Honda CBF125

After moving to Hungary and returning to two wheels after many years as a 'cager' I had a number of scooters before buying a new Honda CBF 125. If I am honest, price was a major consideration. Buying second hand vehicles in Hungary is a minefield. Stolen imports, 'clocked' kms and every other problem are a major wqorry here. However many people still buy second hand as the government here put a huge registration charge for new bikes. i.e a 330,000 forint 125 c.c bike attracts a 95000 forint tax plus 40000 forints for number paltes etc.

However after a few bad experiences I decided to bite the bullet and buy new.

I discounted the Chinese options because (a) I had a cheap chinese scooter as the first way back on to two wheels and (b) everybody I know that has bought a Chinese bike has been unhappy with it.

So the KTM was way too expensive so I was left with the usual choice of Honda, Suzuki or Yamaha.

A friend lent me his CBF125 for a week and I was impressed.

So I am now ready to have the bike serviced at 4000 kms and what do I think?

Well let us look at the bad points: I dropped the petrol cap with the key in it and it bent like a pice of chocolate.

The spring on the sidestand broke at 3500 kms. There is already a little rust of the exhaust after only 3 months and it is never kept outside. However we must understand that this bike is as cheap as chips.

Do not bother worrying about petrol consumption as it does not use any. The brakes and tyres are adequate as long as you realise that you are not Valentino Rossi. The gearbox is perfect and the little engine is honest and pure and will cruise all day between 90 qnd 95 kph. As a commuter / fun bike it cannot be beaten. I have used it all through the Hungarian winter and apart form 3 days where the ice on the road was too bad, I have commuted between 60 / 100 kms daily. I wheel it out of the shed and even if it is minus 2,3 or 4 it starts at the first touch of the button with never a cough or splutter. It is cheap, reliable and fun and I would suggest that anybody who is on a restricted budget could do no better than buy this wonderful little motorcycle.

I am 164 cms and 70 kgs but my friend who lent me his is a taller and heavier man and still has no trouble.

Mine still pops along happily with 'her indoors' on the back and when I have been in the saddle for an hour and a half I do not feel stiff or cramped. My only wish is that it were a bit lower as I have duck's disease (short little legs). Buy one now!

I've had this bike over two years now and its a great 125 extremely reliable very economical and handles great if you live in a busy city its lightweight which allows easy overtaking, stylish nippy cheap and reliable, the only small down side to this gorgeous bike is that the tires are very thin which makes driving in the rain a real challenge

a good first bike to learn on, I can get 200miles out of a tank about £11

it has always started first time and not had any problems

I can get 60 - 65mph on flat and 50mph up hill

the only down sides I have found is riding on dark roads (no street lights) the front light is not very bright 1x 35w bulb expect will full beam. and it can be a bit unsteady in the wind apart from that great bike

I have bought the CBF 125 in September 2009 and I am commuting from Rochester in Kent to London every day. It is 33 miles one way, 66 miles a day which 50 miles is on a fast road A2 and 16 miles in a town. I am doing 15.000 miles a year. I am very happy with the bike and would recommend to anyone who is commuting up to 70 – 80 miles a day max. CBF 125 is not a racing bike, it is cheap and economical commuter which get’s you from A to B. If you respect and accept that the bike will last you forever. This bike is really economical, my insurance with recovery and legal fee for ME post code and 5 years NCB is less than £100 p.a. Road tax is £ 16 p.a. Service and spare parts are very cheap and MPG is brilliant. I get around 140 MPG over the past 45.000 miles.

I have changed the spark plug for the fast riding one (CPR8EA-9) and bigger front sprocket (17T). I have also bought bigger windscreen with the deflector and rear carrier for top box. There are not enough accessories for CBF 125. You can get much more from Germany, why, I do not understand? I can not fault the engine or bike at all. I commute in summer, winter, sun or rain and it never let me down. I had to call recovery once but that was because of the puncture.

I do service mostly by myself:

Oil change every 2.000 – 2.500 miles

Spark plug every 6.000 miles

Air filter every 8.000 miles

Front brake pads every 20.000 miles

Rear brake shoe every 25.000 miles

Front tyre every 25.000 miles

Rear tyre every 20.000 miles

Sprockets every 20.000 miles

Chain every 10.000 miles

I buy standard chain for £ 15 on EBay. I know there is much better quality one but for my riding it is fine.

Valve clearance was done at: 12.000 miles, 24.000 miles, 32.000 miles, 38.000 miles and 45.000 miles.

I know Honda says that you should check valve clearance every 2.500 miles but I just listen the engine and when it is not right not nice and smooth the valve clearance needs to be adjusted + possibly gasket and washers.

Front suspension started to leak at 18.000 miles and 38.000 miles. I have used local mechanic to change the oil and the seals. It cost me £90 for the parts and labour(Honda dealer is charging £ 172). Main handle bar bearing was changed at 42.000 miles as well with local mechanic for £ 98 for parts and labour. I paint exhaust twice a year in autumn before winter and in spring. Tin of paint cost £ 5.50 on EBay and it lasted me 2 years. I lubricate and clean the chain every week + tyre pressure check and engine oil check. All the parts for CBF 125 are cheap and can be easily replaced, make sure you look after the engine and you will be fine.

