Look familiar? At a glance, it looks awfully like an old postie bike. Look a little closer though and you’ll notice disc brakes instead of drums, fuel injection instead of a carb’ and LED lights instead of the lame excuse for lights old Hondas have. In a world obsessed with 250kg adventure bikes, the CT125 is a refreshing take on a go-anywhere motorbike.
Honda reckons the CT125 (known as a Hunter Cub in Japan) ‘inherits the CT110’s functional style’ while being ‘refined with equipment and performance that fits into modern life’. Anyone who’s ridden a CT110 before will know how much it’s crying out for some more performance and refinement, so this is definitely welcome news. While Honda’s added a little more of everything, the formula is still particularly basic.
The air-cooled single has been taken from Honda’s beautiful Super Cub 125. In doing so, it’s gained 14cc over the old CT110, with its 124cc making an entire 6kW at 7000rpm and 11Nm at 4500rpm. The little single is fuel-injected and has both kick and electric start for the ultimate in both cool-factor and reliability. Speaking of cool factor, the CT125 has ditched the Super Cub’s low-slung chrome muffler for a high-mount exhaust – just like the old CT110’s.
The CT125’s frame is also based on the Super Cub but has been suitably beefed-up for adventure. The strengthening regime consists of a braced frame neck, swing-arm pivot, rear shocks and subframe. All this means there’s some substance to the off-road style, which is backed-up by a sump guard for those gnarly off-road adventures. It’s a good thing the little single is protected too, as the beauty of the previous CT110s lay in their ability to go pretty much anywhere. Stuck in the mud? Ride it as far as you can, then pick it up and lift it out – the CT125 only weighs 120Kg.
Adding some functionality to the little package is a giant rear rack that serves three purposes: luggage carrier, person carrier and air intake. While the rack is perfect for strapping down all your camping needs, it’s less well suited to its job a passenger seat. Honda has been kind enough to fit retractable rear pegs but not any padding, so we’d be careful about who you offer a lift to, because you may not be on speaking terms afterward. The rack’s final role is as an air intake for the engine. The use of the rack as an air inlet mimics the CT110 and means air is taken from up high, away from dust and water.
All sounds pretty rosy, doesn’t it? Well, the bad news is you’re going to have to stump up $7000 for the privilege of riding one away from an Australian showroom. As we know, you can get a lot more Honda for your money but we’re hard-pressed choosing between the two. What would you prefer?
Check out Honda’s website for more detail.
But wait there’s customs…
While the CT125 has only just been made available for sale, there’s already a tasty custom for us to pore over. This muscular little scrambler from Thailand’s K-Speed was built as a way of prototyping new custom bits for sale.
The K-Speed custom isn’t just a bolt-on special though, with a new subframe and swing-arm fitted. The new swing-arm allows for a chunkier rear tyre, while the subframe holds a new rear-guard and custom toolbox.
The front-end features a new, smaller and caged-in headlight mounted above a raised front fender. The stock speedo has been moved to some custom crash bars, which are tied into a larger bash-plate. Perhaps the only average part of the build is the Gatling-gun styled exhaust, which is a bit shit if we’re honest.
Ditch the exhaust for something a little less West Coast Choppers and you’ve got yourself a capable little custom. Check it out in detail over on Bikeexif.
