Talkback: Yamaha YZF-R125

I like yamaha  it is very nice bikes but increase the bike cc plz  

Surely increasing the CC of the bike would ruin its main objective??  this is 'THE' bike for people with only a CBT.  Especially young un's.  I saw one at Squires bar and it had been tricked up a little.  tail tidy, exhaust, mini indicators, undertray, hugger, and seat cowl.  looked good in blue.  from 10 paces away it could of been mistaken for an R6!!!

Its just a pity it looks so good but is so under powered.  Bet there good on the twisty stuff though!!!

What a cool bike. Could be the beginings of a racing class for ordinary people.

lol its a basic, built to a low budget commuter with a few tarty bits. Doesnt even come close to best 125 learner machine. Aprilia's RS125 is far better, along with the Cagiva Mito, even a 15 year old TZR125 would show it up

You havent ridden one. They ride like a proper bike, not a learner or budget bike. Sure, a properly derestricted RS or Mito is an exciting experience, even though you will need a water cooled left ankle to keep it in the zone. Try riding a learner legal RS - they are awful and really shouldn't be sold as Aprilia have made such a poor job of complying to 14.6bhp. The Tzr was a cracker I agree, but the YZF runs for days on a fiver which counts when you are on McD's wages. And.....they don't blow up!

Paul Broughton wrote (see)

lol its a basic, built to a low budget commuter with a few tarty bits. Doesnt even come close to best 125 learner machine. Aprilia's RS125 is far better, along with the Cagiva Mito, even a 15 year old TZR125 would show it up

Despite what you might personally think about the Yamaha YZF-R125, it's neither a basic bike, nor a low budget commuter. And, seriously speaking, the word "tarty bits" simply doesn't apply.

At a present price of 3700 Quid, it's still flying out of dealerships, despite it's not being as fast as an Aprilia RS125. The bikers who buy it, learners or otherwise, know what they are getting. Nobody parts with that kind of money these days without carefully checking out what they are spending it on. The R125 is first and foremost a rather stylish 125cc learner platform, and a well designed one at that. A well balanced, reliable and unpretentious bike, it is the near perfect introduction to (sports) biking, and presents itself as a viable springboard for those learner bikers competent enough to move up to a more powerful bike, once they have adequately mastered the R125.

Tarty bits? Poppycock. You'd make a more valid point suggesting it's a bit of an R6 wannabe without the oomph. Which it is in certain respects - it has a full size body, that is an undeniable nod to the more powerful R6. The truth is, Yamaha got something very right here, whether you like it or not. This was the top selling Sportsbike in the UK barely 2 months ago or whereabouts. Yamaha designed a 125cc bike that turned a 48 year old from the dark side. Yes, I bought one, and i'm very pleased with it indeed. I can handle it. It won't kill me because it's too powerful, and i'm too inexperienced. It builds my confidence each time I ride it (Yes, bikes always scared the living daylights out of me!). And it's got style too. Further, from an economy point of view, it's the antidote to high fuel prices, and provides cheap reliable commuting without looking tacky.

You need to realise that not every (beginner) biker out there is obsessed with speed. Some of us just want to ride. Safely. On a good looking 125cc bike. For a great many bikers out there, the YZF-R125 ticks ALL the right boxes. It really is a very good bike.

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The 21st century is a con. Where's my Hoverbike, 3 day working week & Holiday on the Moon?

Lol at all the people saying increase the power - that's what the Thundercat and r6 are for...there would be no point making it a 250 or 400 as they wouldn't be that quick either. This is basically for learners or commuters at a push.

And Britains best selling bike for the month of August 2009 is.....for the 2nd month running, the Yamaha YZF-R125! So sayeth the press. Like I said, there's something in them thar YZF-R125s.

I rest my case.

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The 21st century is a con. Where's my Hoverbike, 3 day working week & Holiday on the Moon?

a mate of mines got one and cant get his knee down without binning it, bless him

and my CG's got higher acceleration and top speed xD

stick a 2 stroke tzr engine in it !

the one i heard the other day sounded like my lawnmower !

I own one of these beautys and for a legal 125cc bike that out accelerates a derestricted RS125 up to 55mph-ish and can outcorner just about everything provided you know what your doing.

Top speed of 85mph, 150mpg at full throttle 100% of the time, cheap insurance as its a 125, and it handles like a big boys bike without the added weigh.

