Honda Varadero XL125V

Like other reviewers I returned to motorcycling in my 60's after a gap of over 40 years. Being over 6 feet tall and weighing 17 stone I needed a bike that would not make me look like a "tom-tit on a round of beef" (as my wife would say) and the Varadero fits the bill. I would say that riders with short legs would struggle to keep the Varadero upright.

I also wanted Honda's reliability and, again, the Varadero delivered.

After some research I opted for a 2008 model with fuel injection and have been delighted with its performance and economy. It is a heavy bike and needs considerable strength to park it on its centre stand or manoeuvre it "manually" but on the road is very responsive and easy to ride.

It is a great bike.

started riding again after 35 years did my cbt and bought my varadero. what a fantastic bike,i ride it everyday all over the place cruise everywhere at 55/60 never misses a beat went to a bike nite the other day parked it among the Harleys and no one batted an eyelid such a great big 125 luv it

first of all the bike looks like it should be a 600cc!!! i mean seriously how many 125s do you get that are this big and with an engine that actually looks bigger than it should be! took delivery of it last week (2008 model) and am seriously surprised on the guts that the engine has, it has some pull on it to say the least! its easy to handle but i would probably say that it is suited to the larger rider who doesnt want to fanny around looking about 10 times too big on a cbr 125. i have manage to get 70mph on a straight but relatively bumpy road and didnt have any problems with it... been reading about the place that it is hard to handle at high speeds which really isnt the case... going to take it down to a few spots where i know i can get more speed out of it rather than down my main road and see what she really does.... will keep posted on that one. one thing i dont like is that there isnt much space under the seat for storing much so i would definately advise to get a box to stash all your gear in it. all in all its a brilliant bike and am extremely happy with my purchase

Let me start off by saying that I am not a motorbike person . I simply decided in November 2011 that I was fed up paying £250 a month petrol for my car along with £500 a year insurance and £240 a year rfl. I visited 4 or 5 motorbike showrooms and my last call was Honda Belfast. I have to say I was very well treated and the service was first class ending with me buying a 2008 varadero.

I then took my cbt on a small Yamaha (knees round the chin job as I am 6'2") and took delivery of my bike the next week.

The bike has been a pleasure to ride. I find it very comfortable to sit on and as I am commuting a round trip of 40 miles a day to work It quite happily sits at 40 mph no problems.

I have pushed it up to 70 but at this speeds the engine is starting to grumble.

Sitting at 40 mph will give me a return of around 340 miles on a thankful of petrol ( I am using BP ultimate which is costing 1.43 per litre , so a tankful costs me £19.30 ish. )

there are a few minor issues with the bike.

It would be a lot better if it had a 6th gear, but this is something you learn to live with.

If you are going to use it in the winter heated handgrips are a must.

I found servicing through a main dealer a bit expensive , so a Haynes manual sorted that out. Servicing is a 15 minute job ( oil ,filter plug and sump bung washer.

If you are going to keep the bike long term I woul recomend the following accessories.

Centre stand ( why are they not fitted as standard )

Cowl ( looks good and protects the radiator)

Heated grips

Top Box

Bike has not suffered from corrosion as I notice some people complaing about , but I tend to hose it down if I have been out in the wet, and my wheels are cleanend weekly with WD40. ( ps keep this away from the brakes)

Overall , Very happy with bike and would recomend it to anyone

I’ve owned 1 50cc scooter 3 125cc rev and go and 5 125cc motorbikes and the Xl125V-2 is the best I’ve ever owned the bike weight’s about 154kg dry and I weight about 18 stone or about 120 when I’m going to my mates for a few days the bike can carry all the things that I need. The 30 litre tank bag is always full and that weight’s about 5-10kg, my 20 litre back packs is full weight’s about 10-15kg and the 37 litre top box is full weight’s about 10-25kg when that is all on the bike it looks like as if there is no room to get on the bike but it will do 70-75mph 200 miles to 17.5 litre’s of fuel add that all up the bike comes in at 300-350kg. The down side to the bike is the parts are expensive but worth the money please can anyone email me website for the tyre’s I can only find the brand [email protected]

i am 41 years old and roughly 18 stones light ahem !!!

i purchased a 2010 honda varadero xl 125 from dobles honda in feb this year and i have to say even though its restricted to 15bhp this bike pulls like a train .. it pulls my fat frame at 70mph no problems and once you change those stupid trial tyres the bike comes with for proper road tyres it handles great too ... ive managed 3500 miles since feb and im loving it ... if it had another 30bhp it would be the perfect bike for me ..

I've had the bike for a year now, and I've never had any problems with it. Always starts like from under a palm tree. Fuel consumption is great, mine uses about 3 liters per 100km.

I've had this bike a year now. I managed to ride it from Brighton to Devon then up to the Highlands in Scotland, all on A roads (didn't have my full license yet). Was amazing! no problems at all and extremely fuel efficient. It has a big bike feel and a good presence on the road. Even though I am planning on moving up to larger bikes, I still would like to keep it! My only recommendations to new buyers is to let the bike warm up before you ride it on cold days to get its full performance.

Just a quick report as I have only had the Varadero one week. I traded a Suzuki gn 125 in for the Honda and in terms of performance, what a differance. On the way home I did manage a wind assisted 80mph, and I am 18 stone!!

However I wont be riding like that much but it seemes very comfortable at 60 to 65 mph and I have worked out the first tankfull of fuel at approx. 83 mpg which will be ideal for my 8 mile commute

It rides and handles superbly and I can see me hanging on to this bike for quite a while. Will add to this as and when!!

Just an absolute catalogue of breakdowns and problems.

Fuel injectors needed re-seating.

Cogs on the coolant pump don't fit properly and rattle.

Mysterious rattle from the engine.

Rear brake seal failure, every single year costing £200 a time.

Poor to non-existent customer service.

This bike is an over-priced disaster zone. I would never buy another Honda as long as I live. Poor build quality, bad service from Honda, incredibly unreliable.