What 125cc should I buy?

[callmenever]

Hello,

I'm awaiting the arrival of my provisional licence and then I'm doing my CBT. I have been looking around for a long time now at different bikes and I'm still undecided. Could someone advice me please.

The bike I wanna get is the lexmoto lxr 125. Anyone here had any experiences with this company? Is this a good bike? Is they any other recommendations?

I'm also unsure if too go for 2nd hand or brand new, my gut is telling me too go for new seeing as I'll have it for years too come.

My budget would be about £2,500.


Thank you for any advice people, it would be very much appreciated.

 

[Edinho]

Thats a high budget tbh.

I would get a 2nd hand Honda or Yamaha over a Lex.

£1-1.5k would get you a bike then £1000 to put new tyres and a good service and replace parts. The Lex I wouldn't go anywhere near - depreciates like a rocket, Chinese rust bucket and parts are iffy.

The branded 125s are pretty bomb proof and unless you are completely useless with a spanner very easy to work on yourself. Great bikes to get to know your way around them.

 

[BUDFORCE]

Agree on above, get a used Japanese geared 125, honda Suzuki etc.

 

[Minibiker]

Ive seen a few Yamaha YZF-R125's for sale within that budget

 

[ttaskmaster]

As above - Jap 125. Easy to find parts, a wealth of community support and reasonable resale value.
You can even get a decent Shadow or a Dragstar for £1500 easy enough.

 

[callmenever]

Thank you, that's been very helpful.

 

[flea.rider]

i'm 54 and ride a gsx 125 yes you heard right .. why because it's so cheap .. i do split shifts have a 10 mile ride to work and the £12 fill up fee lasts nearly 2 weeks ..
so never did my full .. cost me with ins petrol and cbt and a service bout £320 a yr to run .
so to the op .. get a new bike .. you know most 2nd hand bike will have been screwed about with a run really hard .. so anything will need work doing to it ..
with 2.5k down cash you will be looking at £40 a month over 2 yrs .. and push for a helmet and maybe a jacket for free ..
just call a couple of places see what they offer you .. with rona there giving things away they need the sales ..

 

[Razor-BladE]

Honda/Yamaha 125 engines are solid, imo no need to buy new if it's been serviced regularly.
I have a 17 plate Yamaha YBR that I bought last year (so 2 years old when I bought it) for £1250.

Looking at the marketplace now, seems like prices have shot up massively unfortunately, might still be able to find a bargain somewhere.

 

[Diddums]

i'm 54 and ride a gsx 125 yes you heard right .. why because it's so cheap .. i do split shifts have a 10 mile ride to work and the £12 fill up fee lasts nearly 2 weeks ..
so never did my full .. cost me with ins petrol and cbt and a service bout £320 a yr to run .
so to the op .. get a new bike .. you know most 2nd hand bike will have been screwed about with a run really hard .. so anything will need work doing to it ..
with 2.5k down cash you will be looking at £40 a month over 2 yrs .. and push for a helmet and maybe a jacket for free ..
just call a couple of places see what they offer you .. with rona there giving things away they need the sales ..

Buying a brand new 125 is one of the dumbest things you can do unless it's the last motorcycle you'll ever own. Let someone else take the depreciation.

 

[Hades]

Looking at the marketplace now, seems like prices have shot up massively unfortunately, might still be able to find a bargain somewhere.

I just booked my CBT and the instructor said they are flooded with bookings, presumably as many people want to get away from public transport now.

 

[callmenever]

Thank you. I have looked at Hona bikes before, but nothing that good I don't feel.

Yamaha is a brand I've notice have got some good bikes, so I think I'll try and go with them.

 

[DarkShadow]

Highly recommend Yamaha MT125, not only is it a stunner but compared to other 125s it feels like a proper bike.



If you're still looking in a few months, I may be shifting on to a bigger bike.

