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/126992
.... il.) s: ~ > il.) A n ew disc brake replaces last y ear's drum . Stopping power is strong, and n ot t o o touchy-. o Z The powerband on the Yamaha is super broad and very easy t o m an ag e . The shift lev er is a l ittle short but action is precise. T hrou le response is spot ,o n. AI the slig h test twis t of the throttl e, t he motor immedi at el y snaps to life. Rarel y does th e motor bog or tak e tim e com in g on th e pipe. If th e motor do es fall on its face (as 125s sometimes do ) it usua lly takes just one quick fan o f th e clutch , and the Yamaha h ooks u p dow n th e straights. The m otor is extre me ly easy to use for any level rider. especia lly for more ' i ne x pe r ie nced riders , sin ce th e p owerband is so forgiving; The clutch is easv to use, h as a n extreme ly light pull a nd seems to accep t a ton of abuse without win cing. We p ut th e cl u tch t.o h.ar d work o n m an y occas io ns and 1l d id ge t hot a few ti mes a nd feel a littl e mush y a t th e lever, .b u t th e clutch itself mai nta ined smooth ac tio n. Sh ifting th e Yamaha wa s okay, but no thin g to ra ve a bo u t. Missed sh ifts di d occ u r o nce in a wh ile, however, feci was good. T he Ya maha didn 't ha ve much p rob lem sh ifti ng un der a load , with' o r with ou t th e hel p of ' the cl u tch. For big feet the sh ift lever is a lilli e on th e short side. Ahh , th e forks. T he new Kavab a ca rtridge fork ma kes a n u n be l ie~a b le differen ce in th e way th e Yamaha handl es th e bumps a n d wh oo ps when co m pared to last year 's mod e! with th e Variabl e Dam pin g Sys tem. The fork is so much bett er th an last year's fork it co mp letely cha nges th e way th e Yam aha feel s. Damping ac tio n is much smoothe r a nd th at ha rshness the '8 7 YZ had wh en landing o ff jumps is co m p le tely go ne. There is pl ainl y less movemen t up front making the Ya ma ha less (ir in g to ride. The rider doesn 't have 10 gri p the hand lebars so tigh tly a nd fight head sha ke. Altho ug h th e Mono Cross rea r suspe ns io n isn 't th a t m uch diff erent tha n the Mon o Cross on las t year's YZ, it feels much better. T his has lo t to do wi th th e excelle n t fro nt for k. T he back end does n 't spend as muc h lim e bail ing the Iro n t end ou t o f troubl e a ny more. Both th e front an d rear sus pe ns ions wo rk mu ch more in harm on y tha n before, whi ch makes th e YZ a lo t mo re enjova b te to rid e. T he back end is th e best YZ suspe nsio n yet (a s is t he fro n t): it 's mu ch mo re Sla b le a nd tracta ble and do esn 't bouom nearl y as much o r as ha rshl y. Back end swap is a lmost nonexi su-n t. Th e Yam aha ha s a lw ays been kn own for its stro ng brak es. a nd with th e add itio n o f th e rear di sc, th e YZ has even beuer sto p p ing pow er th an before. We used th e rear br ake a lill ie harder tha n usual o n occas io ns a nd never had pr oblems with the d isc hea ting up a nd fading . Feel o n the brak e peda l is good: no t too to uchy . but th e back end d id bounce aro u nd a li ttl e u nder h a rd brak in g o ver bu mps. Brak in g power up front is a. good a s ever. O ne finger on th e bra ke lever can slow (he bik e do wn qu ickl y. One of the b iggest improvem ents over las t yea r's YZ is th e new gol dco lored han dl eba rs. T hey have a mu ch more co m forta ble ben d a nd it's Visually the only changes to the YZ is the silver-colored motor, d ifferent graphics and the rear disc brake. sti ll easy (0 mov e a ro u nd o n th e motorcycle. The YZ tUIIIS just like th e o ld YZ - pr ecisel y and accu rat ely. It go es w her e it's pointed. a nd the Dun lop tires' h oo k up q uite well. All the co n tro ls o n the Yamaha ar e clean and work smoo th ly. T he grips ar e ok ay hu t not hing like the sana stoc k Ho nda C R grips. Detailing on th e Yam aha is as clean as ever, a nd the gas tank ho lds pl ent y o f fuel. The longest we ever rod e th e Yam aha on one tank is 40 miles, but th ere was sti ll a small su p p ly of gas left over. Forty-five miles sho u ld be no problem. But do we like it? Absolutel v. The new YZI2 5 is a major improvem ent o ver last year 's midpacker, despite its 1987 looks. Yamaha ha s finall y so rted o u t the sus pe ns io n blues on th e YZ, a nd gav e it more pow er a nd a smoothe r a nd broad er powerb and to boot. Corn bine th is with a lready ' p roven YZ tra its, lik e quick co rne ring. stro ng brakes a nd reliahility. a nd yo u have a motorcycle ca pab le of winning on a ny track, a ny whe re. Yam ah a , ya do ne good! • Yamaha YZ 125U Engine type 18 liqui d- cooled, t w o- st roke. single Bore x stroke 56.0 x 50.0mm Displacement 123cc Compression ratio 8 .4-10.5:1 34mm Mikuni Carburetor Horsepower NI A To rque N /A Starting system Primary kick Ignition COl Lubri cation Prem ix Primary dr ive .. Straight-cut gear Final drive #5 2 0 cha in Frame Sing le downtube: spl it double c radle Rake ~ . . . • .. ..... . .. .. . 270 Trail 4 .5-in. Front suspens ion Kayaba cartridge telescopic fork Fork tube diameter 43mm Fron t wheel travel 12 in. Rear suspension Kayaba single shock Rear wheel travel 12.3 in. Front brakes Disc 9 .0-in . Rear brakes D isc 8 .7-in . 80 /1 00-21 K490 Front t ire Dunlop Rear tire ... . 100 /100 -18 K595 Dunlop Claimed dry weight 192 Ibs 84.1 in . Overall length 33.5 in . Overall width 48.8 in. Overall height Wheelbase 57.1 in . Fuel capacity . .. . . • • . . 1 .98 gal. Ground clearance 13.8 in. Seat height 36.8 in. Colors . ... . ... .. .... . •. . White Retail price .....•.... .. $2499