It is the perfect bike to learn on, commute on, and to hone your riding skills with before you move up the CC range.

i own an 2009 yamaha YZF-R125 harga X-box ltd version. after stepping up from a race tuned yamaha Areox the power increase was small, althought its rides like a dream and looks the buisness. i fitted it with a yoshi exhaust system that makes it sound more like a big single yamaha, but the bit that amazed me was that i hammered it all day long and still got 90+ mpg . thought this was amazing, then if i ride it a little bit more forgiving its 130 -150 mpg. the bike is extremely forgiving and handles like a bike should... it will hold in any corner, and stop on a ten pence  just a real shame that there is a limited amount of tuning upgrades. over all an amazing bike glad i bought this rather than a aprillia rs125 that would be worse on fuel and not as reliable as this 4 stroke dream...

antimagneto wrote (see)

You havent ridden one. They ride like a proper bike, not a learner or budget bike. Sure, a properly derestricted RS or Mito is an exciting experience, even though you will need a water cooled left ankle to keep it in the zone. Try riding a learner legal RS - they are awful and really shouldn't be sold as Aprilia have made such a poor job of complying to 14.6bhp. The Tzr was a cracker I agree, but the YZF runs for days on a fiver which counts when you are on McD's wages. And.....they don't blow up!

Given that the main aspect of a learner bike is the fact that they are 125cc...I would say it pretty much does ride ride like a learner bike. Probably. Certainly more in common with a CG125 than an R6, despite the looks.

DataOdyssey wrote (see)

Paul Broughton wrote (see)

lol its a basic, built to a low budget commuter with a few tarty bits. Doesnt even come close to best 125 learner machine. Aprilia's RS125 is far better, along with the Cagiva Mito, even a 15 year old TZR125 would show it up

Despite what you might personally think about the Yamaha YZF-R125, it's neither a basic bike, nor a low budget commuter. And, seriously speaking, the word "tarty bits" simply doesn't apply.

At a present price of 3700 Quid, it's still flying out of dealerships, despite it's not being as fast as an Aprilia RS125. The bikers who buy it, learners or otherwise, know what they are getting. Nobody parts with that kind of money these days without carefully checking out what they are spending it on. The R125 is first and foremost a rather stylish 125cc learner platform, and a well designed one at that. A well balanced, reliable and unpretentious bike, it is the near perfect introduction to (sports) biking, and presents itself as a viable springboard for those learner bikers competent enough to move up to a more powerful bike, once they have adequately mastered the R125.

Tarty bits? Poppycock. You'd make a more valid point suggesting it's a bit of an R6 wannabe without the oomph. Which it is in certain respects - it has a full size body, that is an undeniable nod to the more powerful R6. The truth is, Yamaha got something very right here, whether you like it or not. This was the top selling Sportsbike in the UK barely 2 months ago or whereabouts. Yamaha designed a 125cc bike that turned a 48 year old from the dark side. Yes, I bought one, and i'm very pleased with it indeed. I can handle it. It won't kill me because it's too powerful, and i'm too inexperienced. It builds my confidence each time I ride it (Yes, bikes always scared the living daylights out of me!). And it's got style too. Further, from an economy point of view, it's the antidote to high fuel prices, and provides cheap reliable commuting without looking tacky.

You need to realise that not every (beginner) biker out there is obsessed with speed. Some of us just want to ride. Safely. On a good looking 125cc bike. For a great many bikers out there, the YZF-R125 ticks ALL the right boxes. It really is a very good bike.

A well written piece, apart from the fact that you say it's unpretentious. It is a little bit pretentious, in the way it styles itself like, and markets itself as a sportsbike when under the hood it really is just a learner commuter 125cc bike. It's really not going to be much faster round a track than a CG125. Great bike, I agree, but not a sportsbike...which makes it a tiny bit pretentious for pretending to be.

James Baitup wrote (see)

I own one of these beautys and for a legal 125cc bike that out accelerates a derestricted RS125 up to 55mph-ish and can outcorner just about everything provided you know what your doing.

Top speed of 85mph, 150mpg at full throttle 100% of the time, cheap insurance as its a 125, and it handles like a big boys bike without the added weigh.

It is the perfect bike to learn on, commute on, and to hone your riding skills with before you move up the CC range.

Bullshit. 150mpg on full throttle ALL the time?

You're full of shite. You obviously don't understand what full throttle means.

Handles like the big boys bikes? Can 'out-corner everything'...not sure about that. It hasn't got the tyres or suspension to out-corner very much at all. How would you know anyway as a learner 125cc rider?

85mph? Down a very steep hill with the wind behind you maybe.

It's a great bike mate, but come on, you don't need to bullshit about it. Don't pretend it's something it's not. To compare it to bigger sportsbikes is only going to end in disappointment for you. Just enjoy it for what it is, which is a very fancy looking learner bike and a good introduction to a sports riding position.