 

[Junglist]

My advice would be to skip the 125 and use the money you would've spent and do the Mod1 and Mod2 tests and get a proper bike.

Assuming you're old enough to do so. I can't imagine riding a 125 being fun for more than a few days

 

[callmenever]

Thank you DarkShadow.

I'm still awaiting my provisional licence too arrive, then gotta get CBT done. So it will be a few months yet.

Junglist, I'm 27. I just think it's a big step when never been on bikes before. I'm planing on getting a 125cc then within two years, doing main bike test, that way I have the exspirince.

 

[Junglist]

Junglist, I'm 27. I just think it's a big step when never been on bikes before. I'm planing on getting a 125cc then within two years, doing main bike test, that way I have the exspirince.

Just for a bit of context. I was in the same situation as you. Never rode a motorbike in my life before but always wanted to. I did my CBT just to see if it was something I'd like, turns out I did. After looking at a few 125s I decided that there was nothing really taking my fancy. I went back to where I did my CBT and booked a conversion day which took me from the 125 to a 500 and ultimately a 600 by the end of the day.

Found the 600 infinitely easier and more comfortable to ride than the 125. Ended up booking a few more days of training and did my Mod1 and Mod2 after another month. All in all I think I did 1 day for CBT. 2 Days for Mod 1 and 2 days for Mod2. May have even been less than that all together.

My first bike, and still the one I have now, is a Yamaha R6.

It's not as big of a step as you'd believe. Bigger bikes are much more comfortable to ride and you wont feel like you want to buy a new bike right away.

Just thought I'd show you an alternative view.

 

[DarkShadow]

Just for a bit of context. I was in the same situation as you. Never rode a motorbike in my life before but always wanted to. I did my CBT just to see if it was something I'd like, turns out I did. After looking at a few 125s I decided that there was nothing really taking my fancy. I went back to where I did my CBT and booked a conversion day which took me from the 125 to a 500 and ultimately a 600 by the end of the day.

Found the 600 infinitely easier and more comfortable to ride than the 125. Ended up booking a few more days of training and did my Mod1 and Mod2 after another month. All in all I think I did 1 day for CBT. 2 Days for Mod 1 and 2 days for Mod2. May have even been less than that all together.

My first bike, and still the one I have now, is a Yamaha R6.

It's not as big of a step as you'd believe. Bigger bikes are much more comfortable to ride and you wont feel like you want to buy a new bike right away.

Just thought I'd show you an alternative view.

Depends how you view things. The cost/skill/entry/risk to riding is significantly more.

My neighbor bought an R6 as his first bike, I bought a 125cc. We went out for a blast and I kept losing him because the fear is real. Having ridden extensively across Asia and covering a few thousand miles in the UK, I made the right decision. Having previous ridden 600/1000cc there's a huge difference but it doesn't take away from the riding experience of being on the road.

Granted it's a 125 but it's a real hoot. The guys I ride with have H2, Africa Twin, BMW GS down to a few riders with 125s. I've topped out at 84mph and around the city, it's excellent. On the A-roads, it's been wonderful and in the grand scheme of things, the cost of ownership is minimal. Acquiring a good jap 125 and selling it on whenever you're ready will hardly lose anything in depreciation/overall cost of ownership. In my case, I'm now ready to move on, it served its purpose.

Big bikes are cool but they're faster than most supercars and as such you'll be spending a life time acquiring skills to handle them. What the rush? Just my 2cents.

 

[Junglist]

Depends how you view things. The cost/skill/entry/risk to riding is significantly more.

My neighbor bought an R6 as his first bike, I bought a 125cc. We went out for a blast and I kept losing him because the fear is real. Having ridden extensively across Asia and covering a few thousand miles in the UK, I made the right decision. Having previous ridden 600/1000cc there's a huge difference but it doesn't take away from the riding experience of being on the road.

