The world seems to have gone mad lately with all of the Chrysler Sno Runners coming out of the woodwork. It’s like there are more for sale now than they ever made. This one is a little different, it’s a 1982 Honda XL250S that was converted to a snowmobile of sorts by a Japanese engineering class. If I had a nickel for every trail bike that was converted into a snowmobile by a Japanese engineering class… (crickets) This interesting creation can be found here on eBay in the beautiful California desert – San Jacinto to be exact. That’s a long way from snow country. The seller has a $3,650 buy-it-now price listed or you can make an offer.
This is about as custom as it gets and the seller says that it was designed and fabricated by a group of Japanese engineering students in the early-1990s. The seller bought it in Japan and imported it to the US, legally, of course. There is no title and I’m not sure if I could even talk my way into getting a title for this one. I’ve had good luck getting titles for oddball two-wheelers that came with a bill of sale, but you won’t need one for this if you have an acre or two to ride it around on.
This would be one heck of a head-turner at a vintage snowmobile show, wouldn’t it? There are quite a few of them in the upper-Midwest and Northeast at this time of year and I would love to show up to one with this thing. I’d want to restore it a bit first, it’s a little rough around the edges as it sits. The seller recently painted it and recovered the seat which I think is super unfortunate. Having it 100% original as it was designed and built would have been so much more appealing, at least for me and anyone who cares about such things.
It looks kind of delicate in certain areas and the seller has never ridden it. I wonder how those rear struts (?) would hold up to some real trail time, or the front suspension. Maybe as good as anything else?
The 20-hp 249 cc single-cylinder four-stroke engine may be the roughest looking part of this unusual snow bike but the seller says that it runs. That’s all they say about the condition, that it starts and runs, but that’s a good sign. I’d vapor blast this thing back to looking like new again, it looks like it sat outside at the Sapporo Snow Festival for a few years. Have any of you seen or, better yet, made a custom snow bike out of a motorcycle?
Well,,,you had to start somewhere. Personally, I feel, dirt bikes is dirt bikes, and snowmobiles are snowmobiles, and never the two shall meet. I think for lake riding or hard packed trails, be ok, fun in fact, but these fall victim to the same problems as the Sno-Runner, the front will plow in deep snow, and looks like conventional shifting, which doesn’t go well in snow. Be pretty helpless once stuck.
Time for you to get updated man ;-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GIsJ2EhsWQ
I see this has the 4 valve head, i wonder if i could convert a atc 250es or trx 250 to that head….
I just saw these racing in the XGames on Saturday. Before that I didn’t even know it was a thing. So they are still making them.
Asking a lot from that 250, I’m guessing it rides OK in a straight line, but it must be a bear to turn with one ski. It’s odd that a snow rig is being sold from a desert location.
IF it was brought here LEGAL, there is paperwork to register it.
Legal with No title equals Suspicious
I think it would be easier to turn than a regular snowmobile, ’cause you could lean into the turn just like on a motorcycle. But I also agree that deep snow would be a challenge.