Honda RC125M
Racing Bikes Honda RC125M | |
Class | Racing |
---|---|
Weight | |
Recommended Oil | Honda GN4 10W-40 |
Manuals | Service Manual |
Photos[edit | edit source]
Overview[edit | edit source]
Honda RC 125M
By guest writer Richard Fowler of
Motorsport Retro. This radical motocrosser from 1980 was the result of the Honda
factorys open chequebookand a desperate desire to see off its rivals.
Born in response to Gileras twin
cylinder motocross bike, the Honda RC125M Twin was nothing short of a
beautifully engineered technological marvel. Producing a staggering 35
horespower at 13,000 rpm from a reed-valved and watercooled, 124.99cc motor, the
red rocket brought a new meaning to the word screamer.
That radical Ribi front end was
seen as a worthwhile experiment after Roger DeCoster achieved some success with
the design aboard a factory Suzuki RN in 1978; when DeCoster switched teams, he
introduced Valentino Ribi to Honda and they bought the rights, which they own to
this day. The benefit of the system was a flex- and friction-free operation,
coupled to a highly adjustable and variable rate of progressionsimilar in
effect to modern-day rising rate rear suspension systems.
The downside was the staggering cost
of the 19 separate components, the difficulty in setting it up, the weight, and
the fact that visually, it resembles a techno praying mantis.
The bike debuted at Suzuka in 1980
with Kenji Sato aboard, and had further outings in 1981 before the FIM stepped
in and banned twin-cylinder bikes from international competition. A single
cylinder version of this bikeonce more with a Ribi front endwon the 1981 All
Japan 125cc Motocross Championship in the hands of Yasuo Tofukuji.