Introduction
Country’s leading two-wheeler manufacturer, Honda 2 Wheelers India has brought in CB125 Hornet a new 125cc motorcycle with a sporty and refreshing design with many best-in-segment and first-in-segment features. The 125cc Hornet which was first announced on 23rd July along with Shine 100 DX grabbed a lot of attention right from the day 1 of its launch. Almost after 3 months of its reveal, we got hold of a CB125 Hornet unit for review in Bengaluru. What follows below is the detailed review of new CB125 Hornet from Honda.
First Impressions + Design and Looks
First impressions, the motorcycle looks grand and equipped as advertised everywhere on Honda’s brochure and websites. In flesh, the motorcycle attracts you with a very good styling and graphic elements. The attractive elements of Honda CB125 include a sharp and uniquely designed bright headlight, golden telescopic USD forks, muscular tank, body colored alloy wheels, split seat, a unique exhaust muffler and more…..
The other prominent highlight of new CB125 is its powerful LED headlight, All LED lighting which includes the turn indicators that is strongly visible at night enhancing the overall on-road presence of the motorcycle.
Instrument Cluster and Joystick
Honda Hornet 125 is so far one of the most updated motorcycle in its segment, specifically the digital instrument cluster is targeted at next generation customers who are young and tech-savvy. The digital instrument cluster uses the color display. The system is very easy to operate even though it is based on Joystick inputs. Toggling between different menu options is very intuitive and it can be performed with minimal clicks, Honda has put in lot of effort in getting this right – one of the most used and seen equipment of your motorcycle through-out rider’s ownership duration.
ECO indicator present at the corner of instrument cluster is super useful to enhance the fuel-efficiency of the bike and to ride at optimal speed with right acceleration inputs. The color-screen features prominently the speed indicator and gear indicator. All other important rider friendly information like fuel gauge, RPM meter, trip meter, clock, side stand indicator, service indicator etc are present. Outside the layout of the screen there is prominent ABS indicator.
As told earlier, joystick toggle is extremely responsive and synchronises well with the software and UI….. The Joystick arrows can be toggled to access more detailed information like Distance-to-empty, bluetooth based mobile connectivity features etc….
Special mention to reverse LCD display that kicks in based on the surrounding ambient light. Switching to dark mode and day mode almost happens quickly when you get past a tunnel on the road. The LCD fonts are well readable and does its job really well.
Dimensions and Specs
- Kerb Weight: 124 kg (One of the lightest)
- Length: 2015 mm
- Height: 1087 mm
- Seat Height: 796 mm
- Wheelbase: 1330 mm
- Fuel Tank Capacity: 12 Litres
- Tyres: Front 80/100−17, Rear 110/80−17
With just 124 kgs of kerb weight, CB125 motorcycle is very very light to sit and operate on – riders who are not so well built and those are short will find no problem in accessing this motorcycle as the seat height is just 796 mm. The ground clearance of 166mm is fair enough to pass through those large speed breakers without rubbing the floor of the bike. The fuel tank capacity of 12 litres is great – bonus of motorcycle’s high fuel efficiency around 55 -60 kmpl makes it a very attractive proposition for the motorcycle rider for long distance commuting. One could easily do a distance of about 600 to 700 kms with one single fuel tank which is very impressive (also thanks to distance to empty feature). Tyres offered are tubeless and it is wide-enough for the better grip and control on the road.
Engine and Performance
This premium sports motorcycle from Honda delivers a not-so-bad power output of 11.14 PS – which is not something very much, but also not too low for a 125cc motorcycle like this. The engine is mated to a 5-speed gearbox, this is a single cylinder air-cooled engine powered by PGM-FI technology (Programmed Fuel Injected) technology. The motorcycle offers Silent Start with Honda’s newly introduced ACG technology.
The Hornet 125 does a good job on highways as well as inside the city.. The engine and exhaust noise is very refined…. And it feels very smooth and effortless to shift the gears… Thanks to Assist and Slipper clutch a very sophisticated technology used in modern motorcycles to improve the operation of clutch.
Ride and Handling
Although it feels under-powered because of 125cc engine, Honda’s tech in combination with the right tuning makes you feel like you are riding a bigger 150 or 160cc motorcycle. However, there are limits, the speed increases gradually because of linear power delivery once you are in higher gears, and it takes a while for you to reach 100 kmph. We reached a top-speed of about 110 Kmph on highway..
The motorcycle is extremely fun to ride within the city, it offers a great amount of agility to zip through the traffic…. Both front and rear suspension works its best offering a great amount of comfort for the rider.
Braking and Suspension
The all new 125cc Hornet gets an excellent suspension system, Thanks to the golden USD forks which is present in the front providing an ample amount of travel resulting in comfortable ride on even rough and pothole filled roads. We were truly impressed by CB125 Hornet’s front suspension system. At the rear side, Honda has used adjustable mono-suspension that enhances the comfort of pillion rider.
Although there is no disc brake setup at the rear wheels, the drum brakes are more than enough for bikes of this category (125cc). The brakes were responsive and the stopping distance was good enough. The motorcycle is equipped with single-channel ABS…. Very few bikes in this category offer ABS – some of them being Raider, Xtreme 125R etc…. The ABS present on Hornet CB 125 provides the rider an additional assurance while riding on wet roads.
Colors on Offer
The all new CB125 Hornet motorcycle is available for sale in India in 4 colors:
- Pearl Siren Blue with Lemon Ice Yellow
Pearl Siren Blue with Sports Red - Pearl Igneous Black
- Pearl Siren Blue with Athletic Blue Metallic
Check all Honda Hornet 125 Colors
Price
The all new Hornet CB125 is launched in only one variant and it is priced at Rs 1,02,769 ( Ex-showroom Delhi). In Bangalore too the ex-showroom price of Hornet CB125 remains same. The on-road price of CB 125 costs Rs 1,32,000/-, the basic accessories Hornet 125 will cost Rs 847/- .
Verdict
Who should be buying the all new CB125 Hornet motorcycle? Motorcycle riders who always wanted to own Hornet 160 or Hornet 2.0 will be extremely satisfied with its little brother CB125. Be it the power delivery, ride quality, added tech, sporty looks and most-importantly it is available at a brilliant price point of just over a lakh (ex-showroom). We recommend your purchase decision for Honda CB125 Hornet over other premium 125cc motorcycles like TVS Raider, Xtreme 125 or Glamour X. Go for it!
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