Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

S uzuki 's latest RM 125 is much improved over last yea r's and still has the best suspension package around. Handling is first-rate . adj uster bolts are no longer those oversized 30m m typ e, which would require nothing but a so cket to tighten and loosen th e bolts. The bolts a re small enoug h now th at a wrench ca n get th e job done. The Suzuki has an all -new 35mm TMX Mikuni carburetor w ith a cresent-shaped s lide . Throttle , response is quicker and crisper. Does it roost? The Suzuki isn't ~oi ng to win any hor sepower awards 111 1988, but it ha s "en ough pow er 10 keep most riders happy. Even th ough th e RM isn ' t th e horsepow er king, it does ha ve a powerba nd th at 's enjoyable to live with . Low- end respons e is o ka y, good eno ugh to blast out o f tu rns qu ickly wi th a q u ick fan o f the cl u tch. It 's in the middle o f th e po wer ba nd whe re the RM rea lly hook s up. Keep th e Suzuki in th e middle o f th e pow erband and it 'll reward you with fast lap tim es. T o pend is adequate but nothing to get excited abou t. The transition from low-end to midrange is extre me ly smooth , mak ing the RM easy to co ntro l. Throttle response was always spot on. We never experien ced any hesita tion or . bogging, whatsoever. We did, however, suffer engine reliability problems with our Suzuki. T he top-end stuck twice for no obvio us reason, but further investiga tio n pointed to jetting. The RM co mes jetted for warm weather riding when th e a ir is thin (th us caus ing it to carbu ra te riche r), but both times our Suzuki seized when it was rather coo l, whi ch means th e bike was running leaner, a little 100 lean in ' o ur case. Also, th e Suzuki tak es longer to rea ch prime o pe ra ting temperatures than most 125s andIs sub ject to co ld-seizures. Both times ou r Suzuki 's top-end stuck within the first 10 minutes of riding. The Suzu ki is sens itive to jetting cha nges. T he Su zuki 's transmission is next to flawless. The shi ftlever is easy to find a nd missed shi fts were extremely rare. Clicking th rough th e gears with the po wer o n is no p roblem on the RM , with or wi thou t th e aid o f th e cl u tch . Clutch pull is ex tre me ly light, much lig h ter th an last yea r's RM , whi ch is great, since you' ll be using the clutch a lot on the Suzuki. One finger on the lever is plenty to get th e job done, but both levers (clutch a nd front brake) ar e positioned a little too clo se to the handleba r. T he levers bottom o u t on your knuckl es. The grips a re a little too sho rt, as well. Once again, th e Suzuki's sus pe nsio n packa ge is su pe rb, even bett er than last year's. T he hea vier for k sp ri ngs a nd val ving changes give the RM much bett er feel up front with less bottoming. The back end match es th e front with exce lle nt co ntrol. Th e rear wheel stays close to the ground and rarely hops around exccessively. Stability and predictability is the Suzuki's strong point, You can hold th e throttle ope n longer and harder through a sectio n of gnarly whoops than on an y o ther 125cc motocrosser we've ridden to date. Even if the Suzuki get s a litt le o u t of shape, it doesn 't take much counter action to ge t the R M ba ck under co ntro l. The Suzuki is very ea sy to ride. Ov era ll handling is fir st rate but not the best around. T he RM turns well but you have to keep a n eye on th e ba ck end because of the relatively short 56.9 in ch wh eelbase. If not, th e rea r wh eel lik es to ge t a littl e sq u irrelly by spi tt ing o u t to the sides w he n power in g o u t o f turn s. Alt ho ug h the Suzuki can cu t a fairly tight turn , it's much h appier o u t in th e be r ms leaned ov er with the th rottle wide o pe n. For taller riders, th e Su zuki feels a litt le cra m pe d; it's not un common to 'ta ng le your kn ees with the handlebars. . The seat isn 't very comfortable. The padding wears out quickly and is too thi n in th e back. ' Hauling the Suzuki in for turns is much better now thanks to the swa p to the rear di sc brake a nd new brake pads up front. Pow er is plentiful and controllabl e, alt ho ug h the front brake feels a little spo ngy. Everything on th e Suzuki works 00 00 O'l ....... . The seat's padding is too thin and breaks down quickly. The 1988 Suzuki RM 125 might not be o ne of th e most exci ting MXers to come out o f Japan th is year, but , it certa in ly ranks right up the re with th e best o f th em. It has th e sus pen.sion a nd ha nd ling to co nqe u r anything, but th e motor lacks th at hardhitting punch o ff th e bottom a nd o n to p th at 125s reall y need. But keep the RM revved in the middle of the powerba nd and it'll wi n races. It 's tim e to start taking th e RM seri o usl y, again. • Suzuki RM125J Engine type A new rear disc brake replaces the standard drum set up. freely and clean ly. The levers are easy to use, requiring hardl y any effort , th e handlebars have a com forta ble bend a nd th e th rottle has a light twi st, but needs a qu ick-turn throttle housing. The RM is one o f the most fun 125s a ro und to ride. Even though its overall size is still a tad too small, it 's easy to throw aro u nd in the turns a nd over th e jumps. It 's an excellent jumper and very relax ed in th e a ir. Liquid-cooled, two-stroke. single Bore x stroke. , .54.0 x 54.0mm Displacement , 1 23 cc . Compression ratio 8.2 /0 .3 :1 Carburetor 35mm Mikuni Starting system Primary kick Ignition ..• . , , . Suzuki PEl Lubrication , . Premix Primary dr ive Straight-cut gear Final drive . . . . , . . , . #520 cha in Frame • . . .. •. High-tensile stee l. sem i-double cradle Rake N /A Trail . •• . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . • N /A Front suspension Kayaba cartridge t elescopic fork. 20-way rebound and compression damping adjustments Fork tube diameter 43mm . Front wheel travel 12.2 in', Rear suspension Kayaba single shoc k 2 1 -way rebound and compression damping adjustments. swinga rm Rear wheel t ravel • . . . . . 1 2 .8 in. Fron t brake _ Disc Rear brake _. •.... .. Disc Fron t t ire , . . 80 /100 -21 Bridgestone M51 Reartire 1 10/100-18 Bridgestone M59 Cla imed dry weight . . . .• 201 Ibs Wheelbase . . ... •. .. . .. 56.9 in . -Overall lenqth , ••.• . . . . 83.7 in . Overall w idth . . .... •. •. 32.1 in , 48.8 in . Overall height Ground clearance 14.2 in . Fuel capacity ••. . . . . . .-.-1.8 gal , Seat heig ht _ 37.4 in . Colors •.. • ..... . . . • .• .. Yellow Reta il pr ice , ••• • • • . . ••• $2499 29

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