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/128161
rom the I've spent most my recent riding time on a Service Honda CRSOO and a Yamaha Z426Fnot exactly the perfect lead-in to a 125cc intro - but when Kit and Chris invited me to try out the new RM125, I couldn't pass it up. Who wouldn't want to ride a brand·new bike on a rented-out track, especially when it's just around the comer? I was even able to duck into work for a couple hours in the afternoon. My first few laps were ridden one gear too high, but after a half-hour or so, I got to where I was feeling aggressive again. It was a good thing, as the bike doesn't seem to have a ton of power down low, something that Kit and Chris also pointed out. It's defmiteIy a mid-top type of motor, and once you get it into its sweet spot, it really pulls hard. Saddleback doesn't have any super-long straights, so we weren't able to really wring the RM out, but I could tell that it wanted to go fast, which is a good sign with a 125. The jetting felt good and clean, so we didn't even mess with the airscrew. I love the ergonomics of the bike. You just look at it and you can tell that it's flat and easy to move around on. The seat used to be so spongy that I would blow through it and hit my tailbone on the frame, but it feels better now. Suzuki layouts used to feel like a skateboard ramp, where you were locked in, but now you can slide up and back, no problem. It also seems adaptable. Tall guys and short guy alike feel comfortable and look at home on the RM125. It's light and maneuverable in the air, and it's completely predictable; it does the same thing every lap. Suzukis always comer well, but this one also feels stable across rough stuff; it doesn't kick out to the side or anything. Saddleback is pretty smooth, so we didn't really get the opportunity to abuse the suspension, but it seems pretty good so far. Kit, Chris and I are all close to 170 pounds, and the RM didn't feel mushy to us, which is impressive for a 125. It feels a little soft when you first sit on it, but there was a huge double that I came up a little short on a couple of times, and the bike soaked the landing up nicely. Suzuki also got the details right. Clutch-pull is easy, and there's no lack of power in the brakes. I rode an '02 RM I 25 quite a bit, and the shifting never felt positive, but I never missed a single shift all day on the '03. Chris missed one. but it was on the '02 that Suzuki brought out for comparison. My only real complaint so far is the lack of bottom-end - you'll definitely be looking for those outside, momentum-maintaining lines - though some of that impression may be due to all of my Open-bike riding lately. Don Burke 7/212002 7/212002 7/212002 7/212002 7/212002 7/212002 7/212002 7/212002 7/2/2002 7/212002 7/2/2002 7/212002 7/212002 7/2/2002 7/2/2002 7/312002 71312002 7/412002 27/4/2002 7/412002 716/2002 7/7/2002 7/9/2002 7/9/2002 7/9/2002 7/9/2002 7/9/2002 7/9/2002 7/912002 7/912002 7/9/2002 7/912002 7/912002 7/912002 7/1012002 7/1012002 7/11/2002 7/11/2002 like Danny Smith and Branden Jesseman. That being the case, Suzuki would have been silly to throw a host of unnecessary changes at its newmodel-year tiddler. Instead, the company Wisely opted to grace the yellow best even better. 