Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126943
Most of the changes to the CR are internal, such as having a longer stroke motor, a redesigned ATAC and a new case reed-valve. The cartridge Showa forks are the same ones found on the larger CR250 and 500 but have slightly less travel. Performance is first rate. CR, but there's more power throughout the range. Bottom end is still good, but our bike, with stock jetting, had a slight hesitation at low RPM and would bog ex.i Ling extremely tight turns. However, a quick fan of the clutch (or two) would bring the motor back on the pipe, allowing the bike to hook up and power out of the turns. Once on the pipe, the Honda pulls hard and keeps pulling hard throughout the power band in a predictable manner. This makes the: Honda rather easy to ride for such a power£ull 125cc motocrosser. The only real complaint we have with the CR's motor is the super short kickstarter lever. It's so short and has such a weird bend that it's hard touseand, if you 'I'e notcarefull, you can painfully smash your foot on the footpeg at the bollom of the stroke. But the major problem is getting a good enough kick to turn the motor over enough to start it. It usu· ally takes a bunch of quick, fast jabs on the lever before it fires to life. Our CR was always hard to stan when cold. It rarely started with less than 10 kicks, and sometimes it wouldn't start at all, usually when the fuel petcock was left on for a long period of time. Once it does fire to life, it takes forever to warm up. We usually let the Honda idle for at least a minute or so before pUlling it into gear and dropping the clutch. Even then, we still had to ride it around for Honda CR125R Engine type ..... Water-cooled, two-stroke, single Bore x stroke NI A Displacement 124.Bcc Compression ratio 8.8:1 Carburetor. __ _34mm Keihin Horsepower 34.5 BHP @ 11,500 Torque ..•.............. N/A Starting system. _.. Primary kick Ignition ..• _ _ COl Lubrication. . . . . . . . . . .. Premix Primary drive Straight-cut gear Final drive _ Chain Gear ratios Primary 3.150; 63/20 Final . _ 3.923; 13/51 6th .•........ 1.000; 24/124 5th 1.130; 26/123 4th .. _ 1.285; 27/21 3rd 1.526; 29/19 2nd 1.823; 31/17 1st •..•..•.... 2.230; 29/13 Frame .. , ... , Single downtube, split double-cradle Rake , 26° Trail 4.1 in. Front suspension , .. Telescopic fork Fork tuba diameter ...•.. 43mm Rear suspension .. single-shock, swingarm Front brake Disc Rear brake _.. Disc Fronttire 80/100-21 in. K490 Dunlop Reartire 100/100-18in. K595 Dunlop Claimed dry weight 192.9 Ibs. Overall length 84.1 in. Overall width 32.5 in. Overall height 48.4 in. Wheelbase 57.1 in. Fuel capecity 1.7 gal. Ground clearance. . . . . . .. NI A Color , _ Red Retail price $2298 On the track, there isn't anything the Honda doesn't do well, but it's the motor that makes the CR really shine. Midflight stability is superb. a while before we could get down to some serious riding. After the motor is ~t, 99% of the time the Honda starts on the fiTSt kick. The new Showa cartridge fork is no better or worse than last year's excellent Kayaba-made unit. The Showa fork has exceptionaly smooth action over all types and sizes of bumps and jumps. There are no harsh spots throughout the stroke, so the front end gives a feel of super control when jamming over rough sections of track at high speed. The back end is a different story. Although better than last year's CR, the Pro-Link suspension doesn't quite match the smoothness of the front fork. The Kayaba shock handles medium- to large-size bumps okay, but over the smaller, sharp-edged bumps that are usually found when powering out of turns, the back end bounces around a bit. It feels as though the Kayaba shock packs too much under acceleration and loses some of its smooth action. But over the bigger bumps, the rear suspension work~ well and stays close to the ground, making the CR very stable at high speeds. We did notice orne fading after long periods of riding. Turning the Honda is simple and predictable. It goes where it's pointed and, combined with its good tires, the CR gets in and out of turns quickly. The bike loves plowing through berms, but can hugan inside line almost as well. Good seating position, a narrow layout and comfortable-bend handlebars hel p a great deal. Overall handling is [irst rate on the Honda, especially in the braking department. The front disc brake has perfect feel; one finger on the easy-toreach front brake lever is all that's needed to achieve the right amount of power. The front brake has just the right amount of play, and never had any problems with air bubbles building up in the brake line. The new rear disc brake has excellent feel. Using a rubber hose and a single-piston caliper makes the rear disc not too touchy but strong enough to control the rear wheel. We didn't experience locking up problems normally associated with rear disc brakes. However, we did notice the tendency [or the re-ar wheel to hop and chatter when braking over bumpy terrain, more than last year's CR, since there is no longer a full-floating torque arm with the disc unit. So some of the advantage of having a disc brake over a drum system is lost right there. But when it comes to plain 01' stopping power, the Honda has more than enough. Conclusion Honda's gamble of completely redesigning its already proved CRI25R paid off in a big way. The 1987 CR 125 has stronger power, a smoother powerband, better suspension and more precise handling than the 1986 CR - that's saying a lot. •