Yamaha Tt-R125le
YAMAHA TT-R125LE
CYCLE WORLD TEST
Pushbutton playbike
JIMMY LEWIS
MAN, WHAT I WOULD have given for one of these when I was a kid. I was lucky-I had a Honda XR80-but in comparison, the Yamaha TT-R125LE is way cooler. It even looks like a YZ450F!
Think like a kid for a minute-not too hard for me, I’ll tell you. The situation isn’t that complex: You see a motorcycle and you want it. The fact that Dad has to shell out $2699 means very little to you. There’s always money in his wallet, and when he runs low, he just goes to the ATM and gets more. The fact that you should see it as a couple of hundred lawn-mowings or car-washings really doesn’t come into play. The bright-blue Yamaha has a way of talking to kids. Haven’t you seen the television commercial with the father and son going to the dealership?
To a child, the TT-R’s components are close enough to those of the “real” YZ to avoid suspicion. Not like the days when my little XR had two shocks while Dad’s had one. The TT-R’s lines mimic those of the YZ, even incorporating faux radiator shrouds in spite of its air-cooled motor. A conventional fork up front and drum brake out back are obvious costmandated measures, but then maybe that’s why this bike is called a TT-R rather than a YZ.
Youth and enthusiasm couldn’t care less about one of the TTR125LE’s standout upgrades: electric starting. Kids would kick ’til they’re blue in the face to get a ride on this bike! But pushbutton ignition makes the 125 that much more versatile. Mom can ride it. Learners aren’t penalized for stalling the engine. Girlfriends can ride it. It even has a key. Junior can ride it-if his grades are good or he learns the art of hotwiring. Bad grades, motorcycles and hotwiring should put up a red flag, though!
Initially very cold-blooded, the TT-R requires more choke for a longer period of time than you’d think it would, especially when new. A bump in pilot-jet size would do this bike some good. But after a thorough warm-up, the small sohc Thumper is quite lively and super-torquey for its size. It’s quiet, too: In stock trim, it will hardly bother anyone, making for a superb backyard blaster, provided you have the space. Because the muffler is equipped with a spark arrestor, the TT-R is EPA off-road-legal, too.
The manual-clutch, five-speed transmission has a plentylow first gear to get things started. The ratios are pretty closely spaced, and the motor tops out quickly in fifth, but it isn’t as if it couldn’t pull taller gearing. Torque is the name of the game in power delivery, with a curve that is linear and flat. That’s great for beginners and short-shifters, allowing them to get away with the wrong gear, incorrect throttle opening or bad clutchmanship. Too much or too little, the result is never too bad. Power like this drives experienced riders nuts, though, when they rev it and nothing exciting happens. There might be 12 horsepower in there somewhere!
Stretching the throttle cable is a sensation many rave about but few actually experience. On the TT-R, it’s a way of life! With halfway skilled riders aboard, the throttle has one position-wide open-and they have to concentrate on other aspects, such as shifting for speed. Fortunately, banging gears is smooth and the transmission is built to handle the abuse. Come to think of it, we’ve never had any clutch problems on TT-R’s, even with way-oversized riders trying ridiculous stuff. Yet through all this abuse, the air-cooled motor never got bothered, noisy or even had its oil discolored.
Size-wise, with a 31.4-inch seat height, the Yamaha fits just about everyone. We had riders from age 10 to nearly 70 take the TT-R for a ride. Inseam-challenged kids were able to “grow into” the LE because they didn’t have to awkwardly balance the bike while trying to kick-start it. Bigger guys, up to 6 feet tall, managed to find room on it as well, provided they paid attention to the all-important knee-to-handlebar relationship. The LE’s larger 19-inch front/16-inch rear wheels (compared to the 17/14-inchers of the standard TT-R) and slightly longer swingarm give the bike a slight boost in size to fit larger riders. The larger hoops also roll a little easier over bumps and track straighter in soft terrain.
Suspension is another area in which Yamaha snuck in a few improvements. Aluminum is now the material of choice for the swingarm, helping to offset the added weight of the electric starter. Connected through a linkage, the shock now has both compression and rebound adjustability, plus a remote reservoir mounted on the front downtube. And the forks have a spring-preload adjuster built into each cap. Not that it isn’t a great idea to have all this trickery, mind you, but in our testing, adjustments made very little difference. We ended up running most of the adjustments near the stiff end of the spectrum, which was better for adults as well as kids, who usually ended up jumping things they shouldn’t have anyway. “Stiffness” might not be the right word, however, because the TT-R is clearly sprung for someone closer to the 120-pound mark than 180. That said, it isn’t a motocross bike, either. Its setup is more trail-oriented, and it handles ground imperfections of that nature just fine.
Not even soft suspension could stop us from riding the TT-R around MX tracks, however. Bottoming out was the consequence, yet the bike took the beating and even seemed to enjoy it. At least the footpegs, which mount to the bottom of the motor, didn’t rip out like they did on my old XR80! I learned a lot about re-tapping and installing oversized bolts to put my Honda back together.
Handling is pretty neutral, leaning toward the stable side, especially for a minibike with full-sized riders aboard. Fairly light effort gets a lot done while turning. Since the layout allows unhindered rider movement, you can really make the bike carve by moving forward on the seat.
The clutch pull is light and the brakes get the job done. There isn’t the bite found on a motocrosser, but you can stop on a quarter if not a dime. About the only thing we had to keep an eye on was spoke tension. After a few-well, a lot-of falls, the bars were bent a bit, but the TT-R was otherwise unscathed. Leaving the key in the On position doesn’t drain the battery, and kick-starting is easy as well. Routine maintenance for all this fun consists of cleaning the air filter and changing the engine oil once in a while (every 10 hours according to the manual). And for those who can’t leave well enough alone, the TT-R aftermarket is booming. About the only aftermarket part for my XR80 was a loud pipe, and I wasn’t allowed to get that! Nowadays, there are graphics kits, motor kits, all the way to complete frame swaps, and Yamaha has its own line of GYT-R accessories for the TT-R as well. You can drop $10,000 on this minibike, no problem.
In our view, the TT-R125LE may well be the most fun bike on the market, as every second in the saddle has been a blast for every rider. It’s lighter, peppier and more agile than the Honda CRF150, our previous favorite playbike. But the real capper is the electric starting: The bike doesn’t really need it, but it doesn’t take long to appreciate the convenience factor. Add to that a price tag that is $ 100 cheaper than the kick-start Honda, and the Yamaha looks even better. Kids, start getting your act together, because whether it comes in a sleigh or out of your piggybank, you’ve got to have one of these! Maybe you can go in halves with Mom or Dad... □
YAMAHA
TT-R125LE
$2699