7/1112002 We recently attended the press demo of the RM125, which is the first '03 model we've received so far. We still have a lot of riding and testing screamer with focused improvements ahead of us on the bike, but we in isolated problem areas, hoping to thought we'd give our readers our ini- thereby make what was arguably the tial impression of the little 'Zook. eN Intro Info TRACK: Saddleback Motorsports Pork. Silverado. California TRACK STYLE: Short. tight on hardpack CONDITIONS: Disked. watered & groomed (smooth) WEATHER: 85 0 f' & sunny TIME ON BIKE: Approximately three hours RIDERS: One Vet Pro: two Vet Intermediates ADJUSTMENTS TRIED: Set sag ~!J(JfJ(0&:Jfs[j@fiik"3g 2003 Suzuki RM125 ENGINE: Two-stroke, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled, crankcase-reed BORE x STROKE: .....................•.....................54 x 54.5mm DISPLACEMENT: ..............................•.................124.8cc COMPRESSION RATIO: _.. _ .. _.. _ 8.9/10.7:1 CARBURETOR: .....................•.••• _.•••••• , ..•.••..Mikuni TMX38S IGNITION: .................................•.......................CD! TRANSMISSION: Six·speed FRONT SUSPENSION: _ .Inverted Showa fork wI 12.2 in. travel REAR SUSPENSION: .......•........Showa shock w/ separate high- f, low-speed compression damping f, 12.6 in_ travel RAKE/TRAIL: _.. _ 27.50 /I 15mm FRONT BRAKE: .....•.••.....••••••••......................Hydraulic disc REAR BRAKE: .............•••.•••• _• _••••••.••• _••.••.....Hydraulic disc FRONT TIRE: _ 80/100-21 51M REAR TIRE: _100/90-19 57M LENGTH: ......•.•.••••• _•••..•..........•.•.•.••••.••......... _84.4 in. O/A WIDTH: .•..••.••.• , _•••.•..•••...................•.........33.1 In. O/A HEIGHT: ..........• , •••.•.••.•_ .......•••.••.•••••. _.•..•. .50.2 in. WHEELBASE: ..........••••.•.•.............. _ ......•.•..••.... .57.1 in. GROUND CLEARANCE: ..• _••..•.. _......•••••• _ .•.••..••.•.•.•... 13.2 in. FUEL CAPACITY: .2.1 gal. CLAI!'IED DRY WEIGHT: _..............••.....•................192 Ibs. PRICE: ..... _...........•....•.•............•....•..............$4999 7/11/2002 7/1212002 7/13/2002 7/13/2002 7/13/2002 7/13/2002 7/13/2002 7/13/2002 7/14/2002 7/1412002 7/1412002 7/1412002 7/1412002 7/1412002 7/14/2002 7/14/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/16/2002 7/17/2002 7/17/2002 7/1712002 7/18/2002 7/18/2002 7/19/2002 7/20/2002 7/2112002 7/21/2002 7/21/2002 7/2112002 7/2112002 7/22/2002 12:00 AM 12:30 AM 1:00AM 2:00AM 3:00AM 2:00 PM 3:00 PM 6:00PM 7:00PM 7:30 PM 8:00 PM 9:00 PM 10:00 PM 11:00 PM 11:30 PM 7:00AM 7:30AM 5:00AM 7:30AM 8:00AM 7:00AM 3:00 PM 12:ooAM 12:30 AM 1:00AM 2:00AM 2:00 PM 3:00 PM 7:00 PM 7:30 PM 8:00 PM 9:00 PM 11:00 PM 11:30 PM 7:00AM 7:30AM 5:00AM 7:30AM 8:30AM 6:00 PM 3:30 PM 1:00AM 7:00AM 12:00 PM 1:00 PM 3:30 PM 8:00 PM 1:00AM 12:00 PM 1:00 PM 2:00 PM 2:30 PM 3:00 PM 4:00 PM 8:00 PM 12:ooAM 12:30 AM 1:00AM 2:00AM 2:30AM 3:00AM 8:00AM 2:00 PM 3:00 PM 6:00 PM 7:00 PM 7:30 PM 8:00 PM 9:00 PM 9:30 PM 10:00 PM 11:00 PM 11:30 PM 3:00AM 7:00AM 7:30AM 7:30AM 8:30AM 5:00AM 4:00AM 5:00AM 11:ooAM 12:00 PM 12:00 PM 1:00 PM 10:00 AM Speed Bike Week - Dave Despain, host Motorcyclist AMA Supertlike - Brainerd AMA 600 Supersport - Brainerd MotoGP World C'ship - Dutch Grand Prix MotoGP 125 - Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP 250 - Dutch Grand Prix MotoWOOd Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Motorcyclist AMA Superbike - Brainerd AMA 600 Supersport - Brainerd MotoGP World C'ship - Dutch Grand Pnx Corbin's Aide On - Brian Jackson. host American Thunder - Michele Smith. host Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed ESPN2 Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed MotorcyclistSpeed Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Speed MotoWOOd (A) Corbin's Ride On - Brian Jackson, host legends of Motorsport - Focus 500 ESPN Speed Speed Bike Week - Dave Despain. host MotoGP 125 - Calalunya Grand Prix Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Motorcyclist Speed Speed Speed Speed AMA Formula Xtreme - Brainered Speed Speed On Any Sunday AMA Superbike - Brainerd AMA 600 Supersport - Brainerd Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Motorcyclist Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed AMA Formula Xtreme - Brainered On Any Sunday Corbin's Aide On - Brian Jackson. host American Thunder - AHDRA las Vegas Motorcyclist Bike Week - Dave Despain. host MotoWortd (A) Corbin's Aide On - Brian Jackson. host Legends of Motorsport - On the Surface Speed Speed Speed ESPN2 Speed Speed ESPN2 MotoWortd AMA 600 Supersport - laguna Seca (Uve) FIM Superbike Superpole - laguna Seca Bike Week - Dave Despain. host AMA National Motocross - 250cc - Aed Bud AMA National Motocross - 125cc - Aed Bud AMA Superbike - laguna Seca (Uve) FIM Superbike Superpole - laguna Seca (SOD) FIM World Superbike - laguna Seca - Aace 2 MotoGP 250 - British Grand Prix (SOD) MotoGP Wortd C'ship - British Grand Prix (SOD) Hartey-Davidson Sportsters - Springfieid FIM Wortd Superbike Pre-Aace - laguna Seca (Uve) FIM Wood Superbike - laguna Seca - Aace 1 (Uve) AMA 600 Supersport - laguna Seca FIM World Superblke - laguna Seca - Aace 2 (SOD) Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Motoncyclist AMA Superbike - laguna Seca AMA 600 Supersport - laguna Seca AMA 750 Supersport - laguna Seca MotoGP Wortd C'ship - British Grand Prix legends of Motorsport - Assen 1977 MotoGP 125 - Dutch Grand Prix FIM Wortd Supersport - San Marino MotoWorld Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Motorcyclist AMA Superbike - laguna Seca AMA 600 Supersport - laguna 5eca AMA 750 Supersport . laguna Seca MotoGP Wortd C'shlp . British Grand Pnx Corbin's Aide On - Bnan Jackson. host American Thunder - Cushman Scooters AMA National Motocross - 2SOCC - Aed Bud Speed Speed Speed ESPN2 ESPN2 Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed ESPN2 Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed Speed ESPN2 Speed Motorcyclist Bike Week - Dave Despain. host Speed Speed Speed Corbin's Aide On . Brian Jackson, host Legends of Motorsport . Silverstone Dream· 1979 MotoWorld (A) AMA National Motocross - 125cc . Aed Bud ESPN2 ESPN2 ESPN2 AMA National Motocross - 250cc - Kenworthys MotoGP 250 - German Grand Prix (SOD) AMA National Motocross· 250cc . Kenworthys MotoGP World C'ship . German Grand Prix (SOD) AMA National Motocross - 125cc - Kenworthys legends of Motorsport - To be Wortd Champion Speed ESPN2 Speed ESPN2 Speed '" F'O'r' co'~ pieie'mriihly' iis ii'n'g 'g'o '1'0' Wvi, c'y'c"e'n'ew s: C~ '&'elick' 0n' TV' iis ii'n'gs" o' w 0 ' , All llmllIhor(III Ealtm. ESPN2 ·51111 Communlclllonllnd SpeedYillon IIltld Ibon. SOD , SImI DIy DIlly. Networks frequently modify program schedules. Consult your local cable listings to confirm broadcast dates and times. ESPN2 - Seals Communications - 770.631.5300, and Speedvision - 203.406.2500 C cle News is not res CUD nsible for chan es in schedulin . I e n e _O5 • JULV 3, 2002 33