Want to get back on 2 wheels, which of these would you go for

richieboy

richieboy

richieboy

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Hi,

About 20 years ago I had a 50cc, then 125cc scooter and I absolutely loved them. Then my CBT expired and I thought I'd better get a car as my job needed me to move kit around.

I don't need to move kit around anymore, and I really want to get back on 2 wheels so have booked up my CBT and am looking at getting one of these (second hand if I can), so my question to you is - if you were back to square one and going for a 125, what would you choose between the below, or are they all terrible? I'd be hopefully keeping this 125 for about 5 years and then deciding whether I want to do the tests for something bigger.

- Suzuki GSXR125
- Lexmoto LXR125 (never heard of these guys myself)
- Mutt mongrel or hilts etc

I've been looking in to it for a couple of weeks and like the above, just don't want to make a big mistake and buy something pants.
 
Out of those the Suzuki, but in reality I'd get something Japanese and cheap like a YBR125 just to get back into it rather than something "sporty" and use the money saved to go towards your full licence. The difference in price between the 2 will almost cover your training and tests.
 
Hey, I just did the same myself, well not recently about 2 years ago, I went brand new, the warranty is a great addition and I've had to use it a few times. You also get free honda roadside assistance with them.

I went for the neo café sports model. The Honda CB125R it's a street looking bike. I personally can't seat in racing position for long so the almost straight handle bars are a must for me. Also I'm 5ft6ins and it's perfect for me. It's quite light and I love the round front light. 84 miles to the gallon and easy to do 70mp/h when needed. Can get more down hill with wind behind you but I don't push it because Cornish roads lol,

Personally I've owned more Honda motorbikes like the CG125 and the NSR JC22 2 stroke model. Don't get the Chinese ones you'll regret it.
 
Out of those, the Suzuki. A used Japanese bike is generally advised over a used or new Chinese bike. I'd recommend used because you should be able to sell it for similar money. I'd recommend avoiding Chinese as people sometimes report having issues with reliability, build quality and getting spare parts. I guess it should be OK if buying new but then you would take a hit on resale value.

I had a 2016 YBR125 for a year while I learned. It might not be the most exciting bike but it was 100% reliable and I sold it for a small profit at the end. The insurance was cheaper for me than a more sporty looking 125 as well.
 
Looks like there's a few YBR125s not too far away, around £1500 gets you a 10 year old one, but I guess if it's not going to fall apart then it's worth a go!

My first scooters 20 years ago were Italjet...my friends description for them was 'looks good, goes fast, falls apart' which was relatively accurate bar the speed thing but he did have a Piaggio Zip :D
 
richieboy said:
My first scooters 20 years ago were Italjet...my friends description for them was 'looks good, goes fast, falls apart' which was relatively accurate bar the speed thing but he did have a Piaggio Zip :D
Click to expand...

Where was this?

A mate of mine had a Dragster 50, it dyno'd at around 18bhp and nothing could catch it up to 50kph. And I mean nothing, he used to dare all the tuner boiz in their Skylines and all sorts :D

Oh, and as for Zips, for about a grand on tuning they'll do this:

 
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This was 2001/2002 down in sunny Sussex, I had an Italjet formula 50 which was alright (occasionally the throttle would stick on, that was fun), and then for some reason I got a formula 125 with twin exhaust and that thing was pretty cool, I wish I'd kept it to be honest it was pretty nippy! Neither were modded or unrestricted etc. Always thought the dragster looked worth a go but never got one for some reason, I think the two exhausts on the 125 lured me in..

My mates zip was restricted, not modded in any way, and struggled to get him up even the slightest incline..top speed was about 41mph, where as the Formula 50 was nearer the 50mph mark, even though I had a couple of stone on my friend on the zip. Good memories of those bikes bar the cold mornings and the occasional minor incident! :cry:

Trying to re-live my youth clearly...
 
Me too, I've committed to getting my full licence next year.

The Formula was ace, the 125 was the twin cylinder iirc.

They've also released a new Dragster, I think it looks awesome.

WD8DiBT.jpeg
 
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