Ryan Elliott wrote (see)

i own an 2009 yamaha YZF-R125 harga X-box ltd version. after stepping up from a race tuned yamaha Areox the power increase was small, althought its rides like a dream and looks the buisness. i fitted it with a yoshi exhaust system that makes it sound more like a big single yamaha, but the bit that amazed me was that i hammered it all day long and still got 90+ mpg . thought this was amazing, then if i ride it a little bit more forgiving its 130 -150 mpg. the bike is extremely forgiving and handles like a bike should... it will hold in any corner, and stop on a ten pence  just a real shame that there is a limited amount of tuning upgrades. over all an amazing bike glad i bought this rather than a aprillia rs125 that would be worse on fuel and not as reliable as this 4 stroke dream...

There's hardly any tuning upgrades because it's a learner bike, so as soon as you start to tune it the BHP gets above the legal limit ad it ceases to be legal...if you want something faster and have lots of money to throw at it then just get your test done and move up to a bigger bike as soon as you can!

Tuning a 125cc bike really doesn't make a lot of sense, which is why not many people really bother. 

Dear, oh dear, oh dear.

Nobody singing the praises of the YZF-R125 in this thread (so far) has gone to the rather pointless task of boasting about how the YZF-R125 beats the pants off the Honda CG125 and the like. I rode a Honda CG125 for my C.B.T, and I can say for certain, that was nowhere near as sophisticated as my R125. And it's not as fast. We R125 riders generally don't suffer from "my mercedes is bigger than yours" syndrome. We've made our choices, bought a nice bike and we ride it. And Hell, we're pretty pleased with our purchases, so we've all gathered here, to sing our GUARDED praises to the little (er, full bodied, actually) R series Yamaha.

When is a Sportsbike a Sportsbike? Some may think it's when it is an R1, boasting 1000 horses, fitted with a can that howls like a Banshee in a bad mood. Aprilia RS125 owners will swear their bikes are Sportsbikes, and will wave lightsabers at you if you dare to disagree. We R125-ers are intelligent enough to understand that our rides are not Yamaha R1s. However, we ALL acknowledge that the R125 does handle exceedingly well, compared to some 125cc offerings i'd rather not mention. Have you ever seen a biker on a Yamaha R1 or R6? Have you actually noticed the way they sit on the bike? You have to sit the same way on an R125. You sit on a chassis that's has sportsbike styling. It's not a scooter. And it's not a Classic CG125 design. Sorry.

And nobody seriously thinks it is a Supersports Bike. That it isn't!

DataOdyssey

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The 21st century is a con. Where's my Hoverbike, 3 day working week & Holiday on the Moon?

Yamaha describe their own creation as an introduction to sports biking. They describe it as a Sportsbike. It's a nice hook we've all cheerfully bitten, one designed to eventually get us to upgrade to an R6 or R1, I reckon. Kudos to Yamaha, nice marketing! The YZF-R125 is flying off the forecourts, regardless of what its detractors think. Yes, we all know it's a 125cc machine. Deal with it. No need to try and put down the highly popular, yet equally highly competent Learner Platform, just because it has a 125cc engine. We know. We already ride it. Once run in, the R125 does give very good performance indeed, if you're bold enough to try. We're all on L plates, so not all of us want to ride like Valentino Rossi. Yet. We're LEARNING. Part of the learning process is managing the output of the 125cc engine.

The design format of the YZF-R125 is "Sportsbike". It's NOT a trackday machine, not with that 125cc engine anyway. It's also a learner platform. It's a choice - and it's selling like hotcakes. Yes, I prefer to look like an R6 wannabe, cruising down the A406 to work on my R125. I'm hunched over the handle bars sportsbike style, Kriega Rucksack on my back, commuting to work, instead of having a storage box like you might find bolted on a CG125 (no disrespect to CG125 owners, it's a nice bike too!). This is my biking style choice. And the choice of many other 125cc bikers. It might be deemed impractical by some, but, that IS part of the fun. Most drivers will SEE a sportsbike - 125cc or 1000cc, they can't always tell when you are on the move (yeah, seasoned bikers will, of course). Some might mistake it for an R6 - yup, that styling definitely influenced my decision to purchase it in the first place. So, no news there then. Yamaha R1s, R6s and other supersports bikes might fly past me too. Am I bothered? Er, no. Like it or not, accept it or not, I look cool on my R125 (to some people anyway), cruising to work at just slightly above the speed limit (i'm still running it in). And, yes, i'm now having immense fun exploring the (limited, compared to a 600cc, yet inspiring) capabilitiesof my bike. I can assure you it's no CG125, and from a handling point of view, it is far more fascinating. I doubt most R125 owners purchase one with a view to getting their knee down - I believe you need special tyres for that sort of thing anyway.