Granted it's a 125 but it's a real hoot. The guys I ride with have H2, Africa Twin, BMW GS down to a few riders with 125s. I've topped out at 84mph and around the city, it's excellent. On the A-roads, it's been wonderful and in the grand scheme of things, the cost of ownership is minimal. Acquiring a good jap 125 and selling it on whenever you're ready will hardly lose anything in depreciation/overall cost of ownership. In my case, I'm now ready to move on, it served its purpose.

Big bikes are cool but they're faster than most supercars and as such you'll be spending a life time acquiring skills to handle them. What the rush? Just my 2cents.

Granted it's whatever works for OP but I just don't see the point in bothering with a 125cc if the plan is to eventually move onto a bigger bike later down the line.

I know I really don't regret not bothering going that route even though it's the one people advised. 4 years on of riding my R6 and it still makes me smile as much as the first time I rode it home. Yeah it was quite fast initially but you get used to whatever speed is at your disposal very, very quickly.

At the end of the day OP, you know what is right for you. I just wanted to offer an alternative view that I wouldn't recommend getting a 125.

Though your neighbour either needs to man up and grow a pair or sell his bike. No way in hell he should be dropping back from a 125 when he should have lost you before he even got into 2nd gear.

If you're 17 or something I think a 125 is a decent idea. You're 27 and I presume have some road experience. I can't imagine owning a 125 being much fun more than once you've done a few rides on it. You'll get used to it within a week. And you can try and convince yourself that 80mph is plenty fast enough for when you want to blow the cobwebs out but anyone with a right wrist knows that's porkies.

That's not even accounting for longer rides or times when you have no other option than joining a motorway.

 

[flea.rider]

well is the op going to use it as a tool .. or go 140mph and be a tool ?
it's not how quick you do something ..it could just be cost ? and if @Junglist can say his big bike is cheaper than my 125 to run everyday doing 40 miles a day .. ? thats 10 miles each way 4 times a day
his would take more than that to warm up

 

[Junglist]

well is the op going to use it as a tool .. or go 140mph and be a tool ?
it's not how quick you do something ..it could just be cost ? and if @Junglist can say his big bike is cheaper than my 125 to run everyday doing 40 miles a day .. ? thats 10 miles each way 4 times a day
his would take more than that to warm up

I mean it does depend how the OP plans to use the vehicle. For me my bike is about enjoyment and being able to clear my mind - I don't think a 125 would give me the satisfaction I get from mine but I'm not OP and maybe a 125 is perfect for his needs. I can just imagine it being that much more effort with little things... Want to overtake someone? Drop down several gears and hope you've left yourself enough space to do an overtake? Or on a bigger bike do you just twist your wrist that little bit more and get it done quickly and safely.

I'm not completely against 125cc bikes as I want a Honda MSX for a secondary bike to get around town when i don't want to take my main bike/car and they look like a blast to ride but they're their own thing. I just don't really get/like the 125ccs that try to look like a proper bike but are gimped by skinny wheels and tiny engine.

Obviously costs such as insurance, tax and petrol will be higher but the smile will undoubtedly be wider too. £15-20 in my bike is a good day out of riding but when I was using it for commuting to work (~5/6 miles to get in) £15 would last the week or more and I usually took a very long route home. Still was much cheaper than what I would pay for my car. Plus the warm up isn't even bad. I set turn it on and by the time I've got my jacket, helmet and gloves on it's ready to go.

I'm just trying to give OP a different view that maybe a 125 isn't necessarily the best way to go. You may die tomorrow so what's the point in wasting time on something you're just planning to use for a stepping stone. It's not like riding a 125 is any safer than riding a 600/750/1000. If you're going to be an idiot on one of those, it's likely you'll be just as much of an idiot on a 125 but suffer from bad breaks, horrible tyres and constant redlining.

I must admit my only experience with 125s was the Honda CG125 which I did my CBT on and while it was ace at the start of the day I was very used to it by the end.

 

[Diddums]

To be fair, Groms are bloody cool little bikes.