Salaam everyone !
Most of the members here know me as a die hard CG125 fan because I owned 3 CG's ( 1994, 2010 stolen, 2011 ) and always ready to defend whoever came up with something that CG sucks etc :D. But, ever since AHL launched its so called " Power Machine " Euro2 CG125, its quality went from bad to worst and I left hopes that AHL will even try to improve in the upcoming future...
After 6 Years with HONDA CG125. I felt the need for a change and at that time there was no other bike worth giving a try....
1) Piaggio had resale issues
2) GD110 was too much for a small sized bike
3) GS150 was better but I never admired its shape and finishing.
Then came YAMAHA with their newly launched YBR125. I loved it's BLUE color and with the grace of Allah almighty I became the owner of one
First impressions:-
- Riding position seemed awkward as I was used to with CG's straight seat and tank
- Gears were so hard, it was difficult to bring it back to neutral
- Bike and Road grip was smooth
- Brakes were OUTSTANDING
- Annoying engine noise but silent exhaust
That bike in Blue really was an attention seeker, I remember giving interviews to 4-5 fellow bikers on my way back home from showroom... Everyone praised it with " MashaAllah " and " Allah naseeb kary " like words and it continued for almost a month
Running period :-
Well in the running period I strictly kept my RPM's under 6,000 and oil changed at 500 and then again at first tuning.... Before first tuning, I tried to take it to its highest potential ( safe environment ) and it was DISAPPOINTING as well as SURPRISING...
-Disappointing? Well it didn't go beyond 90kmph and it was really really disappointing. Considering a bike with such looks and better engine than the former it was a big THUMBS DOWN for YBR
-Surprising? It was vibrationless and smooth even at its max... And I had a little bit of confidence on its brakes and grip which I never had in CG125 above 80kmph
Fuel consumption :-
In the running period where I kept the speed below 60 at all times, I managed to get 51kmpL. Yes, 51! It is the first and the last time though after the first tuning, the best I've got is 45kmpL and it all depends on your riding style
Top speed:-
After the first tuning and about 1500+ km's later, I tried to go parallel with my own CG ( driven by cuzn ). No one can deny the fact that CG in its initial gears is the best local bike... It went ahead easily in first 3 gears but later YBR took his time and was catching CG slowly. By the time I was almost parallel to it my speed on ODO was 115kmph. That is the maximum potential for it... And surprisingly RPM's were not even touching redline at all at 5th gear
I was overall satisfied with it later
Issues:-
The first and the most annoying issue in the beginning was the MISSING issue... Bike started to Knock at high RPM's. ( SOLVED - First tuning )
Silencer started to sound weird as if something is broken inside and rattling with the surface after 1800km's ( SOLVED - Replaced under warranty )
Trip meter was not resetting digits back to zero and speed needle started to vibrate at 60kmph ( REPLACED - Under warranty )
( New Meter ) RPM needle started vibrating at 5000-6000 RPM 's ( Replaced under warranty )
( Again new meter ) RPM needle vibrating even worse at 5000-6000 RPM's. At first, YAMAHA engineers tried to convince me that it is NORMAL in all YBR's but they failed to satisfy me when I told them to show me atleast 2/3 bikes that have issue similar. Then they put the blame on CDI unit and I'm waiting to receive new CDI anytime soon ( PENDING ).
Ridiculously expensive parts... Front headlight with assembly 10k. Indicators 1500/pair. Brake shoes 3,700/- PKR. Price of spares are almost close to that of HONDA cars.
Conclusion:-
Well, now at the end I would like to mention that YBR is without any doubt, so far, the most beautiful bike locally manufactured, providing comfort as well as performance... But, if you're considering it for a family ride, it is not the best choice for you. The max no. Of people that can sit comfortably is 2. Increasing this number will cause serious pain in driver's private areas because of tank design...
Overall, the bike is very COMFORTABLE !
much better in terms of safety and Road grip than other local bikes and price is just about REASONABLE considering the price of competitors in 125cc category