1988 HONDA TRX250R

What is the one quad that’s most worthy to be collected, restored and preserved for mankind to never forget? Most hardcore veteran ATV enthusiasts would put Honda’s TRX250R at the top of that list. It was only in production for the model years ’86, ’87, ’88 and ’89, but even today it still remains the most significant high-performance two-stroke quad ever made.

Honda didn’t invent that category. That credit belongs to Suzuki, who introduced the first quad ATVs, and gave us the first 250cc, two-stroke, performance quad in 1985. Honda saw the writing on the wall soon after the Quadracer arrived and used it as a target to shoot for as its engineers developed a 4-wheeled version of their ATC250R. The end result was so good that the TRX250R dominated ATV racing for the next 15 years.

There are a great number of ATV riders who still appreciate this legendary machine and make a point to keep pristine versions in good running order. There are some that are restored to original condition as they sat on the dealer’s showroom floor, but there are many more that have been continually improved with the latest parts available. In other words, they’re still being ridden fast on a regular basis.

Benjamin McMillion in Ohio is a TRX250R owner who doesn’t park his quad in a museum. He saw no reason to keep his 1988 model locked into a time capsule of that year. Instead, it has the latest CT Racing 330cc engine that they offer. It also has the best suspension available from Fox and Lonestar Racing. He gets reminded on a regular basis how fast his 250R is and how well it handles and how good the suspension is. This photo of him proves he doesn’t baby his machine, even in the mud. He says, “If you can’t ride it, why have it.”