fantastic! :blink:

The instrument panel is not even minimalistic, but... I don’t have a suitable word :huh: Speedometer with odometer, neutral lamp and warning light (turns on along with turn signals and emergency lights; whether it will show that fuel is running out and it’s time to switch to reserve remains to be seen) . All! no fuel gauge, no tachometer, no gear indicator. On the other hand, the last two named devices are useless. The engine is high-torque, drags the motorcycle from idle until the very moment when the mirrors begin to vibrate. The choice of gear practically does not matter; you can switch from any to any

The controls on the steering wheel are felt by themselves, instinctively. Everything is in its place. There is even a flasher button for high beams. Fantastic! :blink:

By the way, about the speedometer. I got the feeling that he was lying, or rather “under-believing”, that he was showing less than he really was. When I was moving along the Moscow Ring Road at an average Moscow Ring Road speed of 100 km/h (according to my speedometer), for some reason motorists appeared behind me one after another. The error is most likely caused by the non-standard front tire with a hundredth profile instead of the standard three-inch one. I recalculated it on a calculator and it turned out to be an error of about 6% downwards. I’ll have to check the readings somehow, otherwise I’ll never know what the motorcycle’s maximum speed is. In any case, the speed is enough to feel comfortable on the highway and not be afraid that someone will start pushing you from behind, as happened on the Patron :angry:

Acceleration dynamics are better than those of the average foreign car, but worse than those of Lehus-Boomers. I haven’t checked how the motorcycle behaves at high speed in turns - the weather is not the same. But driving at low speed in traffic jams is a real pleasure. The classic landing position, combined with a low center of gravity and low weight, inspires a feeling of justified confidence when maneuvering. In addition, the motorcycle itself is narrow, and its handlebars are not wide.

The motorcycle is stopped thanks to a single-piston front brake caliper. Not so great, of course, but better than the Patron drum brakes.

The gearbox works flawlessly. The gears fit in clearly, without any hiccups. You get to neutral the first time from any position, and without prior training.

The tank holds a bucket of gasoline, 12 liters, which, according to estimates, should be enough for 300 km. I'll check it soon...

Grasstracker Big Boy

The GRASSTRACKER Big Boy version was produced parallel to the main model and was distinguished by increased dimensions and higher ground clearance.

As already mentioned, the bike itself is considered a modification of the Suzuki TU250 Volty, but it also had its own variation, Grasstracker Big Boy .

Its differences were minimal - wheels of a larger diameter, but at the same time it received its own code.

While the main model had the TU250G, the big guy had the TU250GB.

Peculiarities

Left shock absorber.

Right shock absorber.

Dashboard.

The features of the motorcycle included:

• 2 springs for rear shock absorber;
• drum brake on the drive wheel;
• super small instrument panel - speedometer, turn signal and neutral indicators;
• a small glove compartment under the saddle - “to smuggle cigarettes, you can’t put anything else in anyway”;
• low center of gravity, good handling and maneuverability;
• large suspension travel, allowing you to drive even on light off-road conditions without problems;
• reliability - the motorcycle is as simple as a dime, there’s simply nothing to break.

There was also a comfortable fit for people of average height. For tall people, we could recommend the “big guy” (Grasstracker Big Boy).