Low wear of tyres and brakes and good MPG is due to careful riding and the fact that most of my journey I am cruising at 55-60 MPH on A2.

I have passed test on my CBF and I am restricted to 33 bhp till March 2013. I will keep the bike until the engine will die but I am confident that it will do another 20.000 miles. Let’s see next review will be in 1 year time at 60.000 miles.

Stan

Today 19 of july 2012 has been problably the best day of my life, I was looking to upgrade to a 125 geared, from a 50 rev n go, I tested a honda cbr125 but I'm too tall for it and it handled very slugish, so I went for the cbf 125 and I must say it is incredible, I bought it brand new from a honda dealer at £2,500 and they chucked in a free helmet and disk break lock, along with 2 years warrenty, apart from minorly tightening the clutch cable, the bike is amazing, it picks up speed like a bullet, and has a supperb gear ratio,

After reading some of the reviews on multiple websites I havnt heard a bad note about the honda cbf125, however! People are trying to custimize the air filter by replacing it with a k and n, DON'T! This will slowly ruin your bike, firstly moisure will be sucked in to your block and assist cylender corosion, wich is the heart of you bike, not a good idea, leave it standard just replace your tyres every 3000 miles or so keep your oil toped up to the tip of your dip stick, and the rest leave to a trained mechanic(I got my bike with 2 years warrenty) woop! Enjoy riding readers you can see my bike reveiws on you tube much loved terry tibes

I have a Mazda 3 diesel that gives me 60mpg in summer and 53mpg in Winter. Great economy for my car but the mileage I have to do to get to work was costing me over £2000 per year in fuel alone. I then decided that I HAD to get a motorcycle. It don't take long to realise that Honda are renouned for reliability so it was CBF125 pr the CBR125. As this was a purchase for financial reasons it meant the CBF was the one for me. I got a 2011 60 plate with extra fairings, a givi box and a taller windscreen. 1700 miles for £1895. My insurance is £168 with no NCB Fully Comp. My first tank cost me just over £14 to fill and I got over 360 miles. basically 159mpg. It's not the fastest bike but you can't have speed and economy.

As a first time biker, but been driving a car for 25 years, I can highly recommend this bike to any first timers. I feel comfortable riding it after about 4 hours roadtime. Done just over 400 miles now and have no real complaints. The only downside is the gears.... It can be quite easy to miss an up-shift. I have read that the best solution is to release the nut on the gear level and just move the sprocket around 1 click and it's so much better. I will try this at the weekend. If this works then there is no complaints....

It is quite a light bike and you do get thrown about a lot... So take it easy when it's windy. It's fine as long as you stay under 40. Drive to your conditions... It's simple....

I did get Conti-go tyres with it and cannot compare against stock... But they are good in the wet and at about £90 a pair I would highly recommend them.

Hey this is a great bike, here are my specs.

Fuel injected variant

16T front sprocket

42 rear sprocket

Solid bush chains

K&N air filter

Michelin tyres

Custom free flow exhaust

Total Velocity = 115Kmph

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdVEtZEVgJ0

tats my video, hope you like it! and yes this bike is excellent in terms of mileage and performance.

Any can you post your top speeds? and does 17T help in the top-end by any chance??

Happy Riding!

I bought this bike with only 1280 miles on the clock and it has not given me any problems. I did think it could do with a 6th gear for cruising, so decided to fit a 17 tooth front sprocket. What a difference !! I would recommend all CBF 125 owners to do so. You get the same sort of performance using 4th gear instead of 5th, but click it into 5th at 55-60mph for great lower rev cruising on open roads. Top speed is not much different as it dose not have the power or aerodynamics to allow it, but doesn't vibrate at 70mph !

The standard tyres fitted are fine in the dry but terrible in the wet, must invest in a set of Continentals which i have heard are so much better. I average 280 to 300 miles on a tank of fuel and love this commuting bike.

Only thing that gives me concern is a intermediate noise from the engine, sounds like the cam chain / tensioner, has anyone else have this noise as both Honda dealers have said this is normal and nothing to worry about ?????

As i said, try the 17 tooth front sprocket, you won't regret it ! (if you don't like it, don't worry it only costs £5 !!)

After spending weeks deciding to go from automatic to gears and looking at many diff bikes i decided that the CBF 125 was the ideal choice.I needed a bigger 125 as im 6ft 1 and weigh in at 16 stone and as i have a large frame due to being a body builder the CBF was the perfect choice . It will hit 72mph on an A road so no complaints from me here but the cbf seems to love sitting at a nice steady 60MPH . I havent tested for distance as yet with MPG but from what other readers have put then i wont be disapointed.

I can honestly say that i made the right choice 100% ... And i dont look like im riding a mini moto like most other 125cc bikes.Handeling is great esp around those tight bends in and around lincolnshire id give this bike 9 out of 10 anyday , the only thing that lets them down is tyres.

I have just completed 12,000 miles on my trusty Honda cbf 125. I have changed the tyres from the wooden TVS to conti-go and what a diference in grip.The old tyres were trible the wet and cold conditions. The new conti- go have transformed the ride. Bike bulid quality still good however Honda replaced the fornt wheel under warrenty as the black paint had peeled off. I had a new chain fitted at 11,000 miles otherwise i just change the oil regularly and fill the bike with petrol and off I go. A cracking bike.I am still not missing my old ER6.