Enduro racing and off-road dirt bikes were hot in the 1960s and 1970s, along with other personal fun machines like snowmobiles, mini bikes, etc. They’re much more sophisticated today but as with any vintage vehicles, there’s something fun and interesting about the old stuff. This 1975 Yamaha DT250B can be found here on Facebook Marketplace in Acworth, Georgia and the seller is asking $3,450. Here is the original listing, and thanks to PRA4SNW for the two-stroke tip!
Yamaha came out with the DT-1 in 1968 and it was the grandfather of the DT-series that grew into a well-respected line of dual-sport motorcycles that the company innovated and some say, all but invented. There were on/off motorcycles before Yamaha’s DT series, of course, just as there were front-wheel drive cars before the ’66 Toronado and hybrids before the Prius and every other seemingly modern invention. These DT bikes worked well on paved roads and in off-road riding.
A serious dirt bike may not have turn signals – the “blinky-light” things that nobody uses anymore – but they’re nice for those of us who still use them. The DT-1 was built, for most intents and purposes, with U.S. customers in mind only, as there was an incredible market here for off-road bikes that could be ridden on the street with the appropriate (and legal) lighting, exhaust, etc. The DT250 was made from 1971 through 1982 and I’m kicking myself for never having owned an off-road or on/off Yamaha. We saw a very similar example here on Barn Finds way back in 2018.
Yamaha made many DT bikes from 50cc to 400cc and this 1975 DT250B looks like it’s in nice shape. The seller has owned it for the last eight years or so and they take it on vacations to Florida and ride the back roads. A rear bumper/hitch motorcycle carrier would be perfect for one this size and weight (around 270 pounds). They say it sits in their basement most of the time and just isn’t being used that often so that’s why it’s for sale. Hagerty is at $3,000 for a #3 good example and $5,500 for a #2 excellent bike. My brother had an early-80s Honda XL600R single and it was an absolute thumping beast. You couldn’t even kick-start it without using the compression release lever. Here’s a pic of it next to my ’78 Yamaha XS750E, another black-engine bike.
The engine is Yamaha’s 246cc two-stroke single with around 20 horsepower and enough power to be scary for some of us, just right for most, and underpowered for those with years of dirt bike experience. I haven’t owned a single-cylinder this “big” but would love to have this one. Have any of you owned a Yamaha DT250 or other DT bikes from Yamaha?
All smiles on this one, SG! :) In the 70s, when I had my Suzuki TS400, a friend in Phillips, Wis. lived on his parents dairy farm, that I ended up living on before moving to Colorado. “Tim” had this exact bike and we rode the snowmobile trails in summer. He had “Bushwacker” painted on the tank, and we did a lot of riding. It, like the Suzuki never missed a beat, and we slogged through some rough going. Regarding the turn signals, those usually went missing the 1st time it was dumped. Bars, pegs, ankles all took a beating, but all in good fun. I’m sure the “Bushwacker” is still sitting in the corner of their barn, under an inch of dust and bird droppings with all the other outdated machinery, but if it isn’t stuck, there’s no question it would fire. Tough to find these, most are at the bottom of those piles of old motorcycles we see. I’d love to have this, and while I’m not about to go to Georgia, I do check FB in my area, just in case one shows up. Great find.
Owned a 1970 RT1 360, 1st year for those and it was my only transportation as a 16 year old. Put 12,000 miles on it in 1 year. Loved it since it spent about as much time on sugar sand trails in so Fla as it did on pavement. This one is way more refined than my RT1. Most of these had a 6V brake, tail light, blinkers and horn but the headlight had an AC lighting coil so the headlight only worked when the engine was running. Iām looking for a DT 400 now to compliment my RD400. This one will bring more smiles per mile. Enjoy.
People that don’t use those “blinky type things” now days, are why it’s becoming scarier to ride every year. Great write up on this Yamaha, Mr. Gilbertson!
Edit: you’re right, Rw.
Back in the day we called “dual sport” bikes enduros.. And I remember seeing these DT series bikes all over the streets and trails, in different sizes and colors. A lot of people removed the road goodies and ran them strictly on the trails and fixed them when they broke( the motors were easy to tear down and put back together), then rode them some more. Good times!
Tune in tomorrow when Scotty decides if he will ‘calm down”.
Pal of mine had a DT175MX, which had a monoshock. There might still be an exhaust in my lockup…
In the day, these, and machines like them were called an Enduro. Dual Purpose came along much later than this Enduro. I have had them all at one time or another. The Suzuki TS machines were great, some had Hi/Lo transmissions. Yamaha had the DT series, Kawasaki and Honda offered similar. I wish I could have the $$ back I spent on all of them. My favorite was a TS 185. My wife used it for daily transportation. Suzuki sold factory hop up kits for the TS. I put one on a TS 125 and raced it in motocross, Fast but did not handle for anything. What did I know – I was 15. Fun
Cool š like most everything from
” The Piano Maker”
Best motorcycle I ever owned was an Enduro 175. I’m guessing 1969 as the year but since we hardly ever rode it on the road it was never licensed. Light and quick was all a teenager needed in those days. I think I paid $250 as the plug was fouled and line blocked, My memory is that it had some kind of oil injection because I don’t remember mixing. Dark green metallic with matte black exhaust and shield. Up in the local hills I was Superman and Batman all in one. Or felt like it, anyway. Great find
I remember the DT-1 when it came out. Right away people started to install GYT-Kits. Made them pretty hot to handle but a lot of them started showing up on the Motocross tracks. They began a trend which carried on for many years.
The Rising Sun did a pretty good job overall but I still have to say that they were good at copying. I look at the engine on this one and realize that I saw lots of these configurations on Maico. The Monoshock that came out somewhat later was an invention by Maico. I’m a little surprised that the Earls front fork that was used by Greeves wasn’t copied…
I remember the GYT kit! They were faster than everybody within double their cc’s. I didn’t get one due to cost and there was some additional upkeep that was more than periodical. Maybe I was just too broke and that was something I told myself? A neighbor had a CL450 and a 250 Enduro with the kit ran circles around him at town speeds. Very impressive upgrade.
I knew a couple of brothers who got a Yamaha dealership. Truth be known, I think it was so they could get their personal rides at cost. Plus they supplied a lot of the community. Anyways, both of them got DT-1s and installed GYT Kits. Performance was great but they both said that they needed some more wheelbase to keep the front end on the ground. They would wheelie at the mere thought. It makes sense too.
These 70’s Yamaha DTs always catch my eye. My first bike was a ’74 DT400 and it was a blast!
When I needed something bigger for commuting back and forth to work, I replaced it with a ’79 XS750F – like Scotty’s bike, but not dressed up. It was a triple cylinder black beauty.
If I ever took photos of them, they are well hidden away.
I have its twin in my garage.