They do race YZF-R125s on the continent you know? True, the engines have a Malossi kit upgrade or something, but they do race them. There IS a category for them. Ergo, the YZF-R125 is styled as Sportsbike. Albeit, not in the 600cc category, rather in the learner category. It was always meant to be an introduction to biking. It's not an R6 - we all know that. And it's not a CG125 either, even if it has 125 horses too. We all know that too - well, those of us who actually ride the R125 for sure.

DataOdyssey

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The 21st century is a con. Where's my Hoverbike, 3 day working week & Holiday on the Moon?

You sound like you work for Yamaha. You actually speak in marketing blurb.

Weird.

But we're on the same page; the thing I took issue with was when you said it was 'unpretentious'...which really it isn't, comparitively, in the grand scheme of things.

In terms of bikes pretending to be what they're not, the YZF125 certainly figures higher than some. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but unpretentious it is not.

You've pretty much summed it up yourself; the 'sportsbike' tag is just something Yamaha have attached which everybody bought into...its about the image, not the sports pedigree. Again, not a bad thing, but that does mean that it is not particularly unpretentious in the grand scheme of things, compared to other bikes.

Yes, you definitely do look cool* they're a great looking bike. But unpretentious, no.

*not as cool as you'd look if you got rid of the L-plates...get your test done! What's stopping you? If you can afford a £3700 learner bike you can afford some lessons to make you a better and safer rider! Someone wearing a shellsuit on a battered C90 would look cooler than you if they didn't have L-plates. You look the part...Kriega rucksack, bike, etc...but then the L-plate ruins it all. The L-plate makes it look a little...pretentious?

I also don't understand how you can compare your bike's performance and handling to other bikes.

How on earth do you know? Half a day on a CBT is hardly an exhaustive test...you probably never got above 40mph and certainly wouldn't have exactly put it through it's paces handling wise.

So how do you know the R125 is 'far better handling'? Add into the mix the fact that your CBT bike was possibly very old, not to mention the fact that during the first 7 hours you spend on a bike, ever, you're hardly in a position to make a valid assessment of the bike's capabilities!

You like your R125 because it's familiar to you, but if you jumped on a brand new CG125 and got used to it you probably wouldn't notice all that much difference, both in terms of power and handling.

I'm not having a go at your bike, or you, but I am having a go at the way you announce that your bike is better than other 125 machines despite your lack of experience, and the fact that you describe it all as unpretentious.

Because riding a fully faired, sports style bike with a Kriega rucksack and full leathers (I don't know whether you wear full leathers or not) but with a 125cc engine and L-plates looks pretty cool, and is perfectly understandable, but it is also a little bit pretentious.

No, I do not work for Yamaha.
And I do not parrot their sales blurb lightly, those are my personal opinions, i'm afraid.
I've never laid claim to being a seasoned biker.
One year ago, I was scared "bleep" less of motorbikes but I forged ahead and did a CBT over 2 days, so I did get acquainted with the CG125 rather intimately, thank you very much.

You have absolutely no idea who I am, or what my capabilities of assessing any form of transport technology are, so it's probably very bad form on your part to get so incredibly personal while trying to predict, or better still, assume what my capabilities in that respect are. I do not have to have a full bikers licence, to assess the basic, or indeed general characteristics of different 125cc bikes.
This talent varies widely from human to human, and indeed with different beings too.

Did you read my first article properly?
Do you ever read any of my articles properly? Because this is not the first time that you've swooped on something I have written, and gone to great lengths to nitpick at what most erudite people can clearly see are trivialities.

I clearly mention AFTER the "unpretentious" statement, that "the R125 IS a bit of an R6 wannabe without the oomph". That means it IS pretentious. Actually, it depends entirely on how you DO interpret the bike. And you are best empowered to do that, when you ride it. Or, better still, own it.

You regularly raise a storm in a teacup about bikers on here dumping their L plates and getting a full bikers licence. Just a reminder, we live in a world of choice. I will ride WITH L plates if I want to. I'm doing it, first and foremost for me.

Unlike you, who seems to repeatedly post in different threads about how you've got a full licence, and anybody who hasn't got one is, how shall we say - inferior? Small? Imperfect?, i'm quite satisfied with what I have at the moment. And I shall progress at my pace, as I see fit.

You really need to understand, I do not have any ego to bruise, when it comes to biking. I ride a 125cc sportsbike. I probably ride like a girl (Girls ride properly and carefully, by the way, with a graceful poise. And they don't go testosterone crazy, like SOME guys). Hell, my "personal trainer" after my CBT was, still is a woman. And she's half my age. Am I bothered? Not a bit. As the Vulcans would say with a raised eyebrow, "Ego is irrelevant" in this matter.

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The 21st century is a con. Where's my Hoverbike, 3 day working week & Holiday on the Moon?